Labyrinth (1986)

A 16-year-old girl is given 13 hours to solve a labyrinth and rescue her baby brother when her wish for him to be taken away is granted by the Goblin King.

Director:

Jim Henson

Writers:

Dennis Lee (story by), Jim Henson (story by)

Stars:

David Bowie, Jennifer Connelly, Toby Froud

Nominated for 1 BAFTA Film Award. Another 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
David Bowie	...	Jareth
Jennifer Connelly	...	Sarah
Toby Froud	...	Toby
Shelley Thompson	...	Stepmother
Christopher Malcolm	...	Father
Natalie Finland	...	Fairy
Shari Weiser	...	Hoggle
Brian Henson	...	Hoggle / Goblin (voice)
Ron Mueck	...	Ludo / Firey 2 / Goblin (voice)
Rob Mills	...	Ludo / Firey 3
Dave Goelz	...	Didymus / The Hat / The Four Guards / Left Door Knocker / Firey 3 (voice) (as David Goelz)
David Alan Barclay	...	Didymus / Firey 1
David Shaughnessy	...	Voice of Didymus / The Hat / The Four Guards / Goblin
Karen Prell	...	The Worm / The Junk Lady / Firey 2
Timothy Bateson	...	The Worm / The Four Guards / Goblin (voice)

Storyline

The teenager Sarah is forced by her father and her stepmother to babysit her baby brother Toby while they are outside home. Toby does not stop crying and Sarah wishes that her brother be taken by the Goblin King. Out of the blue, Toby stops crying and when Sarah looks for him in the cradle, she learns that her wish was granted and the Goblin King Jareth has taken him to his castle in the Goblin City in the middle of a labyrinth. Sarah repents and asks Jareth to give Toby back; but the Goblin King tells her that she has to rescue her brother before midnight, otherwise Toby will be turned into a goblin. Soon Sarah teams up with the coward goblin Hoggle, the beast Ludo and the knight Didymus and his dog Ambrosius in her journey. Will they rescue Toby in time?

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Plot Keywords:

rescue | labyrinth | masquerade party | female protagonist | goblin | 

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Taglines:

Jim Henson, George Lucas and David Bowie take you into a dazzling world of fantasy and adventure.

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Genres:

Adventure | Family | Fantasy | Musical

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

27 June 1986 (USA)

Also Known As:

Laberinto

Filming Locations:

West Wycombe Park, West Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$25,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$12,729,917

Company Credits

Production Co:

Henson Associates (HA), Lucasfilm, The Jim Henson Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

101 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Stereo 70 mm 6-Track

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

After solving the problem of the guards who lie or tell the truth, Sarah falls into an oubliette, which Hoggle describes: "It's a place where you put people...to forget about 'em!" Oubliettes were a type of dungeon where the only entry was through an opening high in the ceiling. To leave an oubliette was practically impossible without external assistance. The word "oubliette" comes from the French word "oublier' meaning 'to forget". The basic premise was that an oubliette was a dungeon for prisoners that the captor(s) wished to forget. Prisoners were often left to starve to death in an oubliette.

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Goofs

During the battle in town, the summoned rocks that are supposed to roll from the left to right of the screen, has at least one rock that isn't rolling at all, showing it's being dragged by an unseen wire or rope of some sort.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Sarah: Give me the child. Through dangers untold and hardships unnumbered, I have fought my way here to the castle beyond the Goblin City to take back the child that you have stolen. For my will is as strong as yours, and my kingdom is as great...
[thunder rumbles]
Sarah: For my will is as strong as yours, my kingdom as great... Damn.
[pulls the Labyrinth book out of her pocket]
Sarah: I can never remember that line.
[reads]
Sarah: You have no power over me.

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Connections

Featured in Wedden, dat..?: Episode #2.6 (1986)

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Soundtracks

As The World Falls Down
Performed by David Bowie
Written by David Bowie
Produced by David Bowie and Arif Mardin

User Reviews

It's starting to sound like a broken record, but you're going to love this movie!

I recently had the pleasure of watching this movie with three kids who had (to my shock and dismay) never seen it before. It turned out to be as good, if not better, as I remembered. The story is reminescent of the original, printed page (very dark) Grimm fairy tales. The special effects are still special, and the characters are unforgettable. Seriously, don't miss it.

This is one of the very few childrens' movies that is smarter and better than what has unfortunately become "normal" for the genera. The reverse evolution in childrens' films is heartbreaking, as kids don't deserve to be talked down to so often in movies. I grew up on films like "Labyrinth", "the Neverending Story", and "the Secret of NIMH", and I still count them among my favorites. In the 80's they gave us cinematic filet mignon, and today's kids are getting Spam.