If you were tasked to create a guaranteed cult classic from the ground up, then working from the blueprint set by Jim Henson’s Labyrinth would be a good start, seeing as it ticks almost every single one of the required boxes.
Not only was it directed by Jim Henson – the legendary puppeteer who previously accomplished the exact same feat with The Dark Crystal only a few years previously – but the screenplay was penned by Monty Python veteran Terry Jones, while David Bowie’s gigantic hair and even bigger bulge ensured that Jareth was destined to go down in the history books as one of fantasy’s most memorable villains.
Then, when you remember Labyrinth tanked at the box office in spite of strong reviews by only earning $34 million from theaters against production costs of $25 million before almost immediately becoming a sensation on home video and a staple of weekend afternoon TV schedules everywhere for the rest of time, then it’s almost the note-for-note example of how to ensure longevity.
That’s been underlined once more after the lavish and opulent descent into darkness recaptured imaginations on streaming all over again, with FlixPatrol naming Labyrinth as one of the most popular features on the Rakuten charts. Often imitated but very rarely bettered, the deliciously twisted tale of Jennifer Connelly’s race against time to rescue her baby brother from the clutches of the goblin king shows no signs of receding from the spotlight.