They break free from their cages and the Skeksis scientist falls to his death, upon which his Mystic counterpart simultaneously vanishes. Kira maintains a telepathic connection with Jen, who tells her to call out to the animals imprisoned in the laboratory. On the suggestion of the Skeksis' resident scientist, the General decides to regain his youth by draining Kira's life essence, recalling that its potency allows a Skeksis emperor to maintain his youth for longer periods than that of the Podlings on whom they have been forced to rely since the Gelfling genocide. The General restores the Chamberlain to his former position. The Chamberlain confronts them again and tries to convince them to make peace however, the Chamberlain wounds Jen and takes Kira to the Castle. Kira, Jen and Fizzgig infiltrate the lower parts of the Castle. Kira and Jen unsuccessfully attempt to free the captured Podlings. Riding on Landstriders, the Gelflings arrive at the Castle of the Crystal, where they see the Garthim that attacked Kira's village.
The Chamberlain tells Jen and Kira that he wishes to bring them to the Skeksis to make peace, but they refuse. Finding a relief with prophetic writing, Jen discovers that the shard, a part of the Dark Crystal, must be reinserted to restore the Crystal's integrity. Jen and Kira discover a ruined Gelfling city. However, the Garthim attack the village and Kira, Jen, and Fizzgig flee when the Chamberlain prevents one of the Garthim from attacking them. They stay for a night with the Podlings who raised Kira after the death of her parents. They discover that they have a telepathic connection, which Kira calls "dreamfasting". Jen meets Kira, another surviving Gelfling who can communicate with animals, and her pet Fizzgig. Hearing the calls of the crystal, the Mystics leave their valley to travel to the Skeksis' castle. The Garthim destroy Aughra's home and take her prisoner as Jen flees. Jen is told of the upcoming Great Conjunction when the three suns will align, but he learns little of its connection to the shard. Jen discovers the crystal shard by playing music on his flute to which it resonates. Jen reaches Aughra and is taken to her home, which contains an enormous orrery she uses to predict the motions of the heavens. Learning of Jen's existence, the Skeksis send large crab-like creatures called Garthim to track him. The General becomes emperor and the Chamberlain is exiled. A duel ensues between the Skeksis Chamberlain and General, who both desire the throne. The Skeksis' emperor and Jen's master die simultaneously. If he fails to do so before the three suns meet, the Skeksis will rule forever. Jen, an elf-like Gelfling taken in by the Mystics after his clan was killed, is told by his Mystic master that he must find the crystal shard, and that it can be found in the home of Aughra. The film was produced by ITC Entertainment, the British production company responsible for producing The Muppet Show.Ī thousand years ago on "another world", a magical crystal cracked, and two new races appeared: the tyrannical, reptilian Skeksis, who use the power of the "Dark Crystal" to continually replenish themselves, and hunchbacked natural wizards called Mystics. The film's score was composed by Trevor Jones. The screenplay was written by David Odell, who had previously worked with Henson as a staff writer on The Muppet Show. The Dark Crystal was produced by Gary Kurtz, whose list of credits includes American Graffiti, Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back, Return to Oz, and Slipstream. The film was released to the cinemas in the USA on 17 December 1982. The film stars the voices of Stephen Garlick, Lisa Maxwell and Billie Whitelaw. Froud also collaborated with Henson and Oz for their next project, the 1986 film Labyrinth, which was notably more light-hearted than The Dark Crystal. The primary concept artist was the fantasy illustrator Brian Froud, famous for his distinctive faerie and dwarf designs.
The animatronics used in the film were considered groundbreaking. Although marketed as a family film, it was notably darker than the creators' previous material. It tells the story of Jen, an elflike 'Gelfling' on a quest to restore balance to his alien world by returning a lost shard to a powerful but broken gem.
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