Released during the latter half of Season 3 of the TV show, this has us revisiting our friend Connor Macleod for the first time since Season 1 Episode 1. Putting this out instead of the Four Horsemen episodes is sort of like when Dragonball Z's original run got to the hotly-anticipated arrival of the Ginyu Force and then showed The Tree of Might instead.
I don't remember being all that crazy about this as a kid, thought it was mid at best. Will I gain a new appreciation for it as an adult? Let's find out.
Here's the version I'll be watching, as it's said to be better than the Theatrical version.
This movie has two names, which caused some confusion. In overseas markets, it was named Highlander 3: The Sorcerer. Meanwhile, in the United States...
"The ONLY country that matters!"
Uh, yeah, thank you MJF.
The movie was called Highlander 3: The Final Dimension. Not sure what "the final dimension" is, and I kinda prefer "the sorcerer" because at least that sums up what Connor is dealing with in this one.
Also one of the two versions was on Turbografx-16 and the other was on the Super Famicom. ...that's an obscure Ys joke. Anyway, let's get going.
This movie starts out right after the flashbacks of the first movie, with Connor leaving Scotland after the death of Heather. Somewhere in the middle of the 1500s, he did what immortals do and wandered the world, looking for a purpose, before eventually finding his way to the mountains of Japan and an immortal sage named Nakano.
So...we're just going to ignore that whole Highlander 2 thing, eh? No followups on General Katana?
If this had been "Highlander 2" instead, the series would have been a lot better-off. Highlander 2 had a much-larger budget (and Sean Connery!) and those two things would have put this movie over the top and made it a revered sequel, I think, instead of the mixed reception it seems to have.
In a mountain cave, Nakano forges a katana. I hope this isn't THE katana, because they'd be forgetting that Ramirez already gave that to Connor... heck, we already saw it in the flashback where he was leaving Scotland. I'll just assume that this is Nakano forging a different, strangely-similar katana.
Nearby, Connor looks on creepily, the way Richie looks through windows.
Connor is portrayed as a complete newbie here, wide-eyed and freaked-out. He's already been through all his training with Ramirez, so he should be at least somewhat prepared for life at this point.
Nakano (played by Mako of Conan the Barbarian fame) is a practitioner of magic (...don't ask questions) and warns Connor of the imminent approach of a group of evil immortals that have been stalking him for some time. He has no plans to leave his mountain cave, though, as a wisened cave-sage.
Across the plains of China, three immortals gallop, raising hell along the way.
Instead of Kronos and the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, we're getting the Three Horsemen. Brought to you by Temu!
Well, that isn't fair, because Mario Van Peebles does a brilliant job as the leader of the pack, Kane.
Born in 987 A.D. Mongolia, this beast has been hunting immortals all across Asia, getting more and more powerful. He was a student of Nakano before turning on the sage and trying to kill him (which Kane apparently has done to all of his teachers). Nakano escaped, not sure if he fought Kane off or just ran for the hills.
Also not sure why Kane's two sidekicks are just letting him get all the Quickenings everywhere they go. It might have worked better for the story if they were just two really strong mortals that he kept around for insurance. Then again, they wouldn't be able to last until the present if that were the case.
Kane seeks Nakano, having followed his scent-trail this far. Of course, the locals don't tell him anything, so the Temu Three Horsemen RANSACK THE VILLAGE.
They don't even rape/plunder/pillage, they just set the place on fire and kill half the people for fun and gallop off. They're just that bloodthirsty.
Back at the cave, Nakano shows Connor something that'll be important later: An unbreakable ore that can be used to forge an incredibly strong blade, should the need arise.
What follows is a training montage! It...isn't anywhere near the one in the first movie, and mostly consists of Connor bumbling around.
I think it was James Cameron who said that sequels should act like the audience hasn't seen the first movie, but was it necessary to reset Connor to level 1 and have him re-learn his moves from scratch? What is this, a Metroid game?
Connor improves quickly, and eventually gets to where he can split gourds as they fly through the air, while blindfolded.
Nakano then puts a gourd on top of his own head and blindfolds Connor.
This...this seems like a really bad idea
Anyway, it works out
Next, Nakano teaches Connor a super-parry that'll disarm his opponent and behead them in one fell swoop. ...wait a minute, Highlander Endgame also has a super-parry that disarms your opponent and beheads them in one fell swoop. That one uses swords, at least, while this one is just a basic "grab their arm and spin around lol" move.
Nakano also decides he wants Connor to take his powers before the bad guys arrive. Connor refuses. No way, pal. Again, echoes of Endgame here.
Enough jibber-jabber...the Mongols have arrived.
Does that damn Great Wall even WORK?
Nakano knows neither of them can defeat Kane. Maybe combined, but not alone. So he sends Connor away.
...we still don't really know how immortal power-transfer really works. One thing that has actually been consistent is that you get the knowledge and wisdom of the other immortal, and sometimes an ability of theirs that you didn't have before. Not sure about any sort of "power increase", however, since that only seems to come up with the villains of the movies and how they're X strong because they've absorbed lots of foes.
Nakano goes to deal with these guys himself. You'd think Kane would be here mainly for Nakano and his powers, but he seems to also be here for "The Highlanda". Not sure why, because Connor's pretty weak at this point and hasn't even won any immortal fights as far as I know, so he wouldn't have much notoriety.
In the "expanded universe" (Highlander books and so forth) Kane was good friends with Kurgan, with Kurgan being perhaps the one person Kane respects. Kurgan (around 2900 years old at death) was about 1800 when Kane first became immortal, and had already achieved legendary status, so Kane emulated him with his own persona. The two of them joined the horde of Genghis Khan together and were both terrors on the battlefield. Kurgan eventually left for greener pastures, but not before recommending Kane for commander status to Genghis Khan himself. This promotion from two of his idols was no doubt a huge moment for Kane.
So all of that said, it's entirely possible that the idea here was that Kane was looking to finish the job started by his friend Kurgan, and could kill two birds with one stone by also finishing his own task of slaying his teacher Nakano.
Connor springs a surprise attack on Kane (instead of leaving like he was told) and gets one-shotted by Kane without Kane even turning to look at him.
Good attention to detail, as Connor flashes back to Kurgan similarly impaling him on the battlefield.
Something I've been wondering about for a long time: Why did Kurgan just sorta sod off and leave Connor and Heather alone after he slew Ramirez? They lived in the same place until she died. Even though she died kind of young, it must have been many years they continued living in that decrepit tower. Weren't they worried Kurgan would come back to finish what he started, considering how concerned he was with killing Connor on that battlefield to begin with? Why would he just leave and never come back over a mere throat injury?
Looks like they're gearing up for a 3-on-1 fight against Nakano. That's against the rules!
Nakano replies by using Tenshinhan's tri-form technique to split into three. Now it's even...except the real one emits a sweatdrop, so Kane feints an attack on one of the others and then stabs the real one.
Welp, that's it for Nakano. He seemed nice.
Kane swings, getting all of Nakano's considerable magic power for himself.
Seriously, why are his goons okay with this?
He'll be weak from the Quickening! Get him while he's weak!
THISH ISH...THE...
I'm sorry, I need to stop the tape for a second here, because Nakano's severed head is yelling for half the Quickening about how "there can be only one, but it will not be YOOOOOOU"
Connor tumbles out onto the snow and the cave collapses from the Quickening, right onto the Mongols, in what can only be called Nakano's revenge. Maybe that was the intent behind making his lair in this mountain cave? He knew that if anyone went up there and took him out, they'd be probably dooming themselves in the process.
Regardless, Connor moved on with his life, ending up back in Scotland and becoming a local legend, and not giving much mind to those three Mongol immortals that got killed in the mountain cave-in.
Fast-forward to 1995 (I think, the movie doesn't actually display any year-stamps, despite the show doing it for years now and it being even more important here for an unfamiliar moviegoing audience...)
Noted Archaeologist Alex is overseeing an attempt to excavate Nakano's Cave. While the sorcerer himself is a legend, the cave is full of ancient artifacts, and they finally located it.
Apparently she met a lot of resistance from the Japanese government while trying to get this done. At least they didn't plant olive trees all over the mountain.
Of course, the dig site has breached the sealed cave, letting oxygen in and causing these three to revive / break out.
After sending one goon off to "find the Highlanda", Kane proceeds to BEHEAD THE OTHER ONE.
Why? Why not send them both after Connor? Even General Katana was smarter than this. What if the place collapses on him AGAIN?
THIS ISH! THE QUICKENING!
Given that finding Connor is the first thought Kane has, and he seems to not realize that any time has gone by... I can safely infer that these three were dead for the last 400 years, and that's why they weren't counted when Connor fought Kurgan to determine who "the last" would be. The movie doesn't really explain that they were dead/without oxygen, you just need to figure it out.
So that's the loophole they're using...while totally no-selling The Series. At some point you'd think they would have just solidified the "Connor/Kurgan was a big fight, but they weren't actually the last two" that The Series goes by, since that, you know, prevents anything else from happening after that without either ignoring it or jumping through hoops.
Ah whatever, let's just get on with it.
Temu Presents: The Two Horsemen then proceed to leave the wrecked archaeological site with a headless 400+ year old Mongol. Alex is gonna have the find of the century!
Wait, no, this is Connor galloping around the desert with his adopted son, when something weird happens to the sky.
With the revival of Kane and Co, now Connor has been re-immortal'd. At least he didn't de-age.
You know, if one really wanted to, this movie could be a prequel to Highlander 2 and you could watch 1-3-2 as a chronological series. TV show be damned! It's Connor-o-clock!
The series -> HL1 -> HL3 could also work as a series continuity if you want to treat the series as a prequel (which it was originally going to be). That'd also give Kane final boss status. I'm not real keen on that idea since it means Methos and everyone else we like from the series is dead by HL1, plus it's easier to just slightly-retcon HL1 to make everything else work.
Unlike Endgame, Connor looking older actually makes sense here, considering he had a few years to age after the first movie. Come to think of it, him going back and forth between mortal and immortal actually IS a good way to keep the series going despite Lambert aging.
...except by the rock-solid Highlander 2 canon, he should be de-aging every time he becomes re-immortal'd, so that's out the window.
Yeah, yeah, on with the movie.
Sensing that other immortals are afoot, Connor does a quick training montage with the katana. "Princes of the Universe" should have been playing.
Elsewhere, investigators try to figure out what happened in the dig site. It's obvious enough that the inner chamber shattered outward, meaning something emerged from it. But why is there a headless Mongol here with era-perfect 400 year old equipment?
Connor leaves his son with a friend in Morocco (or maybe it's Egypt, there are no time or location stamps), and heads out to find whoever it is that caused him to regain his immortalness.
That's right, kid! Git! By the way, you're adopted!
We finally get a location card for something, and it's the most recognizable place in the world.
Connor roams the streets in a trench coat while steam billows out of the ground. This seemed so cool as a kid, but now that I can do it I avoid city-roaming because I don't want to get randomly knifed.
As he walks down a snowy NYC alleyway, he gets stalked by a car. Wait a minute, all these years I thought this scene was in the first movie, and had been edited out of the version I watched a while back.
As a kid, it's entirely possible I mixed up a lot of elements of the first three movies, since I saw them all at around the same time in 1995. For a little while I didn't even know Ramirez had died, because I wasn't allowed to watch the part in HL1 where he fights Kurgan, and I saw pieces of HL2 where he was in the present. So I assumed he was just always around.
90's cable TV was an interesting time. Things were edited and chopped (and often had over-dubbed dialogue - Pulp Fiction was practically re-written for TV).
Anyway, Connor is accosted by a group of friendly Latino gentlemen with knives! Don't worry, I'm sure they mean well!
...nope, Connor gets mugged and shot. Well, this is just another fun evening for a guy who can't die.
...except he wakes up in the trauma ward because apparently he didn't quite die all the way, so they hauled him into the hospital. His wounds are all healed, so the EMTs are very confused and think the other EMTs who brought him in must be morons.
However, it gets worse, as the doctor on-site can't be arsed with his protestations and has him committed to a MENTAL INSTITUTION.
Elsewhere, Alex figures out that a piece of cloth found in Nakano's cave is from the Macleod Family Kilt. But how did it get to Japan 400 years ago?
...My God, she's even hotter with glasses on
Connor senses an immortal, only to find himself restrained to a hospital bed, unable to move or get up. This is pretty nightmarish.
Kane's one remaining goon is rapidly approaching in the hospital, and Connor's a sitting duck.
Luckily, this guy (who thinks he's Napoleon) is easy enough to manipulate into freeing Connor from his restraints. Connor just has to say he's here on a mission to kill Wellington, and needs to be set free. Napoleon does what he's told and sets him free, then causes a big scene to distract the orderlies while Connor runs out.
The goon catches up with him in the laundry room, and charges a weaponless Connor. However, Connor uses the motion that Nakano taught him at the beginning to grab the guy's sword and disarm him / behead him in one move.
Yep, Connor just one-shotted the guy. These two goons didn't really get to have any sort of combat. The goons in Highlander 2 were treated so much better than this, and these Mongol guys were actually cool.
Worth noting that this goon was under orders to FIND Connor, not slay him. He went into business for himself, which is interesting. Maybe he realized how much power he could get from Connor and decided he'd get it and take on Kane with it.
THISH ISH!
Man, there are a lot of Quickenings in this movie...but no real fights thus far, and this is the halfway point.
Kane has arrived in New York, and senses the demise of his "ally". He knows Connor's in town.
In some versions of the movie, Kane can be seen teleporting to New York (i.e. walking out of a rift in space). However, here in the Director's Cut they removed that, and we clearly see him walking in a shipyard, so we can infer he took a boat to get there.
Nakano might have given him illusion powers, but globe-wide teleportation is a bit much.
Kane then interacts hilariously with New York, using his illusory powers to play magic tricks on various street magicians and take all their money. Then he peers at the bills quizzically, no doubt wondering why we use paper instead of coins. I'd assume it doesn't make sense, paper gets ripped during battle. Why would anyone use it as an important currency?
Connor hears Alex's voice on a nearby TV and instantly recognizes her as being descended from Sarah, his ONE TRUE LOVE from 200 years ago.
What about Brenda, his ONE TRUE LOVE from the first movie, you ask? She died to a drunk's hit-and-run in Scotland eight years ago. ...not that long after the first movie ended. Well, that sucks. It's worth noting that this is actually consistent with Highlander 2.
We go back to 1700's France, where a (much more sophisticated than his 1500's self) Connor is visiting a chateau on business. Of course, he immediately starts flirting with the boss' niece, Sarah. She looks just like Alex, only... buxom.
Meanwhile, back in the present, something much less classy is going down...
This lady of the night is entertaining Kane in a local brothel. She tosses him a condom and he attempts to eat it, not knowing what else to do.
Kane is very happy that whoring hasn't gone anywhere in the past 400 years. Chances are that this guy has been a regular patron of women of the night since he was a lad in 1000 A.D. Mongolia. A true connoisseur of the whoring arts!
They then proceed to have a thuggish, ruggish bone.
Lady: "TWO DOLLA, SOLDIER BOY! TWO DOLLA!"
Back at Alex's office, she gets a visit from a morphing vulture. THAT'S GOTTA BE KANE!
So he can create illusions, and morph like Shang Tsung. What can't this guy do? Besides teleport?
He intimidates Alex for a few minutes, mostly interested in her work excavating the site he was trapped in. She's looking for Macleod (due to the kilt fragment), he's looking for Macleod. Then he just kinda takes off.
To her credit, she wasn't that intimidated. She's one of the better Highlander women, strong and resourceful in addition to being brilliant.
Flashback time, as we see Connor riding horses with Sarah in 1700's France. I guess they're officially dating now.
In what was voted "Most Rewound Scene of 1995" by Sydney Sweeney Monthly, we see Sarah bouncing up and down with her dress struggling to contain her spectacular breasts.
It's majestic, like seeing an elk in the outdoors.
They then have a roll in the hay. A literal roll in the hay!
Watch out for the nipples, Sarah! He tends to go right for the- yeah, he went straight for the nipples.
All of Connor's wives end up with chewed-up nipples. Guy has no shame whatsoever.
Alex tracks down "Russell Nash" and asks him for information on Connor Macleod.
"I haven't seen Connor in eight years" he says. Incidentally, that's how long ago Brenda died, and I guess it took the wind out of his sails for that long.
KANE appears out of nowhere and attacks! This is a Buddhist shrine, aka holy ground, which Connor informs him of... and Kane is like "I'll be the judge of that lol"
Connor's reaction to Kane just no-selling holy ground. Like "are you serious?"
They clash! The first real swordfight in the movie, and we've got sword sparks in full effect.
...also, Connor has so many stunt doubles in this movie that I'm legitimately wondering how they planned on doing a Connor series with Lambert in it originally. He was very near-sighted which prevented him from doing the kind of close-up swordfighting that Adrian Paul could do.
Kane quickly gets the better of Connor and impales him. He also says that he might have his way with Alex afterwards... maybe... she's not his type.
Just realized, the woman he went for in the brothel was East Asian, and that was definitely intentional. Alex is "not his type" indeed.
This leads to Kane going for the killing swing, only for Connor to block it...which shatters Ramirez's sword.
The Buddhist shrine then starts getting very, very angry, with high winds blasting through it, so Kane thinks better of finishing this fight on holy ground and leaves.
So basically, the ONLY thing that saved Connor just now was them being on holy ground, and he no longer has his treasured weapon.
Also saved by holy ground is Alex, and she's shocked by what she just witnessed. Connor could give her the immortality speech and probably cause her to swoon, but instead he just tells her to stay out of all of this.
Back to the French Revolution, it's beheading time! Connor is on the chopping block, so to speak.
This fellow immortal, a much-older unnamed friend of Connor, shows up to take his place for the beheading. He says that he's lived long enough and wants to rest, so he's going to sacrifice himself by posing as Connor. He recognizes that Connor has a lot of life left, and is the kind of person he'd want to see being the last immortal. Connor is also a much better fighter, and thus a key player in the fight against evil.
Worth noting is that Connor basically refused his offer, and the guy had to clobber him over the head. Not sure how he tricked the guards into taking him, considering they didn't switch clothes and Connor was sprawled out on the floor.
With that, the friend gets frog-marched out and beheaded. The quickening just goes nowhere.
In the distant prison tower, Connor sees this happen, and can just barely see a distraught Alex weeping in the crowd.
He'd like to tell her he isn't actually gone, but he can't, not for a while anyway.
I'm sure it'd make her decade to have him show up at her door one day.
Eventually, he does go to visit her...but she has a husband and a kid now.
Connor is crushed, for a moment, at the realization that their time is truly over with.
However...
It actually fills him with joy to see her so much happier now.
That's really cool, that he (and the movie) know it isn't all about him.
Back in the present, Alex shows up at Russell Nash's Antiques and goes through all his stuff!
After she sees an old painting of Sarah on display (and recognizes it as...herself?) Connor explains who she was. He's dropped all pretense that he isn't immortal, already.
This whole part of the movie absolutely drips with the inherent sadness and loneliness of immortality, something the show portrays frequently but the movies don't as much (outside of Lambert's general subdued ways).
After she presumably shows herself out, Connor catches a flight to go back to Scotland and find himself...and maybe re-forge his sword.
Specifically, he returns to the tower ruin he shared with Heather, his first real home (because his own tribe wasn't, once they threw him out).
After digging around, he finds his old anvil and smithing tools.
I think this scene might single-handedly be the reason that I've always liked blacksmithing in any video games that have it.
Connor forges one blade after another, and none of them are good enough. Too weak, too flimsy. Nothing worthy of the handle and hilt of Ramirez's sword.
One of the reasons this scene is so good is that he isn't just trying to re-forge a sword here, he's trying to re-forge his own soul. He's back at his home with Heather to look for the strength to overcome the harshness of the past so he can move forward. However, he can't do it alone.
Back at her office, Alex realizes that the sword-smithing ore from Nakano's cave...might be just what Connor needs currently.
She somehow gets from Japan to Scotland very quickly, and finds Connor at his plot of land in the middle of nowhere, moping about.
Nakano's steel (and the smithing methods Connor learned from him) are just what Connor needs to forge a new blade.
This is a tremendous scene, with "Bonny Portmore" playing and...apparently a lot of time going by while he hammers and folds steel.
Before, his attempts at forging were painstaking and he looked tired. Now, he's upbeat and hopeful, completely revived by actually having a purpose.
Alex gets to see this play out firsthand, which has got to be great for her as someone who has done so much archaeology in Japan. An old-school sword forging method, using a metal from 400 years ago.
This scene works in all kinds of ways, and it really comes across that she "gets" him and what he's gone through.
He forges...and forges, and tests, and forges. Not sure if Alex got a hotel somewhere or slept on the rocks here or what.
With the sword finished and possibly better than ever, Connor goes out and tests it.
This leads to many dramatic sweeping camera shots of Connor practicing outside while the song continues, and damn, this is why we like Highlander, right here.
With the sword completed and his mission here officially done, Alex interrupts Connor's daydreaming about Heather.
Alex: "You spend a lot of time alone, don't you?"
Connor: "I'm used to it."
Alex: "No one is."
Connor finally tells her who he is, and she already knows. Hell, she knows all about him. She really is good at this whole history thing, and put it together like a puzzle.
She then rides him like a big bull!
This scene goes on for a bit, and in the Director's Cut they show everything. It's hands-down the best sex scene in the entire Highlander series, with her grinding away on him while he goes for her nipples as much as he can get away with.
This scene was the hands-down winner of Ranking the Highlander Movie Sex Scenes.
Elsewhere, Kane has broken into Connor's antique store, Slan Quince style. He's particularly interested in Connor's son, who happens to leave a voicemail on the phone about what flight he's on and when he's getting back, Terminator style.
Now Kane knows where to find him.
The poor kid is wondering if Connor forgot to pick him up since he hasn't heard from him.
Meanwhile! Back in Scotland! Connor and Alex are having a ball hanging out with Scottish people in a pub.
Connor gets a phone call that his son is arriving back in NYC from Morocco today.
...he forgot? He forgot.
He was so busy sword-forging and being ridden by a blonde scientist that he FORGOT HE HAS A SON.
Kane morphs into Connor and shows up to get him from the airport.
Kane is WAY too overpowered. This morphing stuff is nearly as OP as the teleportation that was cut.
There's nothing stopping him from taking out a Governor or something and then pretending to be him and sowing total chaos in the state.
You'd think he'd keep up the charade until he clears the airport, but nope, he just goes right ahead and morphs back as soon as he gets into the car, then proceeds to do an INSANE JOYRIDE around the airport just to terrify this small child. You know, like the bad guys did in the first two movies.
It's a trope I'd like to see go away because it's so campy, but this one's the best of the three INSANE JOYRIDES.
In what is legitimately the funniest moment in the movie, Kane rips the steering wheel off and starts pretending to be freaked-out as the car swerves all over the place.
This is slapstick done right, The Guardian could learn something.
Arriving back in the US, Connor is immediately arrested. The police have been hounding him for the whole movie (much like the first movie) and I've pretty much totally left that out of the coverage because it's such a C-Plot.
Anyway, he gets let out, since they have nothing on him as usual, and has a tearful reunion with Alex before he goes off to rescue his son.
Before he goes, Connor gives Alex a Jonas Brothers Purity Ring, just to make sure she doesn't ride anyone else if he loses the fight. At least not for a few weeks.
Connor meets Kane in a church to get his son back...only to have the son be nowhere in sight.
Kane instead takes the time to lecture Connor about how many women he's probably lied to about their not being able to have a child. He probably let all those women think that they were barren, when in fact it was Connor all along whose pecker didn't work!
This leads to Connor following Kane to a nearby petrochemical plant, where they can have their final battle...and it's a doozy.
Kane of course uses his illusory powers to make weird things happen, like causing Connor to see floors that aren't there (and fall down). He also makes himself look like Alex at one point, but Connor sees through it immediately.
An instrumental knockoff of Motley Crue's "Doctor Feelgood" blares as Connor and Kane battle it out!
There's not a lot of finesse here compared to most of the Series fights, and it's mostly them hacking away as hard as they can while sword-sparks fly everywhere.
At one point Connor impales Kane, who proceeds to yank the sword out of his own chest. Now he's dual-wielding Rivers of Blood and Moonveil.
I've never mentioned the sword used by Kane. It's a katana, much like Connor's, except with a more menacing design. Basically the Mirror Universe version of the katanas used by the Macleods. Replicas of this are extremely rare, but they exist.
I'd say it was an inspired choice to go with something like this over, say, a big scary two-hander like most villains of this over-the-top nature would have in this series.
Probably the most memorable shot of the fight happens when Connor actually CLEAVES KANE IN HALF and he manages to reconnect his torso and heal while Connor looks on stupified.
I imagine normally it'd take an immortal a while to heal back together, or whatever happens, but with Kane's sorcerer powers he's able to just immediately regenerate like Cell.
Guy really is a perfect Final Boss.
"Doctor Feelgood" kicks back in as they resume hacking away!
After many sword sparks, Connor finally gets the upper hand on Kane and lops off his head. That's it for one of the most surprisingly-awesome bad guys in the Highlander series.
THISH ISH!
THE BIGGEST QUICKENING!
It's so huge that the plant actually blows up in a mushroom cloud. Well, that'll cover up the evidence at least.
...naw, not really, Connor (and his kid, who was in the plant) were both fine. Imagine if the Quickening murdered his kid!
The last scene has Connor going back to Scotland.
Wonder if they filmed extra Scotland scenes for the Homeland episode of Season 4, which aired just a few months after this movie came out. Considering this movie did absolutely nothing to put over the Series, it's the least they could do.
We hear a V.O. from HL1 of a dying Heather asking Connor to light a candle for her on her birthday, so he...
...does just that.
Then he talks about how majestic the hills of Scotland look right now, with snow starting to collect on the ground.
Movie ends with Connor being thankful for having a family and people that love him, so there we go, his soul has been re-forged after all and maybe he'll be at peace now. ...until he loses someone else.
Surprisingly great movie here, WAY better than I remembered or expected. I watched the "Special Director's Cut" version, which is the way to do it. Fixes a lot of the issues with the original theatrical version, adds more dialogue to key scenes, makes it a more mature movie in general.
While this isn't as good as HL1, as far as the movies go it isn't far behind it, and I've got no trouble calling it underrated. If this had gotten the budget HL2 did and Connery for the flashbacks, I imagine it would have ended up being a really fondly-remembered sequel that might have even eclipsed the original.
Unfortunately, the lack of any connection between this movie and the Series makes it a bit of an evolutionary dead end for someone following the entire series like I am. It'd function really well as a final battle, but as a chapter in an ongoing saga, not so much. The lack of connection to the show was disappointing, considering that this aired right in the middle of the show's run (and at the high point of its popularity, around the end of Season 3). The series had done a great job pulling the nose up on this IP after Highlander 2 ran it into the ground. If anything, at this point the show was probably a bigger deal than this movie was, so the movie would have only gained from acknowledging it.
Two things worth adding:
The Bonny Portmore sword-forging scene is the best scene in the movie, and one of the best scenes in the series. It's no wonder that the final episode of the show has a scene that emulates this one, with the same music.
The end credits theme, which was made specifically for the movie, is awesome, just flat-out awesome.
While we're at it, here's Highlander 2.
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