Ridley Scott’s 1985 Dark Fantasy 'Legend' Remains an Underrated Gem

Director Ridley Scott’s 1985 dark fantasy film Legend — starring Tom Cruise and Tim Curry — is being highlighted as an underrated gem 40 years later, with fans urged to revisit it as Scott prepares to release a new post-apocalyptic sci-fi film later this year. Set in a nameless world of eternal light, Legend follows Jack (Cruise), a forest child who must stop the evil Darkness (Curry) from destroying the last unicorns and rescuing Princess Lili (Mia Sara).

The film was written by William Hjortsberg and also features David Bennent, Alice Playten, Billy Barty, Cork Hubbert and Annabelle Lanyon. Despite spending its first two weeks at #1, Legend was a box-office bomb on its initial run, failing to recoup its $25-million budget and ultimately grossing $23.5 million in North America after debuting there on April 18, 1986 (it hit UK theaters in 1985).

Critically divisive for decades, Legend holds a 42% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and has been called everything from an "over-produced, under-conceived trip to fairyland" to "stale and tedious," while audiences rate it more favorably with a 73% audience score. Fan reviews quoted in the piece praise the film’s cinematography, makeup effects and straightforward fairy-tale storytelling.

The article argues Legend is pure good-vs-evil fairy-tale storytelling in the tradition of Joseph Campbell’s hero’s journey and singles out Tim Curry’s iconic turn as Darkness.

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