Labyrinth

The 1986 film Labyrinth marked the end of an era in fantasy/sci-fi films; it was the last big-name movie made before computer animation became the FX standard. An MTV-obsessed, teenage girl’s reverie, the film sported a dream team productionwise with Monty Python’s Terry Jones as scriptwriter, George Lucas as producer, and Jim Henson as director. A young Jennifer Connelly phones in a deliciously indifferent performance, which, ironically, perfectly captures ‘80s teenage ennui. And of course, David Bowie’s turn as the Goblin King Jareth is the reason we watch — he lords over his puppet realm like a glam-rock Oberon. For all its campiness and blatant ripping off of classics like The Wizard of Oz and Alice in Wonderland, Bowie lends the enterprise an endearing authenticity — like a thought bubble popping out from a teenage girl’s head that reads, “I wish goblins would abduct my little brother…and then I meet David Bowie…” Catch a screening of a new 35mm print at 11:55 p.m. today and tomorrow. Landmark River Oaks Theater, 2009 West Gray. For information, call 713-866-8881 or visit www.landmarktheatres.com. $8.25.

Fri., Dec. 14, 11:55 p.m.; Sat., Dec. 15, 11:55 p.m., 2007

This article appears in Dec 13-19, 2007.