Hawk the Slayer ** (1980 Jack Palance, John Terry, Bernard Bresslaw, Ray Charleson, Annette Crosbie, Cheryl Campbell, Peter O’Farrell, Harry Andrews, Roy Kinnear, Ferdy Mayne, Shane Briant) – Classic Movie Review 8456

Director Terry Marcel’s 1980 fantasy adventure Hawk the Slayer is a brutish, British entry into the sword and sorcery stakes with John Terry (Hawk) and Jack Palance (Voltan) playing hero and villain siblings battling over a magic sword.

Hawk needs friends to help him in his bid to slay his evil brother Voltan, who has killed his father and his fiancée, and to save the Abbess (Annette Crosbie), whom he has taken hostage.

Hawk the Slayer may be marred by some shoddy special effects and a preposterous script, but it is quirkily entertaining, and the leathery-looking Palance grabs his villain role with great gusto.

Also in the cast are Bernard Bresslaw as the giant Gort, Ray Charleson, Cheryl Campbell as Sister Monica, Peter O’Farrell as the dwarf Baldin, Harry Andrews, Roy Kinnear, Ferdy Mayne, Shane Briant, William Morgan Sheppard, Patricia Quinn, Catriona MacColl, Christopher Benjamin, Patrick Magee, Graham Stark, Warren Clarke, Declan Mulholland, Derrick O’Connor and Peter Benson.

The original story and screenplay are by Terry Marcel and Harry Robertson. It is made by Incorporated Television Company (ITC), Marcel/Robertson Productions Limited, and Chips Productions, and released by ITC (1980) (UK). The Special Effects are by Effects Associates and Westbury Design & Optical (optical effects).

© Derek Winnert 2019 Classic Movie Review 8456

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