| Highlander III: The Sorcerer | |
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 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Andy Morahan |
| Screenplay by | Paul Ohl |
| Story by |
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| Based on | Characters byGregory Widen |
| Produced by | Claude Léger |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Steven Chivers |
| Edited by | Yves Langlois |
| Music by | J. Peter Robinson |
Production companies |
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| Distributed by |
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Release dates |
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Running time | 95 minutes |
| Countries | |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $26[3]–34[4][5] million |
| Box office | $36.7 million[6] |
Highlander III: The Sorcerer (also known asHighlander: The Final Dimension orHighlander: The Final Conflict) is a 1994 British-Canadian-Frenchaction-adventurefantasy film and the third installment in theHighlander film series. Set as an alternate sequel to theoriginal film (i.e., it completely ignores and frequently contradicts the events ofHighlander II: The Quickening), it is the finalHighlander film to focus onConnor MacLeod as the protagonist. In the film, Connor MacLeod is forced to face a new, dangerous enemy, a powerful sorcerer known as Kane who threatens to win the fabled "Prize" in order to gain world domination by eliminating MacLeod. It grossed $36.7 million worldwide, becoming the highest grossing film in the franchise, as well as the only one to recover its budget at the box office. It received mostly negative reviews from critics, although it was considered better than the previous film.
Some time after the death of his wife Heather in the 16th century, the immortal Scottish HighlanderConnor MacLeod travels toJapan to train with an immortal named Nakano, asorcerer (said to be a master of illusion) and old friend of the Highlander's late teacherJuan Sánchez-Villalobos Ramírez. In a cave in Mount Niri, Nakano teaches MacLeod how to fight with thekatana that once belonged to Ramírez. He also warns of Kane, an evil immortal making his way across Asia with two immortal henchmen named Khabul Khan and Senghi Khan. After burning down a village, the three reach the cave. Kane beheads Nakano, taking his immortalQuickening energy and power of illusion. The Highlander escapes and Nakano laughs as he dies, declaring that Kane will not be present at the time of the Gathering (when the last immortals fight) and implying he has planned one last trick. The release of his energy causes a cave in, trapping Kane and his henchmen.
In 1788 France, Connor meets and falls in love with Sarah Barrington, a visitor from England. During theFrench Revolution, MacLeod is captured and sentenced to death for treason against KingLouis XVI. His immortal friend Pierre Bouchet takes his place, claiming he is tired of his immortal life. Believing Connor is dead, Sarah marries another man. By the time MacLeod finds her, he discovers she now has a family and decides to let her continue believing he is dead.
In1985, the Gathering occurs inNew York City and MacLeod is seemingly the last immortal left alive. He and his new love Brenda Wyatt move to Scotland and are married. She is killed in a car accident in 1987 and he survives without any wounds, indicating he has not lost his immortality and may not have won the Prize. By 1994, Connor is living with his adopted son John inMarrakesh. Meanwhile,archaeologist Dr. Alexandra Johnson (a woman identical to Sarah Barrington) is part of a team excavating the legendary cave of Nakano. The excavation frees Kane, who beheads Khabul to gain a boost in power while his other soldier Senghi leaves to find Connor.
Sensing the release of the Quickening again, MacLeod realizes the Game is not over and that he must return to New York City. MacLeod leaves John in the care of his friend, Jack Donovan. Arriving in New York, MacLeod (using his old alias of "Russell Nash" again) faces and kills Senghi. NYPD Lt. John Stenn believes Khabul's headless body is proof that the "headhunter" killer of 1985 is loose again. He concludes the killer is Russell Nash, who was a suspect during the original case.
Alex investigates a piece of kilt cloth found in the cave of Nakano, identifying it as branch of the MacLeod family, one where a clan member was banished for having unnatural powers. Learning that Russell Nash claims to be a descendant of this branch of the clan, Alex tracks him down and witnesses him battle Kane. The fight ends when MacLeod's blade shatters (possibly because their fight crossed into holy ground) and Kane flees.
Connor returns to theScottish Highlands to forge another sword but is unsuccessful. Learning more and concluding that "Nash" is actually the banished Connor MacLeod, still alive, Alex tracks him down and gives him a bar of finely refined steel she found in Nakano's cave. Connor forges a new katana and admits his identity, and the two become lovers. MacLeod then learns Kane has abducted his son John.
MacLeod meets Kane in an old church mission inJersey City and follows him into an abandoned power plant for their final battle. After a brief battle, the Highlander decapitates Kane and truly wins the Prize, now possessing the full power of all immortals who ever lived. He returns to Scotland with Alex and John to live out the rest of his natural life.
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DirectorRussell Mulcahy who directed prior installmentsHighlander andHighlander II: The Quickening was initially slated to return as director, but withdrew when the producers did not commit his $1.2 million pay intoescrow.[7] Davis-Panzer Productions responded by initiating a lawsuit against Mulcahy seeking $8.3 million in compensatory damages for repudiating on an oral agreement with the producers.[7] The film marked the directorial debut ofAndy Morahan, a music video director.[8]
The film completely ignores and contradicts the events ofHighlander II: The Quickening. The movie specifically states that Brenda Wyatt died in a car crash in 1987 and shows a version of 1994 where Earth's ozone layer is intact, whereasHighlander II depicts the ozone layer as being largely gone by 1994, causing many deaths by cancer and radiation poisoning, including Brenda's.
In a 1996Cinefantastique interview,Highlander producer William Panzer mentioned that several references to the TV series' continuity were inserted into this film as a means of linking it to the TV universe.
Many of the locations inScotland from the original film were revisited for this sequel. Several scenes were shot in the province ofQuebec[4] inCanada: the medieval Japanese village and the building in which Nakano's cave is found were shot nearMontreal. Many sequences in New York were actually shot in Montreal, as well. Other scenes for this film were shot inMorocco.
The U.S. theatrical release was rated PG-13, and a slightly-longer R-ratedSpecial Director's Cut was later released on home video with twosex scenes trimmed from the theatrical release restored. On top of this, additional violence was reinstated, mainly the shot of Kane's head rolling off. The PG-13 theatrical cut originally only showed Kane's head wobbling from side to side, then cutting immediately to the extreme close-up on Connor saying, "There can be only one."
Several enhanced visual effects shots are present in the American version, including Kane's arrival inNew York City (via a teleportation portal, instead of stepping off of a freighter in the international version), as well as during the final Quickening sequence (where several additional shots of Connor levitating are seen, complete with new VFX work). The AmericanFinal Dimension cut includes alternate musical tracks and cues (including the song "God Took a Picture" during the ending credits instead ofLoreena McKennitt's "Bonny Portmore," and a rock-instrumental version ofMötley Crüe's "Dr. Feelgood" during the final battle between MacLeod and Kane).
The score was composed and conducted byJ. Peter Robinson. The film marks the first use of "Bonny Portmore" in theHighlander films (it was also used in thetelevision series). The soundtrack features the following songs:
The film opened at number one at the U.K. box office but with a disappointing gross of £864,000 ($1.3 million) in its opening week.[9]The film debuted at number 2 at the U.S. box office, grossing $5.6 million.[10] The following week it dropped to 7th place, taking in $2.9 million.[11]Highlander III: The Sorcerer finished its U.S. theatrical run with a gross of $13.7 million[3] and grossed $23 million internationally for a worldwide gross of $36.7 million.[6] While not a success, it is the highest-grossing film of the entire franchise, as well as the only one to recoup its budget at the box office.
Stephen Holden ofThe New York Times remarked, "How could an action-adventure film that cost $34 million, most of which clearly went into pyrotechnics, computerized special effects and scenic locations, end up looking cheap, silly and lifeless? [Highlander III: The Sorcerer is] an incoherent mess [and] has performances that are one-dimensional even by the undemanding standards of the genre."[12]
TheBBC's review gave the film a score of two stars out of five, saying: "This is a far superior film toHighlander II [but] it is really a copy ofthe first one. ... It really feels as if theHighlander story has no more to give us—but that would be very wrong. Perhaps the best thing this third movie did was promote the generally betterTV series."[13]
Christopher Null of FilmCritic.com also gaveHighlander III two stars out of five, saying: "The third in a line of increasingly perplexingHighlander movies,Highlander: The Final Dimension steals wholesale the plot from the original, just throwing in some fresh faces. ... Ultra-fans will rejoice in the face of the third installment—and it's nowhere near as bad asHighlander II—but most of you can give it a pass."[14]
In retrospective, the film holds a 5% approval rating onRotten Tomatoes, based on 20 reviews, the critic consensus says "Borderline unwatchable and unspeakably dull,Highlander III is a sloppy third installment that still somehow manages to mark a slight improvement over its predecessor."[15] OnMetacritic the film has a score of 28% based on reviews from 12 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews".[16]
$1,347,798; £1=$1.56
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