The rural New York town of Sleepy Hollow has not had much luck keeping their schoolmasters. In fact, all of them within recent memory have left the town in terror--or died there. The most recent of that number, the cynical Ichabod Crane, thinks he has nothing more to worry about than the local bullies--but he may be very wrong.
Subgenres: ghost, nostalgia
Director: Henning Schellerup
Writers: Tom Chapman, Jack Jacobs, Malvin Wald, Washington Irving (book)
Starring: Jeff Goldblum, Meg Foster
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My best advice to anyone thinking of watching this film is to do so keeping the idea in mind that this is strictly for families. It has little of the dark appeal and atmosphere that pervaded Washington Irving's story (nor any number of the adaptations made from it, most notably Tim Burton's Sleepy Hollow). This was filmed in rural Utah, and it looks like it; there's no way this Sleepy Hollow set comes close to evoking the Catskills atmosphere the story needs in order to work. Nor is this film scary--it is much less about the legends that pervade the New York wilderness than it is about Ichabod Crane's lovelife and the antics of a couple of town morons. Which leads us back to the film's audience. This Legend is a goofy adaptation, with just a touch of scariness, appealing for a family looking for gawky Jeff Goldblum to help them kill an hour or two. But it's recommended nonetheless. (Oct 20, 2001) | ||||||
Based on the story The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving.
Adapted to film numerous times, including a version narrated by Glenn Close and an adaptation, simply called Sleepy Hollow, directed by Tim Burton.
