What is Willow? The question surely crossed the minds of many when the Disney Plus sequel series was announced last year. After all, its prequel movie isn’t the most famous of George Lucas’s works. Certainly, it doesn’t stack up well next to Indiana Jones and Star Wars. Yet, the movie maintains a cult following, with many deeming it an underrated masterpiece.
So, What’s Willow (the Movie) All About?
The 1988 movie centers on the journey of a farmboy – and aspiring wizard – called Willow. Essentially a younger, prettier version of Luke Skywalker with an unidentifiable accent, Willow and his kids find a baby floating down the river. But who is this child?
It turns out the baby is destined to be the downfall of the evil Queen Bavmorda (she has a special rune, so it must be true). However, Bavmorda knows this and sends wild dog minions to hunt down the baby, Elora Danan. If that weren’t enough, she’s also got her second-in-command, the cold General Kael, on the baby’s tail. This is bad news also for Willow, who volunteers to find Elora’s family, and must rely only on the help of a roguish mercenary, Madmardigan, to do so. Inevitably, he and the Queen’s minions butt heads through the story.
What Inspired George Lucas to Create Willow?
While Willow hit the silver screen in 1988, Lucas conceived the idea for his high fantasy film much earlier. Originally titled Munchkins, Lucas carried the story around in his mind from 1972 (six years before the first Star Wars movie’s release!). Like his beloved space opera trilogy, Lucas wanted to explore “personal responsibility and friendship, the importance of a compassionate life as opposed to a passionate life.”
However, the film that became Willow took shape in 1983. When an 11-year-old Warwick Davis played Wicket the Ewok in Return of the Jedi, George approached the young actor about the fantasy feature. Davis agreed, appearing in the finished movie five years later.
However, Davis insists that he still had to win the role. In a GamesRadar interview, the English actor recalled that Ron Howard, Willow’s director, got him to audition “several times.” He won the part, although he admits, “having George Lucas in your corner obviously helps.”
Now fully cast and special effects technology advanced enough to depict Lucas’s story, things were ready to go. Armed with a script written by Bob Dolman and a director in American Graffiti‘s Ron Howard, Willow was ready to start his adventure.
But is Willow Any Good?
When Willow finally hit theaters in 1988, it garnered mixed reception from critics. Desson Thomas of The Washington Post sums up what many critics felt at the time. “Though children will mostly be enthralled by the spectacles (including a castle-storming finale),” he writes, “even they might notice the weak story protruding through the industrial magic.”
Indeed, Willow’s story often is overshadowed by the special effects. The effects were, after all, produced by Lucas’s groundbreaking ILM studio. From magic spells to tiny Tom Thumb-type people (The Brownies), it’s hard to argue that the industrial magic isn’t any good. It deserves extra credit for allowing us to forget the story.
However, not only is the story cliché fantasy fare but so are the characters. From Warwick Davis’s Willow Ufgood to Val Kilmer’s witty Han Solo-lite mercenary Madmardigan and the witch herself, Queen Bavmorda, played by Jean Marsh, there isn’t a hint of originality in Willow. And it’s not to say that the actors don’t give it their all. They do, and thanks to the film’s childishly slapstick script, even appear like they’re having fun. However, it is also because of the aforementioned script that our heroes and villains come across as one-dimensional and unexciting.
It’s Been Done Better
Willow is especially redundant, given what’s come since. The turn of the twentieth century brought us Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter movies, with both franchises becoming primers for how to create blockbuster movie franchises set in fantasy worlds. This is particularly visible in the former’s case since LOTR made better use of New Zealand’s beautiful environments than Willow. The combination of then-revolutionary CGI and beautiful aerial cinematography took us to another world.
While Willow can be very pretty to look at (it is partly filmed in NZ, after all), it doesn’t have LOTR’s cinematographic brilliance. Nor does it have the cohesive feel of Peter Jackson’s Middle-Earth. Because it is essentially a wellpool of fantasy clichés, Willow’s world feels very disconnected and one-dimensional. Willow’s nameless hometown feels like it exists in a different universe to the witch’s lair, for example. It is also incredibly lite on fictional mythology and worldbuilding compared to the films previously mentioned.
“But It’s a Kid’s Movie”
But of course, some people – George Lucas being among them – would argue that Willow is a kids’ movie. And, hey, that’s true. But kids’ movie or not, it’s either good or bad. And that’s a judgment anyone can make, regardless of their age.
Overall, when we compare Willow to the great kids’ movies of our time – i.e. any movie from the ‘Disney Renaissance,’ Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, heck, even Hook – it’s hard to recommend Willow over them. This so-so family flick is painfully average and lacks any distinct character. It’s only thanks to Warwick Davis’s charisma and dwarfishness that the film retains any idiosyncrasy at all.
Given this, it’s amazing to see a Willow sequel series at all. The original movie retains a cult following, but it’s not a Star Wars or Indiana Jones-tier franchise. Heck, the show’s initial teaser trailer is a sketch where Warwick Davis goes around asking his new castmates about the 1988 Willow movie, only for them to be none the wiser. So, even then, there’s an evident self-awareness that it isn’t the biggest game in town.
The Future of Willow
But it doesn’t matter what I, you, or anyone else thinks. Willow is returning. But with that, there’s also a sense of excitement. Fantasy movies/television have progressed a hell of a lot since 1988. Whether that be Game of Thrones, Merlin, or Lord of the Rings, Ron Howard and company have a lot of recent inspiration in terms of how to develop a gripping fantasy show.
Now, the 1988 Willow movie is held in high regard by its cult following. But only time will tell whether the sequel series grips a larger audience. And given the recent success of epic fantasy shows, it has the potential to do so.
But that’s just our take. What do you think about the 1988 movie Willow? Average fantasy fare or underrated classic?
