EDITOR’S NOTE: This originally ran on October 30, 2021. Legend was not produced by Cannon but was released on video in the UK by Cannon Screen Entertainment Limited.

This Ridley Scott movie has always stood out from his other work to me, as it’s quite literally a children’s story about the most archetypical battle between the good of Jack (Tom Cruise) and evil of the Lord of Darkness (Tim Curry).

Much like how the original fairy tales were incredibly dark, this movie is filled with morbid imagery and a villain that may overwhelm viewers, making them love him more than the protagonist.

The death of the unicorn in this film is a moment that many 1980’s children will remember as quite possibly the end of said childhood. The true star of this movie remains Curry, who is absolutely incredible (as always). He spent five and a half hours a day just to get into the makeup, which then needed a full hour of bathing to remove all the adhesive. One day, Curry grew impatient and claustrophobic, removing the makeup and some of his own skin. He was off the film for a week to recover.

Interestingly enough, the European and director’s cut of this film don’t use Tangerine Dream, but instead feature music by Jerry Goldsmith. There was also a Bryan Ferry song, “Is Your Love Strong Enough?” that features Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour and a music video for that as well.

If you look in Meg Mucklebones’ swamp and when the unicorn is chained up, you can even spot Pazuzu from The Exorcist. Much like many of Scott’s Blade Runner, this movie wasn’t considered a classic when it was released. But today? It totally is.

You can listen to The Cannon Canon episode about this film, click here.