Ladyhawke (1985)

This lushly produced fantasy has gained a loyal following since its release in 1985, and it gave a welcomed boost to the careers of Matthew Broderick, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Rutger Hauer. You have to ignore the overly aggressive music score (critic Pauline Kael aptly dubbed it "disco-medieval") and director Richard Donner's reckless allowance of anachronistic dialogue and uninspired storytelling, but there's a certain charm to the movie's combination of romance and heroism. Broderick plays a young thief who comes to the aid of tragic lovers Isabeau (Pfeiffer), who is cursed to become a hawk every day at sunrise and Navarre (Hauer) who turns into a wolf at sunset. The curse was cast by an evil sorcerer-bishop (John Wood), and as Broderick eludes the bishop's henchmen, Navarre struggles to conquer the villain, lift the curse, and be reunited with his love in human form. The tragedy of this lovers' dilemma keeps the movie going, and Broderick is well cast as a young, medieval variation of Woody Allen. --Jeff Shannon Amazon.com

Ladyhawke

Ladyhawke DVD. This is a great movie. I have watched it several times with friends and family. The acting is superb and the story line is excellent. Thourghly enjoyable. Highly recommended. AAA++++ July 6, 2008

Ladyhawke

I saw this movie years ago and have never forgotten it. I'm so glad I bought the DVD because now I can enjoy it over and over. While I am not fond of violence of any kind, this movie not only is a beautiful mystical fairy tale but also an intense love story that transcends throughout history. I adore Michelle Pfeiffer, and Matthew Broderick adds both the humor and endearing devotion to helping break the evil spell that will bring the lovers together again forever. This movie is a classic that will always be enjoyed by everyone. June 30, 2008

Fantastic Fantasy Film

I went back and watched Ladyhawke yesterday, and I have to say that this is a near perfect fantasy film. The story is outstanding. The characters and acting are solid. The one downside... the bloody music! It's not that the score is bad either. But it is dreadful WITH this film. I would LOVE to see a new version of this film without the crappy 80s synth that spoils the mood in far too many places. June 19, 2008

This Lady deserves better treatment

Though the film itself is still an enjoyable adventure (as other reviewers have already stated), the DVD treatment of it is decidedly lacking. The only viewing choices are "fullscreen" which means (at least on my flatscreen TV) the sides of the picture are cut off and the image stretched to fit the TV from top to bottom; or, on the flip side of the disc, the so-called "letterbox" version, where the film is presented in its original ratio, but in an absurdly small rectangle in the middle of the screen.

You'd think if the studio was going to go to the expense of transferring a film to disc, they'd take at least a little more care with it. As it is, this version's not even worth paying Amazon's discounted price for; buy it used. Or, better, just rent it. June 17, 2008

YUM

I've loved this movie since I saw it on the big screen years ago. Happy to add it to my collection. June 13, 2008

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