Set in a medieval Anglo-Saxon never-never-land, with all the ambiance of an episode of "Hercules: the Legendary Journeys" (please note my sarcasm), Dragonheart tells the tale of a knight errant who has made it his mission to hunt down and slay dragons. Of course, the knight is played by that most English of actors, Dennis Quaid. Turns out that he's p-o'd, since his protege, now a king (David Thewlis), turned evil after having been given the heart of a dragon to save his life (hence the title-clever, eh?). So of course, he joins up with one dragon (a computer graphic voiced by Sean Connery) in order to bilk villagers as a faux-exorcist of dragons. Actually, I must have fallen asleep at some point, because I can't figure out why they did this.
This movie can't decide if it's a comedy, a gripping adventure movie, a gooey new-age flick about the preciousness of life, or any other genre. As a result, it's all of these and so much less. Sure, some of the special effects are good, but who cares? A logical narrative would have been nice. A consistent tone would be wonderful. Some indication that this movie was a labor of love to someone, not just another piece of hackwork. But no such luck.
Like many films, the best thing about this one was Pete Postlethwaite, here playing a monk/bard. Does he have some sort of career master plan to make himself look good by appearing in film after terrible film? It would appear so to this casual viewer. Julie Christie also makes an impression in her brief appearance, and David Thewlis isn't half-bad as the evil king. But other than that....
To wrap up...ah, who cares. I've wasted enough ink on this pointless exercise.
One-and-a-Half stars
Copyright 1997 by Dale G. Abersold
