Jim Henson

Hoggle and Ludo are allowed to look awkward and unlovely in Labyrinth (1986), and Henson gives them the same attention as the human cast. He does not apologise for their oddness or make them seem like something included only for the children. We were won over by that willingness to let a family fantasy stay peculiar. The trouble comes when we start waiting for the adventure to move again.

For television, Henson developed puppetry that dispensed with the traditional puppet stage and put the characters into real surroundings. The Muppet Show (1976) led towards feature films, with The Great Muppet Caper (1981) marking his feature directorial debut. The move into darker fantasy came with The Dark Crystal (1982), which he co-directed, and continued with Labyrinth. Puppetry and animatronics could now supply the inhabitants of an entire imaginary world, rather than fitting them into familiar surroundings.

His collaborators included concept artist Brian Froud and puppeteer and co-director Frank Oz. Design and performance both matter here: an unusual creature still needs to hold our interest once we have had a good look at it. In Labyrinth, Brian Henson voices Hoggle and Ron Mueck voices Ludo, and both belong alongside the human performers. David Bowie’s committed Goblin King helps make that shared cast convincing.

Henson also lets the creatures vary enough that the film need not keep producing a larger threat to sustain our interest. That is a useful strength in a fantasy about growing up, where confusion and attraction have a place beside fear. The humour and unease are appealing, but the tone does not always settle, and the middle stretch needs patience. We can enjoy the company and still wish Henson had been firmer about keeping the journey moving. Start with Labyrinth if an evening of strange encounters sounds more inviting than a brisk adventure.