A Kind Of Magic Making The Original Highlander

Jonathan Melville £18.99 POLARIS PUBLISHING

The 1986 film Highlander told the story of an immortal Scottish warrior battling other centuries-old fighters through the ages. The immortals can only be killed by severing their heads and they must fight to the last man – “there can be only one” the movie’s tagline famously stated.

With the smouldering Christopher Lambert as the Highlander Connor Macleod; Sean Connery as his mentor Ramirez and a soundtrack by Queen, it had all the ingredients for a box office smash. It wasn’t an initial success, but has gone on to gain cult status over the decades since. This book by Edinburgh-based journalist Jonathan Melville delves into the film’s rich backstory. He has tracked down an astonishing number of the film’s cast and crew to give an unparalleled account of its creation.

A Kind of Magic is Melville’s second deep dive into a cult movie – his 2015 book Seeking Perfection told the story of Tremors, a 1990 B-movie starring Kevin Bacon about a desert town attacked by giant worms.

This look at Highlander is comprehensive in scope, tracking down not only the stars and director but its screenwriter, location scouts, and even the son of the swordsman whose Hollywood career dated back to Errol Flynn, and whose expertise helped make the fight scenes so memorable.

Jonathan talks to the film’s Australian director, Russel Mulcahy, who had only one movie to his name when he was chosen for Highlander. He also interviews the film’s hero, Christopher Lambert, and its villain Clancy Brown who plays the evil Kurgen.

If you’ve never seen or have no interest in Highlander, this obviously isn’t the book for you. But if you’re one of the film’s many fans this is the perfect companion. Melville himself spent part of his childhood north of Inverness and it’s fitting that this book was written by a man who’s part Highlander himself.

“Unparalleled account of Highlander ”