Highlander III: The Final Dimension (1994)

Thankfully, Highlander III (also titled The Sorcerer as well as The Final Dimension) is a much better sequel to the original Highlander movie than Highlander II: The Quickening. In fact, I'm pretty sure in the 90s I mentally deleted Highlander II from the series once Highlander III was released. However, my memory didn't retain the details of the third movie any better than it did the second, no matter how much better the third movie was. It was more than twenty years ago, so I consider that's an acceptable memory lapse. 

On the other hand, Highlander III was almost too much like Highlander with the wild chase scene where in the original movie The Kurgan (Clancy Brown) terrorizes his kidnapped victim with his game of traffic chicken. In the third movie Kane (Mario Van Peebles) also terrorizes his kidnapped victim with the same exact tactics. Both victims are MacLeod's most cherished loved ones, which logically makes them the number one victims of choice for the villains. 

Also, both movies end with Connor MacLeod (Christoper Lambert) returning to his native Scotland with his newly acquired lover who happily sacrifices her life and career to live out the rest of her days with MacLeod who has won The Prize and can now age and die naturally. The only difference in the third movie is he has an adopted son who makes the family a threesome. 

While the second movie was nothing like the first and was a mixed up mess of a movie, the third, although much better in regard to plot and logical composition, was almost too representative of the original movie. However, I'm thankful that the third movie was created to raise my Highlander appreciation back up to the level it was after seeing the original movie.

Highlander II: The Quickening (1991)

Other than the fact that Christopher Lambert (Connor MacLeod) and Sean Connery (Ramirez) returned in their roles as immortals and the story continued the prophecy that "there can be only one," Highlander II really had nothing to do with the original Highlander movie. 

Instead of a sword and sorcery legend of a reluctant hero like the original movie, Highlander II was more science fiction with way more fiction than science. In fact, the story seemed like it was devised by someone who never paid attention in science class and written by someone who never learned the fundamentals of composition. I know I watched this movie once in the early 90s when it was released on VHS, but I barely remember any of it except the first two immortals sent to Earth to do away with MacLeod and General Katana (Michael Ironside) as the villain.

The story didn't make much sense and the plot kept going off in weird directions that kept making me wonder if I'd dozed off and missed something important that tied one scene to another. 

One good thing about this movie is that it was still, in my opinion, an 80s movie with 80s costumes, hair and make-up and clicking computer keyboards. It had the atmosphere and qualities of an 80s B movie where the aliens fell to Earth speaking in English pop cultural quips and everyone was Christian, even the aliens. Katana tells MacLeod that he'd fight him, but they are in a place of worship and a rule of the immortals is no fighting on sacred ground.  Virginia Madsen (Louise Marcus) was the head of a scientific corporation but every scene she was in portrayed her as a sex object who used her good looks, not her intellect, to get her way. 

I don't think I'd bother watching this movie again since there are much better Highlander movies to see instead.

Highlander (1986)

The concept of the immortals in the movie Highlander is a unique one. The ideas of The Gathering, that there can be only one and the Prize are pretty cool. Having an immortal subculture mysteriously among us for hundreds, if not thousands, of years is a cool fantasy as well. Of course, the swordsmanship and the flashbacks to medieval Scotland add to the romance and mystical fantasy that sets a tone of wonder accompanying the competitive male physical power and fearlessness that inevitably leads to the grand finale when there truly remains only one. 

In addition to being a great swordsman and an honest and moral man, Connor Macleod (Christoper Lambert) suffers inwardly as he sacrifices his desire for love, family and companionship while he keeps his secret of being immortal and patiently waits for The Gathering where he'll be forced to fight the other immortals. 

There's some pretty cool animation, not to mention costumes, during the fight scene between Connor's 2,000 year old mentor, Ramirez (Sean Connery) and his arch enemy The Kurgan (Clancy Brown) . Sections of rock wall fall away with blows from Kurgan's sword until the two are left atop a high steep stairway of stone. There are also some drawn graphic images flashing in succession as Connor endures The Quickening and all ancient knowledge of mankind is funneled into his head. 

Apparently, wisdom, love, honor and being able to die a natural death surrounded by family is the ultimate prize. My question is whether the remake is ever going to be made?