The Flight of Dragons (1982)

To horribly date my age here, I have fond memories of watching Flight of Dragons as a child, having recorded it off a TV broadcast onto a VHS tape to watch over and over again until we wore out the cassette. Oy. Having not seen it in probably 25 years, randomly saw its blu ray on Amazon and was amazed that it existed at all and had to get ahold of it. Of course, when you watch a nostalgic childhood favorite as a cynical adult, a lot of the time you realize that some things are better left as memories because they've aged very poorly. To my absolute pleasant surprise, Flight of Dragons still completely works and is wonderfully entertaining. It takes some well used fantasy tropes and twists them in unique ways that even today you don't really see much. You have your modern day protagonist Peter, a man of science and logic, transported to the fantasy world of dragons and magic. But rather than do something where Peter is smug and superior, or have him be just unbelieving the whole time, he experiences the world of magic with the kind of wonder and awe that a nerd would. Won't recap the whole plot, but while it does have some pacing issues where it feels like it rushes to the ending, it's still a great ride with really fun characters and some unique designs and set pieces. The animation is lovely, it fits the tone perfectly where it has both whimsical and soft designs and tones, and then the stark contrast of the craggly hideous villains and their monsters. It's all further elevated by the fantastic voice acting work, James Earl Jones as the antagonist Ommadon obviously being a highlight, but everyone else are great in it as well. The late John Ritter works perfectly as Peter, adding to his sort of childlike wonder of what's happening around him. I ended up watching this with my husband who'd never even heard of it before, and for someone just coming at it for the first time he was even pretty entertained by it. I was pretty happy to learn that it wasn't just completely my nostalgia for it propping up my opinion, but of course that's still a part of it. The blu ray itself is sadly very barebones, but at least it's a good transfer of the movie and a way to watch what I'd consider to be a sorely overlooked classic piece of animation. It may not be as memorable as a Disney movie, but it holds its own and it still a unique and super fun watch even today.

A classic from my childhood

A friend of mine had found a list of movies that women or girls would like so he shared a few from the list with me to see if I would like them. He figured I would. This was one on that list, I found a few clips on youtube and thought ya I think I would like this so came on amazon and purchased it. I watched it and it is a good movie. I think either gender can enjoy it though. I loved the art style and I think this is a lot better than some of the new stuff that is out. The story was a good one and again it was a good movie. I ended up watching it more than once.

Style-wise, this is typical Rankin-Bass cel animation, with its fair animation and occasionally ugly characters, but the story is a lot of fun. It stands on its own even if it compares unfavorably to the book it borrows from. The idea of a twentieth-century bookworm magically teleported to a fantasy world is one that has not been visited nearly enough in my opinion. Add to that the plot twist of transforming him into a dragon and you have a brand new "stranger in a strange land" gimmick, which leads to the inevitable comic moments and dramatic learning curve. There's plenty of excitement to keep the movie flowing, innovative "episodes" along the path of the heroes' quest, lots of humor peppered in, and a particularly clever climax between the bookworm and the evil sorcerer. Occasionally a deus ex machina will appear to resolve a situation, but somehow it fits the atmosphere of the world the filmmakers created. The voice casting is also a treat, with John Ritter as the bookworm Peter Dickinson, Harry Morgan as the green wizard Carolinus, James Gregory as the wizened old dragon Smurgol and also the evil dragon Bryagh, Victor Buono as the wolf Aragh, Alexandra Stoddard as the prophetic Princess Melisande, Nellie Bellflower as the expert archer Danielle, Don Messick as the brave elf Giles, Larry Storch as the heroic but proper knight Sir Orrin Neville-Smythe (plus several extras), and James Earl Jones as the evil red wizard Ommadon. I never tire of this movie, and I think it would keep all but the littlest youngsters enthralled, as well as the adults with the heart of a youngster!

This was one of my favorite movies when I was a kid, and it still holds up. Great story, brilliant performances by James Earl Jones and Harry Morgan, and it all leaves you with a sense of enchantments. Worth watching if you've never seen it before, and well worth rewatching if you have.

The Flight of Dragons is an endlessly fascinating movie that appeals not only to the love of fantasy and imagination, but appreciation for the real and material world. An interesting blend of the novel The Dragon and the George and Peter Dickinson's speculative book, it tells the story of Peter, a scientist who is unexpectedly transported back in time to defeat the evil wizard Ommadon and clear the way for science and technology in the future. Before the quest can begin, he is unexpectedly merged with a young dragon named Gorbash. Now in a body he doesn't understand, Peter undergoes his quest to destroy the wizard with the help of a band of newfound companions. There is nothing outrageously awful in this film. In fact, a lot of it is very good. Great even. The story and characters are for the most part well rounded and likeable, the star studded cast (including James Earl Jones, John Ritter, James Gregory and Harry Morgan) delivers their lines exceptionally well, the script is well written with a host of memorable quotes, the animation is breathtaking especially when you consider this was a 1982 TV movie, the theme song by Don McLean is beautiful and the film manages to keep the viewer engaged and interested. As much as I love this movie, it does have undeniable flaws. Several characters, namely Aragh the wolf, Danielle of the Woodlands and Giles of the Treetops are introduced very late in the movie, well after the half-way point. This not enough time for proper character development and prevents the viewer from getting completely invested. It is a shame too because these seemed like really cool characters that would have been nice to spend more time with. Another weak link is Princess Mellisande, who comes across as a typical one note damsel with a somewhat forced relationship with Peter. Had it not been for these flaws, the film would have received a higher rating. What is really great about this movie is its stance on magic and science. While it is a very pro-science movie, it admits that fantasy and dreams are an essential part of the human identity. This stance is what sets up the signature scene of the film, the final showdown with Peter and the evil wizard which ends the movie on a very triumphant note. It gives the film a real punch, and makes it well worth a viewing. The Flight of Dragons was the third in a trifecta of fantasy films from Rankin/Bass, the first of which was The Hobbit, a mediocre adaptation of Tolkien's classic, and the second of which was The Last Unicorn, a better, but still flawed film. With The Flight of Dragons, they made vast improvements over both and told a more well-rounded and tonally consistent story, and it is easily the best of the bunch. The DVD is sadly lower than bare bones. Not even a chapter selection or main menu screen. However, the picture is simply stunning. I am not sure where they found this print, but bless the person who put such a pristine presentation of this film out there. It goes above and beyond the old worn out VHS tapes and exceeded all my expectations of how the film would look. Sad to say but I don't think we will ever see any special features for this film, but all things considered, this will do just fine. The Flight of Dragons is an overlooked gem with a lot going for it, but a few tarnishes that prevent it from being a total masterpiece. Still, it is a great viewing and if you are into fantasy, science, or both, check this one out. 8/10

This review is for the new blu-ray version, which does indeed fix the terrible video and audio quality of the old dvd version. Other reviewers have commented that in remastering it they trimmed off some of the top and bottom of the picture. They may have, but I really only noticed it a couple of times. It's more likely to bother you if it's a movie you watch a lot and have become used to seeing it a certain way. In all other respects, it's a huge improvement. This is epic sword and sorcery at its finest. It is strongly reminiscent of Dungeons and Dragons (the cartoon series), The Hobbit, and the Lord of the Rings. There is that same sense of grand adventure that many movies go for and few pull off, with bittersweet drama and silly laughs. The love story was the only part I would have liked to see expanded, as the romance mostly happens off-screen, but I'd rather they used the minutes as they did, for the truly unique twist in their choice of hero for this quest. This movie had some interesting ideas, like the fact that the ancient wizards knew about the modern world despite living in the past, and the use of scientific principles to aid people (milk, a base, helps soothe stomach ulcers caused by acid) or even to fight magic. I especially liked the idea that our modern inventions wouldn't exist if we didn't have the world of fantasy to inspire us. The voice acting made a big impression on me as far as how quickly I came to care about the characters. Bob McFadden, as the voice of Sir Orrin Neville-Smithe, sounds the very epitome of an old-school British knight in shining armour despite having an American accent, with classic talents like poetry, singing, enjoying tea and having that "code of honor" mentality, James Gregory, voicing an honorable elderly dragon tasked with teaching our newbie main character the ways of the world he has literally fallen into, Harry Morgan as the earnest, lovably grumpy wizard Carolinus, James Earl Jones as the evil wizard, Omadon, and the gruff voice of Victor Buono, whose his depiction of what a talking wolf would sound like when he laughed always fascinates me because it really sounds the way you'd imagine a laughing wolf would sound. Spoilers: . . . . . . . . This is a grand tale of a young, wide-eyed scientist, Peter, from the 20th century who is called upon to go on a quest to save the last of the world's magic--with a twist. An accident leaves him inhabiting the body of a dragon! There's mutual love at first sight for Peter with a beautiful princess. An epic tale of love and loss, delight and tragedy and a great sacrifice that Peter must make to save what's left of the world's magic. . . . . . . . End Spoilers Fans of Lord of the Rings, Dungeons and Dragons (the cartoon series) and The Neverending Story will love this movie! The ending is happier than many other quest stories, although there is one character death, so probably not a good movie for kids under age 8 or so.

Great release, solid transfer and love this movie! Thank you!

... den ich aber persönlich nicht so schlimm finde. Vorab muss man sich vor Augen halten, dass dieser Film von 1982 niemals eine Kinoproduktion war, sondern eine reine Video-Only-Produktion. Auch ist dieser Film niemals im deutschsprachigen Raum erschienen, von daher wird man vergebens eine deutsche Fassung suchen. Über den Inhalt will ich hier gar nicht schreiben, als Drachenfan ein Muss, basierend auf dem Sachbuch "Flight of Dragons" gemixt mit Elementen aus dem "Drachenritter-Zyklus" von Gordon R. Dickson. Der Film selber ist gemacht von dem Produktionsteam, das auch "Das Letzte Einhorn" ins Leben gerufen hat. Gerade bei den Bäumen und Landschaften sieht man das deutlich. Bisher gab es diesen Film nur als VIdeocassette (meines Wissens nach noch nicht einmal in VHS) und später dann als DVD-on Demand. Nun also endlich auf Blue Ray. Und hier das große Manko: Die klanglich und optisch wirklich aufpolierte Version (und das Aufpolieren ist hervorragend gelungen) ist nur in der 16:9 Version zu haben. Das Problem, der Film war aber im Original 4:3 - diese Version ist ebenfalls auf der BlueRay enthalten, aber eben nicht aufpoliert, sondern genau in der DVD-on Demand-Qualität. Der Transfer zu 16:9 hat zur Folge, dass das Bild nun oben und unten "abgeschnitten" ist, was man leider an manchen Stellen sehr deutlich sieht, zumal wenn dann beispielsweise in einer Szene kurz der Kopf des Drachens nicht mehr zu sehen ist. Das ist schade, aber: Ich hatte das schon im Vorfeld gelesen und damit gerechnet. Von daher fand ich das dann beim Anschauen auch nicht so störend. Dafür könnte man einen Stern abziehen. Da aber das Gesamtpaket passt und endlich einer der wichtigsten Drachenfilme auf einem vernünftigen Medium erschienen ist, dann doch die volle Punktzahl

Lovely DVD were good overcomes evil. Good family viewing

Excelente producto de primera y de gran calidad, una película que marco mi infancia... Una historia magnífica del mito de los dragones... Totalmente recomendable

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This movie is a flat-out classic from the 80s. It's really funny and well-made. I can recommend this to anyone.