The first thing that you notice while watching the fourth installment of the Highlander franchise is how markedly different it is to the previous three movies. Gone is the complicated and often contradictory universe spawned by it, in its place is the more agreeable and well-thought out storyline of the succesful TV series that it spawned. While Christopher Lambert's Connor McLeod reappears to add continuity the film is seen through the eyes of Duncan McLeod (Paul), a fellow immortal and clansman of Conner whose story was told for 5 years on the show.
The lore behind the Highlander premise is that of immortals. Humans who through some supernatural process become immortal when they die, never growing older and never having to die again unless their head is chopped off by a fellow immortal. The reason immortals exist is to fight for 'The Prize'. A mythical gift of immense power, it is given to the last surviving immortal who has defeated everyone else (though how that works I don't know, as new immortals are 'born' almost all the time) through a series of swordfight challenges each engages in in order to either gain power or survive an enemies assault. When each immortal dies his or her victor gains their power through a violent-looking lightning strike and becomes all the stronger because of it.
This is the point of the film, as Connor finds everyone he loves being killed by a long-forgotten enemy with a considerable grudge against him. He escapes to the 'Sanctuary', a stasis room for immortals tired of playing the game and guarded by the Watchers, mortal humans who spend their entire lives keeping an eye on immortal behaviour and recording their lives and nasty deaths. When the Sanctuary is attacked and destroyed by Connor's enemy he is allowed to go free only to find himself hunted like prey. Duncan involves himself in his friend's life and the two become aware of the stakes they face; that of an immensely powerful immortal stronger than the two of them put together.
It looks and feels exactly like the TV show, and this is both it's greatest strength and it's most glaring weakness. To not have to follow the ridiculously absurd path of the previous three movies is a blessing, and the massive groundswell of information, characterization and repetition of process used in the show (we get to see many of the flashbacks the series was famous for, replaying many key moments in Connor and Duncan's lives and loves) comes in very handy in allowing the viewer to fit more comfortably into the film. However, one cannot get over the fact that, unlike the Star Trek movies for instance, this is just a 90 minute episode with Christopher Lambert in it. Production values don't seem to be too much higher, it looks like it's been shot on TV-standard film type and nothing too momentous happens in it to suggest to the viewer that it is anything more than a spin-off movie. The film itself has obviously been heavily cut with many things making little or no sense. The renegade watcher for instance who briefly captures Duncan gives no explanation for his actions, and Jim Dawson and Methos, two mainstays of the TV show, are given very little to do at all. A plot featuring all the main characters fighting against a seemingly unstoppable force would have been far better surely.
Despite this the film is great fun. Adrian Paul is clearly used to playing Duncan and fits in to the role with considered ease. His martial arts and swordfighting prowess is used to the full and it's nice for once to see a big star such as himself actually knowing what he is doing. The sense of fun and humour the show had is conveyed over well too, especially in the flashback scenes of Connor and Duncan's early days.
Without a doubt this film has chosen well in using the TV show's mythology rather than the film series. It works better and far simpler and with Duncan we have a new hero to shout for. Sorry Mssr Lambert, but the fact that he can actually do a Scottish accent does help. |
