OUT NOW ON UK BLU-RAY: 'WILLOW'

Willow (Warwick Davis) and Madmartigan (Val Kilmer) cement their friendship and heroism in WILLOW. Images: 20TH CENTURY FOX. 

Don't forget UK fans, George Lucas and Ron Howard's beloved sword and fantasy saga WILLOW is finally available on stunning Blu-ray today, accompanied by tons of great special edition extras. A lively mix of humour, fantasy and thrills, Warwick Davis and Val Kilmer are our polar opposite heroes-the farmer turned protector Willow Ufgood and the solider of fortune Madmartigan- caught up in a world of prophecy, witchcraft, and gruesome monsters, as they protect a special baby from the clutches of the tyrannical Queen Bavmorda (Jean Marsh) - all set against a stunning New Zealand backdrop exploited for the camera long before Peter Jackson's LORD OF THE RINGS ever did.

Jean Marsh oozes evil as Queen Bavmorda.

Pat Roach adds further villainy as the vicious General Kael.

Starring Joanne Whalley (as the heroic warrior princess Sorsha), and Pat Roach (as the very Darth Vader-esque General Kael) in strong supporting roles, WILLOW is enduring feel-good fun for all the family, packed with comedy, well-staged action and lively, innovative special effects. Celebrating its 25th Anniversary, the film also acts as a nice primer for all-new fantasy worlds to come from LUCASFILM with the STAR WARS saga in 2016.

Warwick Davis - SFX magazine interview: INTERVIEW: Warwick Davis On 25 Years Of Willow | SFX

TOTAL FILM magazine's featurette on the new release with Warwick Davis and Val Kilmer:
Exclusive Willow featurette - YouTube

Check out our previous features on the WILLOW Blu-ray release here: STAR WARS AFICIONADO MAGAZINE: WILLOW

Order WILLOW here: Willow [Blu-ray] [1988]: Amazon.co.uk: Val Kilmer, Warwick Davis, Joanne Whalley, Jean Marsh, Billy Barty, Ron Howard, George Lucas: Film & TV

'WILLOW' - A 25TH ANNIVERSARY BLU-RAY CELEBRATION

Warwick Davis breakout film role beyond STAR WARS, the eighties sword and fantasy saga from George Lucas and Ron Howard, WILLOW, arrives in a brand new pristine transfer Blu-ray release next month. Here's the publicity blurb for the special release of the much loved movie:

CELEBRATE THE 25^TH ANNIVERSARY OF WILLOW

GEORGE LUCAS AND RON HOWARD BRING THE CLASSIC TALE TO LIFE

ON BLU-RAY FOR THE FIRST TIME

Blu-ray Disc Features All-new Digital Transfer Overseen by Lucasfilm and

Never-Before-Seen Bonus Material

LOS ANGELES, Calif. (December 13, 2012) – Journey to the far corners of your imagination with Willow, for the first time ever on stunning Blu-ray!  Written and produced by George Lucas and directed by Ron Howard, the film tells a timeless fantasy tale in which heroes come in all sizes...and adventure is the greatest magic of all.  In celebration of its 25^th anniversary, the unforgettable classic has been fully digitally restored and debuts on Blu-ray Disc in the UK on 11^th March 2013 from Lucasfilm Ltd. and Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment.

When young Willow Ufgood (Warwick Davis; Harry Potter franchise) finds an abandoned baby girl, he learns she is destined to end the reign of the wicked Queen Bavmorda (Jean Marsh; “Upstairs, Downstairs”). In order to protect the child, Willow must team up with a rogue swordsman (Val Kilmer; Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang) and overcome the forces of darkness in the ultimate battle of good versus evil!

The Willow Blu-ray includes a dazzling array of extras with never-before-seen exclusive content such as deleted scenes with remarks from Ron Howard, a personal video diary of Warwick Davis, matte paintings and much more. In addition, look out for Ron Howard’s new introduction for the original 1988 featurette “The Making of an Adventure,” as well as special effect legend Dennis Muren’s new intro to his piece, “From Morf to Morphing: The Dawn of Digital Filmmaking.”

Special Features:

WILLOW is presented in widescreen with 5.1 DTS HD Master Audio (Lossless). Special features include:

o   NEW – Willow: Deleted Scenes with Ron Howard

o   NEW – Willow: An Unlikely Hero – Personal Video Diary of Warwick Davis

o   The Making of an Adventure, with an all new introduction from Ron Howard

o   From Morf to Morphing, with an all new introduction from Dennis Muren

o   Matte Paintings

o   Easter Egg


Purchase WILLOW here: Willow [Blu-ray] [1988]: Amazon.co.uk: Val Kilmer, Warwick Davis, Joanne Whalley, Jean Marsh, Billy Barty, Ron Howard, George Lucas: Film & TV

'WILLOW' RETURNS...ON UK BLU-RAY

A shiny armoured Madmartigen gets ready to attack in a classic image from WILLOW, coming 11th March to UK Blu-ray. To hold the film up to George Lucas's seminal Classic STAR WARS films would be like comparing apples to oranges, but it is nonetheless a very entertaining eighties dip into another type of fantasy world- one with a big cult following, whilst Lucas and director Ron Howard-surely a directing candidate for the upcoming EPISODE VII- make a fine creative pairing. Val Kilmer's portrayal of the aforementioned Madmartigen, who very much had echoes of Han Solo's rogue'ish-ness about him, particularly shines out in the film, especially in his scenes with warrior princess/actress wife-to-be Joanne Whalley.

Order details: Willow [Blu-ray] [1988]: Amazon.co.uk: Val Kilmer, Warwick Davis, Joanne Whalley, Jean Marsh, Billy Barty, Ron Howard, George Lucas: Film & TV