Highlander (1987)

Director: Russell Mulcahy
Starring: Christopher Lambert, Sean Connery, Clancy Brown

Synopsis:
Police investigate a string of beheadings as immortal swordsman congregate in New York for the final battle to attain ultimate power.

Impressions:
As I noted in my review of Flash Gordon, when you start your movie with a ballad by Queen, you're bound to be in for a good time. I used to watch a lot of the Highlander TV series when I was a kid and this is the movie that started it all. I really like the core concept of the franchise and we run nice parallel stories of the present-day Gathering and Connor's past. By far, the best thing about the film is Clancy Brown's amazing performance as the Kurgan, one of cinema's great villains. Sean Connery is also quite entertaining as the "Spanish peacock" Ramirez. (And, yes, you can rack your brains about the conundrum of an actual Scotsman playing a Spaniard who's actually an Egyptian visiting Scotland who has a more authentic Scottish accent than the Swiss-raised American playing a Scotsman.) There are some good action sequences to be had and the soundtrack is an effective marriage of Queen's power ballads and Michael Kamen's well-established talent for action movie music. It can be a bit of a silly movie, yes, but it's a fun ride and that's all you need. Definitely give this one a watch.

Rating:
Watch It