Released: September 2000
Director: Douglas Aarniokoski
Rated R
Run Time: 101 Minutes
Distributor: Dimension Films/Miramax
Genre: Action/Fantasy
Cast:
Adrian Paul: Duncan MacLeod
Christopher Lambert: Connor MacLeod
Bruce Payne: Jacob Kell
Lisa Barbuscia: Kate/Faith
Donnie Yen: Jin Ke
Jim Byrnes: Joe Dawson
Peter Wingfield: Methos
Time sometimes can change things, specifically when it comes to either loving or hating movies. Sometimes when I hate on a movie, it takes years for it to grow on me. On the flip-side, a movie that I loved when it first came out I may end up not liking it as much later on down the road. A movie can sometimes be better than you initially thought, or it can be worse. It happens. Sometimes you do change your mind on the subject. This happens to film reviewers as well. One should never go back and change the initial review unless a mistake was made. No, a reviewer should stand by that review at the time it was written. It does not mean that the reviewer can’t change his or her mind some time after the review. Sometimes it can take years, but I honestly think it is okay to change your mind on a movie. I think it’s also important to tell the audience why you changed your mind on the matter. My initial review of Highlander: Endgame was a 6.5/10: Barely above average. That was nearly 4 years ago when I reviewed the film for this website. So….how do I feel about the film now? Let’s take a look.
The film opens in 1990 as Connor and Duncan MacLeod meet up for some reason, only for Connor to go an “errand.” While on this side-trip, Rachel Ellenstein, Connor’s adopted daughter is killed when his apartment explodes. 10 years later, a group of Immortals, led by Jacob Kell, show up at a mysterious temple that’s secretly housing another group of Immortals in a sort of sanctuary. Kell slaughters the housed Immortals, while at the same time, Duncan MacLeod sees visions of this massacre. Discovering that Connor may have been in this “sanctuary,” Duncan heads to the United States to look for him. While that is the crux of the story, there’s actually quite a bit more that happens. Highlander: Endgame was supposed to connect the film series to the TV series, so this particular sequel feels a bit different from the last few movies, in a good way. The story here is actually a lot better than I initially remember as it deals with revenge and how it can consume someone to the point where they are no longer who they used to be. There is also an element of redemption and forgiveness in the film that actually kind of elevates it above the last two movies. Connor and Duncan have done some terrible things in their pasts that continue to haunt them. The film’s main villain, Jacob Kell, is a direct result of Connor’s actions in 1555 Scotland, and Duncan has to reconcile the sins he committed against the woman he loved. As Immortals, these characters have a very tragic existence of sorts, and that’s kind resonated throughout the entire film and TV series. The story is far more compelling than I initially thought.
In my initial review of Highlander: Endgame, I mentioned how awful most of the acting was. Having seen the film again after all these years, the acting is a lot better than I remember. That being said, some of the acting is still pretty over-the-top and borderline silly. Bruce Payne plays Kell a little too over-the-top, almost making him a bit of a cartoon character. That being said, there has always been a cheesy aspect to these movies that you really can’t avoid, so the performances aren’t that shabby. This is definitely Adrian Paul and Christopher Lambert’s show, though. The Connor MacLeod of this film is different from the previous films. Here, the character is broken and hopeless after losing loved ones to Jacob Kell’s vengeance. Lambert really brings across the despair and tragic nature of his character. Paul’s character has demons of his own that he’s trying to deal with and we get to see how his relationship with Kate and Connor evolves. As over-the-top as Kell is, Bruce Payne is incredibly fun to watch here. He chews the scenery like it’s nobody’s business. Kell is no Kurgan, but he’s still a decent enough threat. He’s more of a threat than Kane or General Katana ever were. So, yeah, the acting really isn’t that bad.
Of all the Highlander films, Endgame has some of the best fight scenes. A lot of the martial arts stuff on display is because Donnie Yen is the choreographer for a lot of the fights. This was the first movie that I saw Donnie Yen in, and it was his first American film. It’s not a bad debut at all. The fight that his character has with Duncan is one of the best fight scenes in the entire movie. A lot of this was done without wires so the fights are somewhat grounded in reality. Most of the fight sequences are fantastic, but they are also used to progress the story. In fact, and I mentioned this in my Best Sword Fights post, one of more memorable fight scenes is between Duncan and Connor. There is definitely a very strong emotional current that runs through the entire fight, because there is only one way it can end, and to me that is a very compelling experience. Overall, the action is fantastic.
While there is definitely quite a bit to really like about this movie, there are some issues with the film that need to be addressed. While I definitely appreciate some of the cinematography here and the fight sequences are decently staged, the editing of the film is totally off the wall. There are instance where you can tell they cut the film. For example: There is a scene in which Connor and Duncan are training when Connor decides to teach Duncan a specifically lethal move. When he says “Properly executed, this move is unstoppable,” pay attention to the color of the scene between the words “is” and “unstoppable.” It changes ever so slightly, but it is noticeable. The DVD says that 12 minutes of footage were added into the film, and while some of that may be true, there is a point during the final battle where the editing is literally copy-and-pasted. This is on the DVD that came out back in 2000-2001. I’ll show you: Take a look at 1:34 of the video and compare it to the 2:35 mark. It’s literally copy-and-pasted.
Not only is the editing there sloppy, it’s fucking lazy. That’s padding out the run-time. There are also other technical issues that I’ve found in the film that are really bizarre. On the roof-top fight scene with Duncan and Connor, you can absolutely tell that it’s a JVC sign behind them, only blurred out. I can only guess that they couldn’t afford JVC, so they blotted it out, poorly I might add. There is also a scene in Connor’s loft when Kell beheads one of his cronies. His head is lying on the ground and he blinks. While a lot of the Quickening effects still hold up, a good chunk of the CGI doesn’t. I also mentioned in my previous review that the marketing for the film was a complete disaster. Check it out:
The initial trailer shows a lot of supernatural elements including Kell being able to split in two. The trailer even refers to Kell as a supernatural enemy. None of those elements show up in the final film. In fact, a lot of those effects and shots were made specifically for the trailer. Basically, the movie that you were initially shown in the teaser is nothing more than a bait-and-switch. In my opinion, that’s false-advertising. There was no explanation given for that.
Despite a number of glaring technical issues, is Highlander: Endgame still worth watching? Yes. Yes it is, especially if you’re a Highlander fan like myself. While my initial review was pretty harsh at the time, and I won’t change that review, time has dulled my dislike of the film. In fact, I consider Highlander: Endgame to be the best Highlander sequel. It has some of the best fight sequences in the entire series and a really solid story to boot. So, have I changed my mind a bit on the film? Yes. Yes, I have. I’m not going to delete my first review, as I stand by that one at the time. As I mentioned earlier, sometimes people change their minds about things. So, I definitely recommend checking this one out at least once. Don’t bother with Highlander: The Source, though. That movie sucks.
Initial Review: 6.5/10
Second Look: 8/10