Everything about Highlander Film totally explained
Highlander is a
1986 fantasy action film directed by
Russell Mulcahy and based on a story by
Gregory Widen. It stars
Christopher Lambert,
Sean Connery,
Clancy Brown and
Roxanne Hart. The film has inspired a franchise that includes
film sequels and .
Plot
Connor MacLeod (
Christopher Lambert) was born in the year
1518 "in the village of Glenfinnan on the shores of Loch Shiel." In
1536, his
clan is in conflict with the
Clan Fraser, and Connor rides along into his first battle. The Frasers are working with a towering monster of a man known as
The Kurgan (
Clancy Brown), who has recognized that Connor is a fellow
Immortal, and hopes to use the battle to kill Connor before he becomes aware of his abilities. On the battlefield, Connor wonders why none of the Fraser's forces will attack him, until he comes across the Kurgan and is struck by an odd pain (from sensing the proximity of another immortal). This leaves him open to attack.
The Kurgan mortally wounds Connor and prepares to decapitate him, but the MacLeod's kinsmen intervene just before this occurs, with the Kurgan vowing to return. The clan mourn Connor, but he miraculously revives shortly after his 'death'. Accusing him of
witchcraft, Connor's clansmen beat him and prepare to burn him, but his cousin Angus (
James Cosmo) persuades them to exile Connor instead. He escapes with his life, but is banished forever from his clan and birthplace.
MacLeod eventually becomes a
blacksmith in
Glencoe, where he marries Heather (
Beatie Edney). In
1541, he's located by a much older Immortal, who introduces himself as
Juan Sanchez Villa-Lobos Ramírez (
Sean Connery). He explains that the pain he feels in the Kurgan's and Ramírez's presence is "The Quickening", which compels Immortals to battle each other. Ramírez appoints himself MacLeod's tutor in the ways of being Immortal, their pursuit of The Prize, and the rules of an age-old "Game", which will end when the few who remain participate in "The Gathering", noting that "in the end, there can be only one." Immortals can only die by decapitation and can only avoid battle on holy ground.
Ramírez later explains that his own name is just his current alias, being
Egyptian by birth. He adopted it while serving as Chief
Metallurgist for
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (also
King of Spain between
1516-
1556). His sword is a
katana he received in
Japan in 593 B.C., made by his (then) father-in-law
Masamune. Masamune, a genius far ahead of his time in the forging of swords, was the father of Princess Shakiko, Ramírez's third wife. Ramírez also takes it upon himself to improve MacLeod's swordsmanship, which he declares is "no better than that of a clumsy child."
Ramírez warns MacLeod to leave his wife or face heartbreak, explaining that "I was born 2,437 years ago. In that time, I've had three wives. The last was Shakiko, a Japanese princess... When Shakiko died, I was shattered. I'd save you that pain. Please, let Heather go." He also explains that Immortals are incapable of having children.
MacLeod refuses to leave his wife, though he continues to train under Ramírez, who also explains the origins of the Kurgan and the risk for the world if he wins the Prize. One night, the Kurgan arrives at MacLeod's home while MacLeod himself is absent, though Heather and Ramírez are there. The Kurgan and Ramírez duel, with the frightened Heather their only spectator. After an extended duel, which destroys the house, the Kurgan manages to decapitate Ramírez, and proceeds to
rape Heather, as a further humiliation to his old enemy (Ramírez) and "his woman." MacLeod soon returns to find his home in ruins, his mentor killed, and his wife alive, but traumatized. She never tells him about the rape, and MacLeod never learns of the event until 1985, when The Kurgan mocks Ramírez's memory.
MacLeod remains with his wife until her death from old age. Dying in MacLeod's arms, she confides that her only regret wasn't having his children. After burying Heather, MacLeod burns their residence and wanders the world, journeying as far away as Japan, and finally ends up in America. These travels include an 18th Century duel on Boston Common (in which a drunken MacLeod is repeatedly run through by a sword, to no effect, by an insulted husband), and killing a
Nazi officer during
World War II, rescuing young Rachel, a
Holocaust survivor, in the process. His experiences over time leave him a bitter, cynical man.
In
1985, in
New York City, the few surviving Immortals are participating in "The Gathering," a final series of confrontations to determine the winner of "The Prize." Eventually, the last two surviving are MacLeod, under the alias of "Russell Edwin Nash" and the Kurgan, under the alias of "Victor Kruger." Meanwhile, the spike in what appear to be murders by decapitation has drawn the attention of the police, who find MacLeod leaving the scene of an earlier duel and bring him in for questioning. However, as their evidence is circumstantial, they can not arrest him, though he becomes their prime suspect. Among the investigators of the case is forensic scientist Brenda Wyatt (
Roxanne Hart), who has an intricate knowledge of swords. Samples taken from the crime scene reveal the sword used is nearly 2000 years old (MacLeod is now using Ramírez' sword) and she begins investigating him, primarily over interest in the sword.
Eventually, her investigation reveals MacLeod's longevity through the use of different names, and she confronts him about it. He reveals his true nature to her and she finds herself falling in love with him. This doesn't escape the attention of the Kurgan, who is now being hunted by the police as their murderer after being identified by a 'mortal' he's stabbed during a recent duel. He abducts Brenda to force MacLeod into a final confrontation. MacLeod battles the Kurgan, finally defeating him (with a little help from Brenda), and apparently wins The Prize, which is revealed to be mortality, the ability to sire children, and a telepathic/empathic gift wherein he can communicate with and influence the greatest minds or most powerful people on the planet. He and Brenda embark on a new life together.
Cast
Reception
The film was directed by
Russell Mulcahy and scripted by Peter Bellwood, Larry Ferguson and
Gregory Widen. Upon initial U.S. release, it wasn't well-received, but it gained increasing popularity in non-domestic markets, and on home video. It has since obtained status as a
cult classic film in both domestic and non-domestic markets, leading to four sequels,, and various other spin-offs.
Highlander has been released to DVD on multiple occasions in the United States, most notably the 10th Anniversary Edition and the Immortal Edition, both containing the director's cut of the film.
Alternate cuts and deleted scenes
The European cut of the film contained scenes not found in the U.S. cut. The
Director's Cut is based upon this cut and runs 8 minutes longer than the U.S. cut. Even so, there's some missing dialogue that was in the theatrical version, such as the chants of "Kill the MacLeod!" at the beginning, and "I want to go home" after Connor receives The Prize. It includes, amongst other things, a flashback to World War II that further develops the character of
Rachel Ellenstein.
A number of
deleted scenes from the film were lost in a fire. One such scene introduced an Asian immortal named Yung Dol Kim, who was beheaded by the Kurgan. Another featured Connor and Kastigir in a night club with Detective Bedsoe. A few stills from these sequences, some in color and others in black and white, did survive and appeared on the 10th Anniversary DVD.
Soundtrack
The original movie features a soundtrack by
Queen, including "
Princes of the Universe," which was also used in the
Highlander television series
title sequence. Queen saw an early screening of
Highlander, and decided to compose music for the film's entire non-symphonic soundtrack. They wrote many of the songs specifically to match the mood of the scenes when the songs were played, notably
Brian May's "
Who Wants to Live Forever", concerning the doomed love of Connor and his wife Heather.
While an album specifically tied to the
Highlander movie was never released, Queen's 1986 album
A Kind of Magic features most of the songs from the film, as well as other music on the same theme. Notably, Queen's version of "New York, New York" (playing while The Kurgan drives Brenda through New York) was never released by the band.
All of Queen's songs in
Highlander were purposely written for the movie, except for "
Hammer to Fall", which had been previously released on their album
The Works in 1984.
References in popular culture
References to
Highlander are common in entertainment, such as in the
Cartoon Network animated series
Aqua Teen Hunger Force, wherein a character within it absurdly considers the film to be an actual
documentary, and that the events happened in real-time. In the film,
Will Ferrell's character, Ricky Bobby, compares the intense rivalry with
NASCAR driver Jean Girard (
Sacha Baron Cohen) with the plot of
Highlander. While explaining the movie to Girard, a
Frenchman, he states that it won the
Academy Award for
"Best Movie Ever Made." Later in the film, Girard claims he'd seen the movie, and said "it was shit."
As well, parodies have been made of the film, copying the plot and visuals while comedically substituting known personalities as the characters in the film. Among these, another Cartoon Network animated series,
Robot Chicken, parodies the film using
Hollywood as the setting, and several teen idols such as
Lindsay Lohan,
Amanda Bynes and
Hilary Duff as Immortal characters.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Highlander Film'.
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