I first saw Lords of Magick at Fukumura Video in Kitami, Japan. I was working as an ESL (English as a Second Language) and needed a break. What a treat this was on a snowy evening!
Lords of Magicks is very much an amateur's film: some of the swords were obviously picked up at Cost Plus Imports; the final battle takes place at the director's business; some parts of 10th century England look suspiciously like a California park; the film appears to have been shot on videotape, rather than reel-to-reel film, but the film displays two critical elements: simplicity, and energy.
What Lords of Magick lacks in Hollywood glitz, in makes up in its earnest simplicity: a princess is kidnapped by an evil wizard, and two young wizards (woefully unequal to the task) are railroaded to rescue her. Clichéd? Sure! The movie even makes fun of its own plot, "Another captured princess? How common!"
This kind of humor shows up again and again, which never fails to encourage laughter. When the villain froths at the mouth and makes a threat of doom when the princess is rescued from his clutches, Thomas (Brendan Dillon Jr.) remarks, "Lighten up, dude! You're so intense!"
There aren't very many films that can portray their own energy, but this is one of them. The film attempts (and for the most part succeeds) in attending to every one of the elements of a fantasy adventure. From time travel to sorcery, from gallantry to temptation, Lords of Magick shows that you don't have to have state-of-the-art special effects or an all-star cast, you just have to believe.
Sometimes that belief can lead you astray, however. During the final battle at Marsh Electronics (which I believe is the director's business--it seems just a bit too coincidental if it wasn't the same person) our heroes suddenly find themselves battling the living dead, who come out of the walls. This sequence was never fully explained, nor does the scene add anything to the duel between the two wizards other than confusion.
All the same, I'm glad I paid my 1800 Yen for my copy. It's a film I can go back to again and again just to ejoy it for what it is: a romp through fantasy, a sword and sorcery epic without musclebound goons stumbling over their lines, or excess Hollywood schmaltz!
Nine stars!
