Tim Curry's Devilish Performance In Legend Remains Perfect
The 'Legend' of Tim Curry will never die.
What is goodness without evil? The basic question of the 1985 Ridley Scott-directed fantasy epic Legend suggests that the villain of any major fairy tale is just as important, if not more important, than its heroes. And, although the late, great Tim Curry has many, many famous roles — from Clue to Rocky Horror Picture Show — his role as the devlish creature known as “Darkness” may be his most underrated, and one of the most truly unique performances of his career.
As fans of Curry exchange their favorite performances with each other in the wake of the actor’s death at the age of 80, everyone should consider giving Legend another look. If you’ve never seen this bizarre, and yet oddly old-fashioned movie, now is the time. Although a very young Tom Cruise headlines this adventure, it’s Curry’s memorable take on the embodiment of all evil that makes this movie click.
Legend is an ‘80s dark fantasy that only partly deserves its mixed reputation
Tom Cruise and Mia Sara in Legend.
While somewhat critically maligned over the years — the film only has a 33 percent score on Rotten Tomatoes — Legend is not remotely as bad as any critics, in any decade, will try to tell you it is. At the same time, it’s also correct to say that Legend is not as good as some other creature-laden 1980s fantasy movies like Labyrinth or The Dark Crystal. There’s a Krull-ish quality to much of Legend, insofar as the ragtag group of heroes who comes together to save the day isn’t quite as iconic as the movie was hoping. Everyone remembers Tom Cruise’s doe-eyed performance as Jack, but it’s not like Billy Barty’s impish creature known as “Screwball” is particularly memorable, which is saying something since just a few years later, Barty’s Gwildor in Masters of the Universe basically steals the show doing the same thing.
What is memorable in Legend is its unrelenting desire to prove its premise: You can’t have majestic unicorns and elegant maidens and shiny armor without gross goblins and creatures who love being disgusting and dream of a world of darkness in which they can feast on trash. And it’s here that Tim Curry sets the tone for the entire movie and gives one of the greatest performances of his career.
Why Tim Curry elevates Legend into an artistic achievement
The opening crawl of the movie tells us that the concept of Darkness has been banished from the world, but instead of showing us the good version of this world first, the movie opens with a lengthy scene set in what can only be described as a gaudy version of Hell. Here, as Darkness, Curry reigns supreme, telling his disgusting minions he’s bored and frustrated with the state of things and longs to go back to the bad old days.
The plot, such as it is, suggests that the loss of innocence and the introduction of sin and evil into the world come about because a dude named Darkness hates unicorns and needs to give his hench-creatures something to do. Curry’s devilish prosthetics are, of course, legendary, and apparently took about five hours to apply. But his distinctive face isn’t really hidden behind the forehead ridges and horns. Instead, Curry turns Darkness into a character only he could play.
Tim Curry in 1984.
The patience and enunciation of his evil proclamations walk right up to the line of parody, but are presented with a certain amount of sensuality and practicality. When he tries to turn Lili (Mia Sara) to the ways of evil, he doesn’t act like this process will be particularly hard. And that’s because Curry, correctly, understands the ethos of the movie. The goblins and various creatures can be over-the-top, but Curry’s plays Darkness as an eventuality of life, rather than a plot device.
Much of Legend is about reversing a terrible, eternal winter, not unlike the status quo in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. But the true force of nature in this film is evil itself, and it’s never been crafted quite the way Tim Curry managed. Legend may not be his most beloved film, but it’s worth another look, simply to watch a master at work.
