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story identification - D&D-like fantasy film from possibly the 80s


When I was a little kid I was fascinated by this movie but I only remember parts of it.



These are the little snippets I remember:



  • The villain was a Darth Vader-like black knight with a large sword. He had a helmet that covered half of his face. He must have had something terrible happen to him in the past. Once his helmet was removed by his superior(?) and that half of his face was all scarred.

  • The heroes once stayed in an empty castle. In the party there was a big but good-hearted brute and a rogue-like thief. The big one was about to eat a huge bowl of chicken when the thief stopped him saying "Hey, isn't that sacred food?" The big one was like "Huh?" "Because if it is you could get sick. But I can try it for you.", and he took a bite. "Not sure yet...", and he carried on eating it until the other one realised he had been tricked.

  • After this when they all went to bed some witch opened the front door with magic and sprayed in some spiderweb-like foam. Not sure what it did but it was bad apparently.

  • I think the thief was running away from his hometown where a massacre took place. Probably by Darth Villain.


Not sure if this was an American film or not. I saw it on Hungarian TV in the 1980's. It wasn't Hungarian for sure.


I'm also not sure if it's a good movie or not. I loved it but I was a little kid and there weren't too many other fantasy movies.



Answer




That's Hawk the Slayer






The wicked Voltan kills his own father when the latter refuses to turn over the magic of the "last elven mindstone". Before the old man dies, he bequeaths a great sword with a pommel shaped like a human hand to his other son, Hawk. The hand comes to life and grasps the mindstone. The sword is now imbued with magical powers and can respond to Hawk's mental commands. Hawk then vows to avenge his father by killing Voltan.


Voltan's evil touches the whole countryside. Some time later, a man named Ranulf arrives at a remote convent. Ranulf tells the nuns that he survived Voltan's attack on his people, which resulted in the brutal deaths of women and children. Ranulf was seriously injured in the attack. The nuns nurse him back to health, but his hand cannot be saved. Voltan appears at the convent and kidnaps the Abbess, demanding a large sum of gold as a ransom. After Voltan and his henchmen leave with the Abbess, the nuns tell Ranulf to seek the High Abbot at the Fortress of Danesford. The High Abbot sends Ranulf with a token to find Hawk.


Hawk discovers Ranulf with the help of a local sorceress, a woman whom he defended from an accusation of witchcraft. Ranulf has been captured by brigands, but Hawk rescues him. Ranulf convinces Hawk to rescue the Abbess. After a long and dangerous journey, Hawk locates his old friends: Gort, a dour giant who wields a mighty mallet; Crow, an elf of few words who wields a deadly bow; and Baldin, a wisecracking dwarf, skilled with a whip. The five men arrive at the convent, protecting the nuns and devising a way to lure Voltan into a trap. They use their combined skills to steal gold from a slave trader with which to pay the ransom.


Hawk doubts that Voltan will free the Abbess after the ransom is paid. He explains that Voltan treacherously murdered Hawk's wife, Eliane. Hawk and his friends decide to rescue the Abbess, but they fail. Hawk kills Voltan's son Drogo, who had previously assaulted the convent. Enraged, Voltan confronts the heroes in a final battle at the convent. A rogue nun helps Voltan capture the heroes; Voltan repays her by murdering her. With the help of the sorceress, the heroes escape, but the dwarf is mortally wounded.


In the subsequent battle, Hawk exacts his revenge on Voltan and the Abbess is rescued. An evil entity decides that Voltan will be restored to life to carry out further evil. Heeding the sorceress' advice, Hawk and Gort travel south to continue their battle against evil.




The Silly String attack is unmistakable.


Here's the RiffTrax highlights video cued to the silly string:





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