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The story of an immortal Scottish warrior battling evil down
through the centuries, Highlander fused a high-concept idea with
the kinetic energy of a pop promo pioneer and Queen's explosive
soundtrack to become a cult classic. When two American producers
took a chance on a college student's script, they set in motion a
chain of events involving an imploding British film studio, an
experimental music video director still finding his filmmaking
feet, a former James Bond with a spiralling salary, and the
unexpected arrival of low-budget production company, Cannon Films.
Author Jonathan Melville looks back at the creation of Highlander
with the help of more than 60 cast and crew, as they talk candidly
about the gruelling shoot that took them from the back alleys of
London, to the far reaches of the Scottish Highlands, and onto the
mean streets of 1980s New York City. With insights from Queen's
Brian May and Roger Taylor on the film's iconic music, exclusive
screenwriter commentary on unmade scripts, never-before-seen photos
from private collections, and a glimpse into the promotional
campaign that never was. If there can be only one book on
Highlander then this is it!
'It's not a high concept movie, there's actually no story there
really. It's what happens in between the story that's important' -
Bill Forsyth The story of an American businessman sent to buy the
Scottish village of Ferness with the aim of turning it into an oil
refinery, Local Hero is one of Scotland's most beloved, and most
misunderstood, films. When Bill Forsyth's incredible success with
the low-budget That Sinking Feeling and Gregory's Girl found him
collaborating with Britain's best-known film producer, David
Puttnam, he soon found his independent ethos clashing with
Hollywood's desire for superstar actors and a happy ending.
Jonathan Melville checks into the MacAskill Arms and looks back at
Bill Forsyth's career with the help of new and archive interviews,
before spending time with the cast and crew, including stars Peter
Riegert and Denis Lawson, who made Local Hero on location in
Houston and Scotland in 1982. With access to early drafts of the
Local Hero script (including hand-written notes) that reveal more
about Mac and mermaids, excerpts from a previously unpublished
interview in which Bill Forsyth explains why he refuses to call his
film 'feel-good', and a look at long-lost deleted scenes with
exclusive commentary from those involved, this is the definitive
history of the Scottish classic. 'Genuine fairy tales are rare; so
is film-making that is thoroughly original in an unobtrusive way.
Bill Forsyth's quirky disarming Local Hero is both . . . it
demonstrates Mr. Forsyth's uncanny ability for making an audience
sense that something magical is going on, even if that something
isn't easily explained' - Janet Maslin, The New York Times 'Local
Hero is kind of transcendent. It's poetic in a way that most films
can't hope to be' - Frank Cottrell-Boyce 'Local Hero is one my
favourite films of all time . . . A timeless masterpiece' - Mark
Kermode
The story of an immortal Scottish warrior battling evil down
through the centuries, Highlander fused a high-concept idea with
the kinetic energy of a pop promo pioneer and Queen's explosive
soundtrack to become a cult classic. When two American producers
took a chance on a college student's script, they set in motion a
chain of events involving an imploding British film studio, an
experimental music video director still finding his filmmaking
feet, a former James Bond with a spiralling salary, and the
unexpected arrival of low-budget production company, Cannon Films.
Author Jonathan Melville looks back at the creation of Highlander
with the help of more than 60 cast and crew, as they talk candidly
about the gruelling shoot that took them from the back alleys of
London, to the far reaches of the Scottish Highlands, and onto the
mean streets of 1980s New York City. With insights from Queen's
Brian May and Roger Taylor on the film's iconic music, exclusive
screenwriter commentary on unmade scripts, never-before-seen photos
from private collections, and a glimpse into the promotional
campaign that never was. If there can be only one book on
Highlander then this is it!
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