Paramount Home Entertainment has officially announced that the beloved fantasy cult classic Dragonslayer from director Matthew Robbins will be available to own for the first time on Limited-Edition 4K Ultra HD SteelBook, 4K UHD Blu-Ray and on Blu-Ray on March 21, 2023. The film has been newly restored in eye-popping 4K Ultra HD under the supervision of director/co-writer Matthew Robbins. It stars Peter MacNicol, Ralph Richardson, John Hallam and Caitlin Clarke.
An essential cinematic adventure with groundbreaking and Oscar®-nominated visual effects, DRAGONSLAYER has been restored with exceptional picture and sound to bring the spectacular fantasy to life for a new generation. Legendary visual effects supervisor Phil Tippett (Star Wars, Jurassic Park) created the film’s special effects, pioneering a new technique called “go motion” that incorporates blurring into each frame for more realistic images. Vermithrax Pejorative, the fire-breathing creature at the center of the story, was created using a combination of go motion and 16 massive dragon puppets. Get the details below!
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RSWznYdY_e8]
Synopsis: Set in sixth-century England, an ill-tempered, fire-breathing creature—ominously known as Vermithrax Pejorative—terrorizes its citizens until a young sorcerer’s apprentice named Galen (Peter MacNicol) is reluctantly tasked with confronting the beast. For Galen to succeed, it will take more than magic to defeat the dragon.
DRAGONSLAYER continues to win over fans more than 40 years after its initial release, not the least of which is Guillermo del Toro who joins director and longtime collaborator Matthew Robbins for an entertaining and illuminating new commentary. The 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray releases also include more than an hour of additional new special features as detailed below:
- THE SLAYER OF ALL DRAGONS – Step back in time with director/co-writer Matthew Robbins, dragon supervisor Phil Tippett, and ILM’s visual effects master Dennis Muren as they revisit DRAGONSLAYER. Their stories and memories take viewers deep into the dragon’s fiery lair as they recount the challenging journey from concept to screen.
- WELCOME TO CRAGGANMORE – A look back at the impact of Star Wars and its visual effects on Hollywood, the origin of DRAGONSLAYER and its screenplay, and the film’s casting.
- A LONG WAY TO URLAND – Pre-production begins in England as the film takes shape. The young filmmakers seek gritty medieval realism through the production design, cinematography, and costumes.
- VERMITHRAX PEJORATIVE – The filmmakers take on the daunting task of bringing a dragon to life like never before, utilizing every ounce of movie magic available including Phil Tippett’s breakthrough go-motion animation, cutting-edge practical animatronics, visual effects, and compositing.
- INTO THE LAKE OF FIRE – Production woes at every turn, horrific baby dragons, and the challenge of creating Vermithrax’s iconic lair plague the filmmakers. Phil Tippett offers a mini-masterclass on crafting powerful creature performance through detailed animation.
- THE FINAL BATTLE – The team faces the unique challenges of the film’s stage-bound climax, filmed entirely against a blue screen. Director Matthew Robbins looks back on the incredible work done in the final stages of film editing, the beautifully dense sound design, and Alex North’s amazing score, which utilized pieces from his legendary unused 2001: A Space Odyssey score.
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Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.
