The TV project directed by Sam Raimi “The Legend of the Seeker” (actors: Craig Horner, Bridget Regan, Bruce Spence, Craig Parker, Tabrett Betell) - the series based on the fantasy bestseller of the famous Terry Goodkind “The first rule of the wizard” - took pride of place in 2008 the leader in the tabloids of the most sought-after TV shows with US advertisers.
International triumph
Legend of the Seeker is a fantasy series produced by ABC Studios. The premiere of this film took place in early November 2008. After the series, I bought the Sci-Fi channel and showed it in the territories of Romania and Poland. In Ukraine, this picture was broadcast by the channel "1 + 1". Kazakhstan plans to broadcast on Channel 31. Russia began the show in January 2011 by the STS channel. Disney Channel broadcast the first season in February 2011, and the second in September 2012.
Plot
The plot of the series is based on a series of books by Cudkind called "The Sword of Truth." Richard Cypher is a warrior, Seeker of Truth, who must free the Middle Earth from the brutal and tyrannical Darken Rahl. In this difficult case, he is helped by the wizard Zeddikus Zul Zorander and Mother Confessor - Kahlan Amnell. The second season tells of the defeat of Darken Rahl, but Richard has no time to rest, because a new enemy has appeared, which is many times stronger and more powerful than the previous one, the Lord of the Underworld. Cypher's combat team is replenished with Mord-Sith - Kara, who had previously served Darken.
The series is far removed from the plot, which is described in books, this is especially noticeable in the final picture. The main images and characters are copied from the book, individual situations are shown, but the plot is very changed. Perhaps this is due to the difficulty of transferring to the television screen all the emotions and sensations of magic that make up most of the literary original.
Creators and main characters
God himself ordered God to implement all the plot twists and turns on the screen to the serial masters of Sam Raimi and Terry Goodkind, because in the story there are all the components necessary for success: the Hero, the Lady of the heart, with whom, unfortunately, he cannot be together, and, of course, chief villain. Moreover, the villain is the most real, without any newfangled "human" qualities and motivation for actions.
After participating in the filming of the series “Legend of the Seeker,” the actors all called it one and the same in contrasting black and white history, and in a positive way. Needless to say, the viewer missed such stories, so Sam Raimi got in the right direction.
Accompanied by the success of the project, the fact that Terry Goodkind is familiar with the series firsthand, as his cycle about Richard’s adventures consists of 10 books, and 2 more have been announced. The project "Legend of the Seeker", the actors and roles of which continue to be the object of close attention of viewers around the world, is set only according to the first book, ahead of another 11.
Cast
The cast is pleasing to the eye. Actors of the series "Legend of the Seeker" all look as one in their place. The main character (a cross between Nathan Fillion and Brendan Fraser), a muscular shirt-guy, delights the female audience and inspires respect for the male. The magician sorcerer Ziddikus Zul Zorander (aka Zed) turned out to be quite colorful. Confessor Caylee is incredibly sweet, but at the same time, she is mortally dangerous, as the “position” suggests. It’s a pleasure to watch her dancing with daggers in fluttering clothes, the creators did their best, wanting to diversify the narrative of the picture “Legend of the Seeker”. Actors who performed secondary roles also reacted to their characters with all seriousness and professionalism.
About special effects
You should definitely say a separate word about the special effects of the picture. They are certainly present in the narrative, for example, Border looks quite impressive. Of course, monsters and individual magical actions may seem extremely naive and, accordingly, unnatural to some viewers, but, firstly, this is still a series, and secondly, the year of release is 2008. The main asset of the television series Legend of the Seeker is actors. Photos of the shooting locations, the scenery amaze with their beauty. However, why be surprised - New Zealand! Tolkien's magic settled there for a long time.
A spoon of tar
Despite the listed advantages of the film “Legend of the Seeker” (the actors absolutely disagree with this opinion), film critics met him ambiguously. Most responded about the project is extremely unflattering. Many noted the unusual similarity of individual situations and episodes with the well-known Star Wars, the trilogy The Matrix, The Wheel of Time, Xena - Warrior Queen, and the legend of the adventures of King Arthur.
Skeptical Brian Lowry (Variety) and described the picture as follows: "a mishmash of the best moments of famous and successful fantasy." The only moment that all film specialists noted without exception as positive was the budget of the series and its production in the breathtaking landscapes of New Zealand. Robert Lloyd, the leading Los Angeles Times reporter, called the TV show “fun, sweet, and pretty,” but nothing more. Strange, but many leading film critics were dissatisfied with the main cast of the series chosen by the authors - Bridget Regan and Craig Horner.
Classic story
At first glance, the television series is a classic story: there is a protagonist, there is an antagonist, which means they must fight. But in this project, everything is seasoned with amazing cast, good special effects, subtle not vulgar humor and a bit of drama. Do not forget about the verified intricate plot, presenting new surprises with each subsequent episode, in which there is an intriguing love line between the Confessor and the Seeker.
The project is interesting in that it tells not only about the main characters, in each series new characters appear, whose adventures, and sometimes misadventures, are no less exciting, exciting the audience. And for every sophisticated movie fan, it’s clear in advance that you should not expect stunning computer graphics and expensive special effects from TV shows consisting of two or more seasons - these are not the main components. The plot twists and turns and professionalism of the actors - this is what “The Legend of the Seeker" captivates. Actors and roles, photo shoots, landscapes - this is what is interesting to fans of such projects.