an 18-foot - high , 43-foot - long dragon is the computer - generated co- star of this strictly - by - the - numbers sword ' n ' sorcery flick .
as voiced by sean connery , " draco " is a surprisingly expressive creation who is well - deserving of his 23 minutes of screen time .
he walks , talks , flies , fries , and even fakes his own death , all with the help of 96 computer - aided animators . too bad that ilm ( industrial light and magic ) could n't spare some special effects for dragonheart 's * human * co - stars .
a bearded black hole exists where dennis quaid should be .
he 's a near - total loss as he growls glumly through his role of a disillusioned knight .
david thewlis ' evil king has a high hiss factor ( hf ) , though he 's more of a mumbling oddity than anything else .
oh , and there 's some redhead in a ' 90 's wig , who runs around either screaming or scowling , depending upon if the particular scene has her playing the woman in peril or the put upon peasant .
the fringe flourishes include pete postlethwaite as a wandering monk with literary ambitions , julie christie ( ! )
as the good queen mother , a band of mercenaries that appear dressed for ye olde heavy - metal concert , and , believe or it not , the speaking spirit of king arthur . bring out your dead !
unfortunately , when we add it all together ( draco + fringe bits - quaid - thewlis ) , the sum total amounts to zero
.
dragonheart is , well , too much of too little .
director rob cohen
( dragon : the bruce lee story ) has made a big , expensive movie that , while ambitiously plotted , is both murky and predictable .
and overscored . and self - important .
and the list goes on .
( i must ask : did screenwriter charles edward pogue intend that * every * character be stabbed , lanced , or sliced at least once ?
keep that man away from the knife drawer ! )
the last five minutes of this movie are the worst , with some silly celestial nonsense that would be laughed out of any planetarium light show , much less a summer movie .
save your money .
silly celestial nonsense the sum total amounts to zero too much of too little both murky and predictable save your money overscored . and self - important a near - total loss as he growls glumly the worst a bearded black hole exists where dennis quaid should be