Labyrinth is yet another case of what I like to call a flawed masterpiece. While it has it's share of issues, certain subtle qualities retain it's "must-see" status.Directed and co-written by Jim Henson, Labyrinth tells the story of a teenage, overly dramatic girl(played by none other than Jennifer Connelly in one of her earliest roles). Once again, her parents force her to stay home and look after her baby brother while they enjoy a night out. Sarah takes it all a bit melodramatically, and in a fit of sad angst wishes that the goblins of the far castle would come and take the baby away, turning into a goblin and keeping him within the castle for all eternity. Apparently she didn't at first know that goblins actually existed, but it's too late now, isn't it?
As you can imagine, when Sarah finds out that her wish has come true, she's quite dismayed. She pleads with none other than the Goblin King(played by none other than David Bowie) himself, who finally brings forth a proposal. Surrounding his castle is a gigantic labyrinth, which he himself built. If Sarah can solve it within the next few hours, before the designated time of her brother's transformation, they both can go free.
As the story unfolds, Sarah works hard to navigate the Labyrinth while all around her Jim Henson's bizarre puppet creations come to life.
While flawed in parts, and certainly showing it's age, Labyrinth contains too much genius to be overlooked. For many young kids, and anyone for that matter, Labyrinth is a very valuable story that should be mandatory viewing. Plus, it's just a ton of fun.
7 out of 10
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