macmcentire

Rewatching the 1988 movie Willow scene-by-scene. Why? Because it’s freaking Willow! You want swashbuckling adventure? Here’s your swashbuckling adventure. It’s the wagon chase, 48:59-53:47 on the Blu-ray.

We’re still inside the tavern as the fighting starts, with the tavern ruffians barroom brawling with the NockMaar soldiers. There’s a shot of Llug throwing one more punch. As Willow runs through the tavern, he does a roll, tripping one of the NockMaar. People say that Willow never fights, but this shows that he does have some moves. Madmartigan runs up some stairs. Sorsha is smart enough to know where this is headed, and shouts, “To the horses!”

Cut to outside, where it has stopped raining. Madmartigan, who has the baby, punches a guy and then uses the outdoor rope-and-pully system to lower himself from the third floor balcony down to the ground in an impressive stunt. This infamously begins the carrying-around-the-baby-during-action-as-if-she’s-weightless thing that persists throughout the movie. If Elora Danon is magic, perhaps she’s unknowingly (or knowingly?) using magic to make herself lighter during awesome action. The barrel used as Madmartigan’s counterweight smashes open on the ground, with red liquid (wine, I’m assuming) splashes out of it. This causes a man standing nearby to fall backwards out of surprise.

On a wagon, Madmartigan sets the baby down on what looks like a brown blanket, conveniently pre-shaped to hold a baby. He takes the reins, gives a cowboy-style “hee-yaw!” and the horses take off running. Willow follows, doing an impressive leap off the balcony and onto the back of the wagon. He yells “Madmartigan!” here, and he’ll continue to “Madmartigan!” throughout this entire sequence. The Brownies fall off of Willow and onto the Wagon as well. This also reveals more barrels of wine inside the wagon.

The Nockmaar soldiers hop on their horses and begin pursuit. I count six soldiers on horseback, plus two more riding a horse-drawn chariot. (Chariots are not normally intended for long-distance travel. Maybe they commandeered it from one of the tavern ruffians.) We get our final shot of Llug, still shouting “Not a woman!” as the NockMaar ride off. Whatever happened to Llug? We never see him again, and his and his wife’s fates are unknown.

The horses pull the wagon at full gallop, and the filmmakers to a good job of making it appear as if everyone is moving ridiculously fast. Now there are three NockMaar in pursuit, with the chariot farther behind them. The remaining three soldiers must have taken a wrong left turn somewhere because we never see them again. Willow checks on the baby and pleads for Madmartigan to stop as he checks on the baby. Franjean and Rool stumble around, interacting with an apple rolling about. Even during action, there’s time for jokes. Madmartigan reaches into his shirt and pulls out some fruit, which we’re meant to think was part of his disguise as a woman. He looks around, considering throwing it at the NockMaar, but the wagon goes over a bump, the fruit falls out of his hand, and bonk Willow on the head. This is a cheap laugh, but it also establishes the geography of the scene, to the audience is clear on who is where. Franjean, still believing himself to be the hero of this story, yells “Prepare to die!” at the NockMaar.

A NockMaar jumps onto the wagon from the left, while another fires an arrow from the right, narrowly missing Madmartigan. Madmartigan kicks the invading Nockmaar. Madmartigan picks up a shovel that happens to be inside the wagon and knocks the NockMaar (heh) off the wagon. Because it’s been rainy and muddy, I’m assuming this shovel was to be used in case the wagon wheels got stuck in the mud. The wagon continues on, with two NockMaar seen riding behind it.

The NockMaar to the right jumps onto the wagon with a flamboyant flip. Madmartigan hits him with the shovel, but NockMaar isn’t fazed. He swats the shovel out of Madmartigan’s hand and draws his sword. Madmartigan reaches for the man’s wrists, and they struggle for control of the sword. Remember that Madmartigan bragged earlier about being a great swordsman, but we haven’t seen him use one yet. I’ve always felt the “swordsman without a sword” idea behind Madmartigan is iconic, like something myth/folklore that’s always been with us.

The Brownies run around, avoiding everyone’s feet, while Willow climbs onto the front of the wagon, calling for Madmartigan to stop. The reins, however, are loose, barely dangling off of the front of the wagon. Somehow, the sword is gone, as the NockMaar is now strangling Madmartigan. This NockMaar is not wearing a metal helmet, but a big furry cap. (I’m guessing this is to protect the stuntman’s safety gear.) Madmartigan punches him, and then gets on top of him. We don’t see what he does, because the movie cuts to Rool, acting seasick (Carsick? Wagonsick?). It’s hard to hear, but Rool says “No more beer,” referencing the previous scene. Willow reaches for the reins, but they slip and between the two horses, who are still mindlessly galloping forward at full speed.

There’s a big log in the path. The horses instinctively leap over it to keep running, and the wagon bumps over it and into the air, getting some impressive hang time before crashing back to the ground. The impact knocks Willow forward, onto the wooden rigging connecting the horses to the wagon (I know there’s a word for this, but darned if I could find it.) Rool is thrown a small hole in the side of the wagon and is hanging on for dear life. He calls to Franjean for help.

If all this wasn’t enough danger, one of the wagon wheels breaks apart. The practical effect of this is impressive, as the wheel more or less explodes,  with pieces of it flying all over. Franjean finds Rool and asks “What are you doing?” as Rool cries “Help me!” I guess Franjean has gotten so used to Rool being mischievous that Franjean just assumed Rool is doing shtick and isn’t in real danger. He pulls Rool back inside. At the front of the wagon, Willow climbs forward with determination, hoping to get at the reins. He succeeds, but then has to climb all the way back up the front of the wagon before he can use them. There’s a quick shot of Madmartigan and the NockMaar fighting over the NockMaar’s sword — so the sword is back somehow — and a shot of the baby smiling, just enjoying the ride.

A second NockMaar jumps onto the wagon. Willow picks up a mallet for self-defense. Why is a mallet there? Maybe it was used to hammer the lids securely onto the tops of the wine barrels. This NockMaar is wearing a proper metal helmet, but it doesn’t help, because Willow smacks him in face. This causes him to rear upward, only to get smacked in the face a second time by a passing tree branch. He falls off the wagon (heh).

Time for yet another crisis as the wagon’s second rear wheel breaks apart. The entire wagon is now at an angle, it’s rear being dragged along the ground, with Madmartigan and the Nockmaar soldier being dragged behind it, Indiana Jones-style. If that’s not enough, Willow falls backwards at the front of the wagon, and is knocked unconscious. Madmartigan and the Nockmaar continue to exchange punches as they hang onto the back of the wagon. (Look closely: You can see Madmartigan’s legs being dragged through the dirt, but behind the scenes, those legs are not Val Kilmer’s but a stuntman behind Val Kilmer. Simple forced perspective pulls off this illusion.)

Franjean looks to Martigan and then to the barrels of wine inside the wagon. He says to Rool, “We can cut the rope.” They succeed, breaking the rope and causing one (but not both) of the barrels to roll down the back of the wagon and knock the NockMaar off. The Brownies jump up and down in celebration.

The action doesn’t end there, though, because those two guys in the chariot ride up behind the wagon. One of them throws a ninja star, narrowly missing Madmartigan. It strikes a post on the wagon, though, see we can see it in close up. This is the only time in the movie we see one of these ninja stars. According to the tie-in books, these smaller units of NockMaar were called squads, as opposed to larger regiments and battalions our heroes later in the movie, so perhaps only squads get to be equipped with ninja stars. Alternatively, the lore states that “charioteer” is an official title in the NockMaar army, so perhaps only charioteers get to have ninja stars.

Still without a sword, Madmartigan picks up a large block of wood as a weapon. If this wagon falls apart this easily, I’m sure spare wood was on board in case on-the-road repairs were needed. The charioteers keep the variety-of-weapons fun going by pulling out a mace. Willow regains consciousness as Madmartigan and the charioteers swing their weapons at each other. A tree is in the path, and the two vehicles go around each side. You can hear Madmartigan say “Willow, stay down!” So Madmartigan isn’t just trying to escape. He really does care.

Willow doesn’t stay down, and instead reaches for the reins once again. He pulls back and cries “Whoa,” finally slowing down the wagon, while the chariot races on ahead of them. Remember that Willow is farmer raised in an agricultural society, so it’s safe to assume he knows his way around horses. Madmartigan asks “Are you crazy?” But Willow says they can’t chase around with the baby like this. “We’re getting off,” he says. Madmartigan responds by taking the reins and hee-yawing the horses back into the full gallop. Willow falls backwards for a little slapstick humor.

The chariot has turned around up ahead, so now it and the wagon are headed right at each other, jousting-style. Madmartigan somehow now has the NockMaar’s mace, and his swinging it furiously over his head. The charioteer now has a spear, and is holding it in the about-to-throw position. Madmartigan does him one better by actually throwing the mace, striking the NockMaar right in the face. He falls off, causing the guy next to him to lose control of the chariot. The side of the chariot rides up against a small incline, causing it to topple over. Its horses drag it along behind them. The charioteers’ fates are unknown, either dead or out cold.

Madmartigan brings the wagon to a stop, and there’s a comedy bit of Franjean and Rool stumbling out the back of it. Madmartigan says to Willow, “Now we stop, peck.” He seems really angry as he says this, even though he cautioned Willow to stay down earlier. I assuming he’s just speaking with the heat of battle still in him. Then more comedy with the Brownies, as Rool is dizzy and says, “Ask him to the stop the wagon.”

Next: Getting the band back together.

****

Want more? Check out my book, CINE HIGH, now available for the Kindle and the free Kindle app.

Rewatching the 1988 movie Willow scene-by-scene. Why? Because it’s freaking Willow! Gentlemen, meet Llug: 43:53-48:58 on the Blu-ray.

We begin with Willow and the baby in the rain, walking out from behind some trees and coming across a three-story building. The wiki merely defines this as a roadside tavern, not giving it a proper name. There’s a lot of activity out front, with people and animals walking about, and a large crate being lifted up to the second floor balcony via some sort of pulley system. Willow looks down at the baby, and then Franjean pops up from inside Willow’s backpack, saying “We are not going in there.” Willow argues that the baby needs fresh milk, and that they’re drenched. Franjean insists that he’s in charge, calling Willow “shorty,” and Willow’s having none of it. He walks toward the tavern.

 Cut to inside, where Willow walks up some stairs with festive violin music playing. There are a lot of people inside, and a lot of activity. It’s hard to tell, but it appears two of the people are fighting. Behind Willow, someone has brought a white pony inside the building. Willow makes his way through the room, as two gruff, mustachioed men frown down at him. There’s a funny reaction of shot of the baby staring back at them, wide-eyed. Willow moves forward, and next sees a bald man with a red snake tattoo on his arm. This man is leaning forward with his head resting against a table, probably to suggest he’d been drinking.

 Willow tries to get the attention of two women, one of whom has long bone-like attachments in her hair. He asks the women for milk for the baby, and one says “Get out of here, peck!” and throws some lettuce from a nearby bowl in his face. More follow suit, with everybody throwing lettuce at Willow and shouting at him. Willow walks past a staircase which, oddly, appears to be in the center of the room. He kneels down next to it, out of harm’s way.

 The two Brownies pop their heads of Willow’s backpack, and notice a pretty Daikini woman nearby. “Look at her,” Rool says. “I could use a love potion on her. Franjean, give me the Dust of Broken Hearts. Come on.” Rool reaches for a pouch around Franjean’s neck, and there’s some slaptick of the two of them fighting over it. Franjean says the dust is “very dangerous” and that it belongs to the fairies.

 A small amount of the dust falls on Rool’s face, and he falls out of Willow’s backpack. The dust glows bright yellow. Willow asks the Brownies to be quiet, saying “Do you want to get us killed?” Rool, still with the glowing dust floating around his head, hits the floor and rubs his eyes. Franjean says, “Rool, always playing with those fairy love potions.” I believe this is the first time Rool’s name is said in the movie. This also establishes that Rool has messed around the dust before, suggesting that it hasn’t gone well in the past. I’ll discuss the Dust of Broken Hearts in more detail when it comes up again later in the movie.

 We then see a cat walk into frame, next to a huge animal skull. This of course leads to a comedy bit where Rool falls in love with the cat, saying it is beautiful. He praises the cat’s eyes and whiskers and moves forward to kiss it. The cat hisses at him, which somehow makes fly straight up into the air, so he lands on a counter of some sort. There’s even more slapstick as he stumbles around and falls into a mug full of liquid. He pokes his head back out, spits out some of the liquid, and cheers, “Beer!” He laughs and starts swimming around in the beer, which is pretty disgusting.

 There’s more rowdy behavior from the tavern patrons, where two men on two other men’s shoulders hit each other with flails. One of the men falls near Willow, conveniently knocking him, the baby, and Franjean through a loose board into the next room. There’s more activity in this room, as a panicking woman is running around saying, “If my husband catches you, he’ll kill us both!” The camera pans over to reveal Madmartigan… in a pink dress.

 Willow says “Not you!” and Madmartigan asks “Where the hell did you come from?” Like Star Wars before it, here is another fantasy universe that throws the word “hell” around casually. Willow says “I trusted you!” Franjean recognizes Madmartigan and informs everyone that he stole the baby from Madmartigan while Madmartigan was, um, relieving himself. (The movie uses cruder language.) This sort of explains how the Brownies brought the baby to Cherlindrea, but it makes Madmartigan look like a real jerk for hanging out with this woman in a tavern instead of searching for the baby.

 The woman instructs Madmartigan to cover his face, and Madmartigan points out that Willow is “crawling with Brownies.” The woman shrieks and says she hates Brownies. So this establishes that the Brownies have visited this place before, which in turn explains how the Brownies know what beer is.

 A huge man enters the room, knocking Willow to the side with the door, demanding “Where is he?” This is Llug. The woman is his wife. Her name is not revealed, and the script unfortunately just calls her “the wench.” The wench says there’s no one but her and her “cousin Hilda,” referring to Madmartigan in drag. We get reaction shots of Willow and the baby being incredulous about this. Llug and his wife even get some backstory in the tie-in books. She didn’t want to marry him, but he sat on her (!) until she agreed to. As seen in the movie, Llug’s whole philosophy is that the husband can sleep around all he wants, but the wife must remain faithful. Classy guy, our Llug.

 The wench says “this is my husband, Llug.” Madmartigan, in a comedic female voice says, “Big husband.” Llug’s demeanor switches immediately from rage to lust, and he gets all predatory towards “Hilda.” When Llug starts getting grabby, Madmartigan snatches the baby out of Willow’s hands, making a crack about Willow being a nursemaid. Willow reaches for the baby, but Madmartigan kicks him to the floor. Madmartigan again comes across as a real jerk in this scene. There’s a quick bit where Rool enters, asking if this is a party, only for Willow to pick him up. Llug gets right up into “Hilda’s” face and simply asks, “Wanna breed?” Not subtle, our Llug. “Hilda” answers with, “Tempting, but no.”

 Madmartigan backs up to the door and is about to make an escape when it opens, and several black-clad soldiers enter. We see the soldiers rounding up everyone in the tavern, including Madmartigan, Willow, Llug, and the wench. The camera pushes in close on Madmartigan’s face, as he realizes what’s going on and how the serious the situation is. Sorsha is there, checking another baby for the mark on its arm. “That’s not the one,” she says. Willow then reacts, realizing that this one of the head bad guys.

 Sorsha approaches “Hilda” and asks if she’s the mother. “Hilda” says yes. Sorsha demands to see the baby. Willow steps in between them and says “No, don’t let her.” This is a bold move on Willow’s part, seeing as how Sorsha and the other guards are all armed to the teeth. Sorsha kicks Willow to the floor (that’s twice in one scene he’s been kicked). Sorsha says, “I gave you an order, woman.” She reaches for the baby again, but Madmartigan pushes her back. This causes the other soldiers to draw their swords on him.

 Sorsha removes her helmet, and Madmartigan gazes at her, wide-eyed. He breaks character and says, “You’re beautiful.” She, however, has him all figured out, saying “And you’re very strong.” There are a couple of seconds of tense silence, after which Sorsha removes the scarf from Madmartigan’s face and announces “You’re no woman!” Madmartigan smirks, as if he already knows what’s about to happen.

 Cut to Llug and his wife. Llug immediately freaks out, shouting “Not a woman? Not a woman?” As if he planned this from the start, Madmartigan quips, “Gentlemen, meet Llug.” Llug takes a swing a Madmartigan, who ducks out of the way, causing Llug to punch one of the guards instead. This causes everyone else to start fighting the guards, with everyone running around and fighting like crazy, setting up for one of the movie’s most elaborate action scenes.

 Next: Runaway cart.

****

Want more? Check out my book, CINE HIGH, now available for the Kindle and the free Kindle app.

Rewatching the 1988 movie Willow scene-by-scene. Why? Because it’s freaking Willow! In this short scene, we’re exploring the connection between this film and Akira Kurosawa, 42:52-43-52 on the Blu-ray.

The scene begins with Willow and Brownies walking through the woods, presumably leaving Cherlindrea’s dreamlike magical forest behind and reentering the regular world. I think for most viewers, the two Brownies are simply “the Brownies,” and thought of as one character instead of two. For this rewatch, I’m going to try to give each one his due. Rool says he knows the way, but Franjean says “You always think you know the way. I am the leader.” This shows that while Franjean considers himself the hero of this adventure, Rool also had the Brownies’ boisterous self-confidence.

Willow asks how long it will take to find Fin Raziel, and Rool says, “Not long. She has been exiled to an island, just over those hills.” Willow says, “She’s what?” And Rool responds. “Exiled by the evil Queen Bavmorda,” with him giving the name “Bavmorda” a dramatic flourish and a laugh. Franjean is more serious, however, chiding Rool for telling Willow everything. “I didn’t tell him everything,” Rool says, only for Franjean to say, “You told him enough.”

The two Brownies bicker, with Franjean saying not to mention the queen. Willow learned about Bavmorda in the previous scene, so I’m not sure where this concern of theirs comes from. Willow is more interested to know about the island, demanding answers while holding the wand. Franjean again is the serious one, saying “Don’t play with that wand. Cherlindrea told you it has vast powers.” This is the first time Cherlindrea’s name is spoken in the movie. I guess the viewers are meant to understand that this refers to the angelic being of the previous scene.

Franjean continues, “Only a great sorcerer can use it, not a stupid peck like you.”  The movie keeps the borderline-offensive “peck” running joke going, and Willow doesn’t like either, reacting with an angry glare. During all this, there’s some interesting special effects here with the Brownies running along a log, and then falling off of it, all while Willow walks at a normal pace. Physics demands that the Brownies would have be moving incredibly fast to keep with Willow, based on their differing sizes, but the movie’s VFX do a good job with the illusion so that viewers don’t question it.

Franjean points to the right, saying “This way,” but Rool corrects him by saying “No” several times. Franjean marches to the left, and Rool again corrects him with more nos. What to make of this? Franjean styles himself as the leader, but the less serious Rool appears to be the one with greater knowledge of the world outside their forest. Rool points upward (to the top of the screen, that is) and says, “This way.” Rool says, “That’s what I said,” with another overly dramatic flourish on the word “said.” Franjean, less show-offy and more direct, looks up to Willow, points in Rool’s direction, and agrees, “This way.” The two of them arguing over directions will come up again later in the movie. Willow asks if they know where they’re going, and Franjean says, “Of course. With us as your guides, no harm will befall you.” Then of course we smash cut to Willow trudging along in the mud and rain, for a cheap laugh.

This is a simple scene that provides a few small pieces of exposition, while establishing Franjean and Rool as Willow’s traveling companions and comic relief. Except that this scene has its roots in classic foreign cinema. It’s no secret that Willow is heavily influenced by Star Wars, and most everyone knows that Star Wars was heavily influenced by the films Akira Kurosawa, with The Hidden Fortress being the one cited most often. In The Hidden Fortress, a princess and a warrior are fighting for their kingdom, but most of the action is seen through the POV of two lowly peasants, Tahei and Matashichi. These characters are often cited as the inspirations for C-3PO and R2-D2. I rewatched The Hidden Fortress in preparation for this blog post (You’re welcome!) and I can’t help but see big similarities between the two peasants and the two Brownies.

Next: You big lug.

****

Want more? Check out my book, CINE HIGH, now available for the Kindle and the free Kindle app.

Rewatching the 1988 movie Willow scene-by-scene. Why? Because it’s freaking Willow! Let us commune with the spirits of the forest and all that, 39:48-42:51 on the Blu-ray.

Picking up where we left off, a mysterious light and heavenly voice speaks to our heroes from high above the trees. “Welcome to my kingdom,” the voice says. Fairies — yes, actual fantasy fairies — fly down and buzz around Willow and Meegosh, glowing with light. One even flies up to Willow and kisses him on the nose, for a nifty special effect. The tie-in books keep the fairies and their ways mysterious. The books state the Nelwyn and the Daikinis believe the fairies to be monstrous, putting curses on livestock. This scene reveals them to be more kind and playful.

While the fairies continue flying around, the light forms a human shape, and says “I am so happy to meet you, Willow Ufgood.” This is Cherlindrea, although we don’t learn her name in this scene. Willow asks how she knows his name, and she answers, “Elora Danan told me.” She then calls to Elora and says “Willow’s here.” A light shines on the baby, who is safely nearby. This lets the audience know the baby’s name for the first time.

So, who is Cherlindrea, exactly? The tie-in fiction doesn’t have much information about her, which is surprising, considering how much fantasy fans love this deep lore-type stuff. She is described as an “elemental,” except that other tie-in books say the elementals are invisible earth spirit types who act only on instinct and who do not communicate with humans. This contradiction gets hand-waved away by saying some scholars merely think she’s an elemental. Cherlindrea is the ruler of this forest, with the Brownies and the fairies as her subjects. Get this: Cherlindrea is married! Her hubby is the Stag Lord, who commands the animals of the forest.

Willow, who seems to be taking all this in stride, says “But she’s just a baby.” Cherlindrea responds, “She is very special. My Brownies have been searching for her ever since we heard she was born.” The camera cuts to the Brownies as she says this, letting the viewer know that these are the Brownies. Cherlindrea says, “Elora Danan has chosen you to be her guardian.” As she says this, the baby levitates into the air, and into Willow’s arms. “Me?” Willow says. Cherlindrea smiles and says, “Yes, she likes you.”  There’s a close up of the baby, followed by the only close up we get of the fairies. As many viewers have pointed out over the years, yes they do look nude.

In addition to learning the baby’s name, we also learn that Elora Danan is somehow intelligent, or at least has some sort of awareness where she is and what’s happening. She is also apparently communicating telepathically with Cherlindrea. In previous scenes, I’ve speculated how maybe Willow has been doing magic without realizing it. Upcoming scenes have events that stretch credulity, even for a swashbuckling fantasy adventure, so perhaps that is Elora Danan knowingly or unknowingly using magic as well. The Willow graphic novel adds an additional line of dialogue, where Cherlindrea says, “Elora is the daughter of sun and moon, and the empress of all kingdoms.” These kingdoms refer not just to the ones from the movie, but the thirteen realms described in the Shadow War tie-in novels.

Cherlindrea says Elora knows Willow has the courage to help her. Cherlindrea then drops a ton of plot: “Take my wand to the sorceress Fin Raziel. She will guide you and Elora Danan to the kingdom of Tir Asleen, where a good king and queen will look after her.” As she says this, she holds out the wand, made out of curvy piece of wood. (I’ll discuss the wand in more detail in upcoming scenes.) “You need a warrior for a job like this,” Willow says. “I’m a nobody.” Again taking all this in stride, Willow addresses the baby, saying, “Elora, you don’t want me. Tell her.” Then there’s a bit of humor where he adds, “I’m short, even for Nelwyn.” Many viewers over the years have wondered why Cherlindrea doesn’t go on this quest herself. The answer is simply that she is unable to leave her forest. This is confirmed in the graphic novel when she says, “I would help you, but my powers are limited to these woods.”

Then there’s an odd bit where Cherlindrea just up and vanishes, leaving Willow, Meegosh, and the Brownies alone. Willow calls, “Hello?” but there’s no answer. There’s a shot of the Brownies looking around worriedly, as if someone or something is about to attack. There’s a gust of wind, and Cherlindrea reappears, now seeming gigantic, moving forward until her face and glowing robes fill the entire screen. She goes full King Lear and proclaims, “Elora Danan must survive. She must fulfil her destiny and bring about the downfall of Queen Bavmorda, whose powers are growing like an evil plague. Unless she is stopped, Bavmorda will control the lives of your village, your children, everyone.”

Cherlindrea starts floating upwards, and in a gentler tone of voice she says, “All creatures of good heart need your help Willow.” Her white robes flow behind her, looking like angel’s wings, to really hammer the point home. She adds, “The choice is yours.” She vanishes, and there is a sound of thunder. The rest of the fairies fly off, as the scene transitions from magical, heavenly lighting, to more naturalistic nighttime lighting.

We don’t get to see the conversation that immediately follows this, because the movie cuts to the next morning, where Meegosh is asleep at a makeshift camp site, and Willow is awake, walking around with the wand in his hand. The idea is that he’s been up all night pondering what he’s seen. Willow wakes Meegosh up and says it’s time to go home. Meegosh seems happy about this, and begins gathering his things. Willow says, “Listen, Meegosh, tell Kaia I love her and I think of her every day.” Meegosh gives Willow a what-are-you-talking-about look but just asks “Willow?” Willow continues, saying “Tell her I’m not going to let anything happen to the baby.” As Willow says this, we can see he’s putting the wand into his pack, reinforcing that he’s made up his mind. Meegosh asks Willow if he’s sure about this. Willow says “I hope so.” He hand Meegosh a pack — not the one he put the wand in, which is in his other hand — and the two friends hug. Meegosh tells Willow to be careful.

What’s interesting about this exchange is that Willow never actually says he’s decided to take Elora Danan to Fin Raziel. It’s merely understood that he’s made this choice, based on how the characters talk around it and how the actors play the scene with total seriousness. The Willow graphic novel adds a bit to their goodbye, by having the two of them repeat their rhyming greeting they did earlier in the comic. Meegosh: “Round the bend.” Willow: “Fat rear end.” Meegosh: “He’s a donkey.” Willow: “I’m your friend.”

Next: Cribbing from Kurosawa.

****

Want more? Check out my book, CINE HIGH, now available for the Kindle and the free Kindle app.

Rewatching the 1988 movie Willow scene-by-scene. Why? Because it’s freaking Willow! This turns into a brief Gulliver’s Travels remake as we meet the Brownies, 37:19-39:47 on the Blu-ray.

The score is big and heroic as Willow and Meegosh walk through some tall brush, on their way back home. Willow tells Meegosh to slow down, and Meegosh says that if they hurry they can be home by tomorrow morning. It’s not clear how long they traveled to get here, but because they traveled via montage, it seemed like a long time. Perhaps they can travel quicker now that they believe they’re no longer being chased by Bavmorda’s troops.

Meegosh says they’ll be heroes when the return, and Willow asks, “Do you think so?” Meegosh acts out the part of villagers welcoming the two of them home, and Willow plays along, saying “Welcome back, boys. You deserve medals!” They laugh, but then Willow gets serious and asks if they did the right thing. Meegosh answers, “Absolutely. There’s nothing to worry about.”

On cue, they hear the baby crying nearby. (It really could be any baby, but because this is a movie, we know it’s the one we’ve been following this whole time.) Then we’re treated to an odd sight. The baby in a small pouch, being carried by a bird, with a tiny man riding on the bird’s back. “I have the baby!” the man cries, in a strange accent. We’ll soon learn this is Franjean, one of the Brownies. He gets a very quick close up, where we can see he has ‘80s music video hair.

The bird is flying very low to the ground in one shot, making this look very dangerous for the baby. The bird then flies over Willow, so close that he ducks. He shouts, “That’s my baby!” This is an interesting choice of words, considering his quest so far has been to give her away. This shows he still hasn’t let go. He calls for the bird and its rider to come back. Then we get our first taste of the Brownies’ comedy shtick as Franjean says, “Left, you stupid bird! Left!” The tie-in fiction reveals that this bird is an eagle, and its name is Canterfree.

Willow pursues, only for a tiny arrow to hit a tree next to him. There’s a quick shot of a Brownie on a tree branch with a bow, and then a second arrow strikes Willow’s arm. Meegosh says “Brownies! Let’s get out of here.” This suggests that he’s encountered Brownies before, or has at least heard of them.

Willow and Meegosh continue running, although it’s unclear if they’re still pursuing the baby or just trying get out of there. There’s a shot of a whole bunch of Brownies on a tree limb, firing arrows down at the two of them, with one arrow striking Meegosh. This repeats, with more shots of Willow and Meegosh running as the Brownies fire arrows from the trees. Willow says “Outrun them,” and then he and Meegosh fall through a hole in the ground as the Brownies can be heard laughing at them.

There’s a fade to later, to nighttime. Willow is asleep, and a Brownie voice says, “Hey ugly, wake up.” Water is thrown on Willow’s face. He wakes up and looks over, and we get our first real look at the Brownies. They all of big hair and are dressed in animal furs, all they have elaborate face paint. Most of them have a signature brown stripe down the center of their face, while others have a big brown circle painted over their left eye. I doubt we’re meant to understand the symbolism of this. One Brownie has a hollowed-out mouse’s head he’s wearing as a hat or helmet. This guy is Rool, the other prominent Brownie character.

The camera pulls back to reveal Willow and Meegosh tied to the ground, with about twenty Brownies surrounding them. One Brownie makes a comment about they are prisoners now. Willow asks Meegosh where the baby is. A light shines overhead, and heavenly voice says “Bring the Nelwyn to me.” Franjean says “You heard her,” to the other Brownies, suggesting that he is in charge. Also, Franjean is standing on Willow’s chest throughout this, for a nifty visual effect. Willow asks what’s going on, and Franjean, holding a spear, says “Shut up or I’ll break your nose. You are mine to toy with.” This is a recurring theme throughout the movie, that the Brownies never see themselves as small, but instead as equal or even superior to everyone around them.

The tie-in books have some information about the Brownies, but not as much as other characters or species. Despite being avid tree climbers, they live not in the trees but in underground burrows. They are an average of 9 inches tall. The Brownies live to be hundreds of years old (!). As the decades turn into centuries, the Brownies grow playful and mischievous to alleviate boredom. Because of this, the Daikini often consider them nuisances. Despite their playful nature, the Brownies are nonetheless fiercely loyal to their friends, and are skilled warriors with bows, spears, and swords. I’m having some trouble trying to identify the Brownies’ comedic accents. I think maybe they’re trying to sound French, but their voices are too exaggerated for humorous effect to know for sure. I’m pretty sure no one else in the movie talks with these accents.

As for our leader Franjean, the Willow graphic novel adds a line where he introduces himself as “the king of the world.” The music in Willow was composed by James Horner, who also did the score for Titanic. Could James Cameron have gotten “I’m the king of the world” from Willow via Horner?

Franjean orders, “Forward!” and the rest of the Brownies start dragging along the ground via their Brownie-sized ropes. Struggling against the ropes, Willow asks where Franjean got the baby. “I stole it from a stupid Daikini,” Franjean says. We in the audience assume Franjean means Madmartigan. Later in the movie, we’ll get a slightly more detailed version of how this happened.

The light and the heavenly voice reappers, saying “Franjean, release the Nelwyns and stop pestering them. Yes, the voice says “Nelwyns” as the plural, whereas everyone else in the movie has said just “Nelwyn” as the plural. Franjean says “Uh-oh,” and jumps off of Willow’s chest and on to the ground, for another nifty effect. Rool and another Brownie cut one of the ropes around Willow’s ankle, and this loosens him up enough so he can move. The next shot is like something out of King Kong, where Willow frees himself from the ropes, stands up, raises his arms, and roars at the Brownies, scaring them off. The Brownies run off into the trees, with one of them clearly crying “Yee-haw!”

The heavenly light appears again. It’s going to have a lot to say, so we’ll end here for now.

Next: A midsummer night’s Willow.

****

Want more? Check out my book, CINE HIGH, now available for the Kindle and the free Kindle app.