Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10
Cast: Ruby Cruz, Warwick Davis, Ellie Bamber, Erin Kellyman, Tony Revolori, Amar Chadha-Patel, Dempsey Byrk, Claudia Hughes, Ralph Ineson, Graham Hughes, Joonas Suotamo, Sifiso Mazibuko, Kenny Knight, Joanne Whalley, Rosebell Laurenti Sellers, Adwoa Aboah, Derek Horsham, Annabelle Davis, Simeon Dyer, Daniel Naprous, Eileen Davies, Vitas Le Bas, Charlie Rawes, Talisa Garcia, Alexis Rodney, Christian Slater, Tom Wilton, Dee Tails, Simon Armstrong, Mario Revolori, Jean Marsh, Julian Glover, Sarah Bennett, Sallyanne Law, Hannah Waddingham, Amalia Vitale.
To resurrect a once loved character after many decades away from the screen is to risk alienating a section of the audience that will decry the continuing saga as nothing more than a nostalgic memory dressed in the guise of advancement and selling of the soul in return for guaranteed box office returns.
It is harsh, perhaps, and for the most part you can look at any studio’s success and find where they seek to invest their returns to, that of the prequel, the sequel, and the additional headline money maker, and yet in amongst the fake silver brought forth, occasionally you can find a pot of genuine gold handed across with pleasure between studio, cast, and one that only enhances the memory; even after four decades.
The tale of Willow, the aspiring Nelwyn magician brought beautifully to life by the enigmatic Warwick Davis in the 1988 fantasy film of the same name, receives his long-awaited revival, the continuing saga in which magic and love are all conquering, and hate and evil are always in the shadows waiting for the right time to strike back at those who bought upon its downfall.
There are of course moments where you cannot but help compare the two projects, time has moved on, and not just in years and decades, but in appreciation, in presentation and in language, and you either embrace the many wonderful changes brought forward by society’s willingness to adapt to social revolution, or you avoid what is a fruitful tale, one that remarkably has perhaps taken a leaf out of the Lord Of The Rings/Hobbit sense of companionship to the screen, one that touches upon the fierce nature of female responsibility to each other, and it is presented with grace, fun, and truth.
The understanding of the film though comes from the overall scale of the series. This is definitely one that has Disney’s vast amount of financial resources at its disposal, and every penny is on the screen, from the actors who inhabit the roles with purpose and intensity, especially the female trio of Ellie Bamber, the excellent Erin Kellyman, and Ruby Cruz in their various roles, but also in Tony Revolori, who bring the subtly of his craft to the forefront of the series in the role of Graydon Hastur. His measure on screen is a reminder of what he achieved in the superb Wes Anderson film, The Grand Budapest Hotel.
It is through Warwick Davis as he reprises his role as Willow to whom the show ultimately hangs its reputation upon, and in desire for praise, the audience should be left under no circumstances of how enjoyable it is to see him once again as the hero of the piece.
Willow is a fantasy returned, and it with a smile and temptation that by immersing yourself into this old world made new that the viewer will see that sometimes, just occasionally, the need for a sequel is about art and not only the memory.
Ian D. Hall