Before Henry Cavill and Chad Stahelksi’s upcoming Highlander reboot changes the game for contemporary fantasy action, fans are revisiting the original 1986 hit and rediscovering its greatness. The cult classic fantasy flick shaped an entire generation of genre fans, and though some of its facets are dated by today’s standards, it still contains one of the greatest quotes in fantasy history.
Sean Connery, the legendary actor most notable for being the first to take on the role of James Bond, brings a gravitas and emotional weight to Highlander that few other fantasy films of the era are able to achieve. His mentor character is vital to the film’s thematic core, and, in one of the movie’s pivotal moments, he delivers a stirring line that has defined fantasy storytelling for decades.
Sean Connery Perfectly Explains How To Triumph Over Evil With Just 5 Words
So many people nowadays dismiss Russell Mulcahy’s 1986 fantasy epic, Highlander, as a dated, corny ’80s flick that simply doesn’t compare to the genre’s modern output. However, that couldn’t be further from the truth. Sure, some of Highlander‘s action-adventure antics are rooted in the inherent silliness of the decade’s cinematic output, but there are so many facets of the original film that still hold up today.
One of those things is Sean Connery. On the one hand, the iconic Scottish actor is playing an immortal Egyptian named Juan Sanchez Villa-Lobos Ramirez, but on the other hand, Connery brings so much depth and genuine emotionality to the role that it makes up for a lot of the dated silliness surrounding his ethnic background and lack of any real cultural accuracy. Ramirez is kind of the Obi-Wan Kenobi to Christopher Lambert’s Luke Skywalker in Highlander, and that’s really where the film’s emotional core becomes clear.
Lambert’s Connor MacLeod is thrust into an eternal competition between immortals, and his only guide is Connery’s Ramirez. Thus, the mentor and mentee become the central crux of the film for a significant chunk of its runtime. In fact, in one pivotal scene in the film’s first half, Ramirez explains to Connor the extent of their immortal battle, and what is required in order to achieve final victory.
He explains to MacLeod that there are immortal forces on Earth that will stop at nothing to achieve ultimate power over mortals and immortals alike, and the most fearsome of them all is the Kurgan, played by the utterly iconic Clancy Brown. When MacLeod, overwhelmed by the immensity of the task before him, asks Ramirez how one could hope to face such unimaginable savagery, Connery responds warmly, saying, “With heart, faith, and steel.”
This one line is the core of both Ramirez’s teachings as MacLeod’s mentor, and of the film as a whole. Highlander is, in many ways, an underdog story, and a tale of commitment and faith in the face of impossible odds. Ramirez, wizened by lifetimes of existence, understands this, and Connery’s delivery of the line remains utterly unmatched in the fantasy genre.
Highlander’s Greatest Quote Is Still Unbeatable By Any Other Fantasy Line
There are plenty of incredible lines across fantasy movie history, but none quite compare to the simple elegance of Sean Connery’s “heart, faith and steel” quote. The line doesn’t just work in the context of the 1986 cult classic, but also within the realm of fantasy storytelling as a whole. Fantasy is so often about the mix of tactile, sturdy pragmatism and unwavering dedication to and faith in a power greater than one’s self. Whether that power is a deity, a form of magic, or some other fantastical story element, Highlander‘s quote cuts to the heart of the fantasy genre overall.
It’s a brilliant moment that has only become more and more essential with each passing decade. Highlander might not be as essential today as many other more well-known fantasy movies, but its subtle impact on the genre has remained absolutely vital. With the brand-new Highlander reboot from John Wick director Chad Stahelski and star Henry Cavill coming soon, the fantasy franchise has the chance to reconnect in a major way with audiences, and, in turn, bring them back to the 1986 original and its lineup of incredible quotes.
Over-the-top action and kooky world-building aren’t the only things that Highlander has going for it, and so many audiences seem to forget that. Past the ’80s schlock and hilariously epic soundtrack, there’s a real emotional weight to Highlander, and that’s why it has stuck around as a cult classic for so long. It’s not as essential to the fantasy genre as things like the Lord of the Rings trilogy, but its core lessons are.
Heart, faith, and steel are pillars of fantasy stories across ages, mediums, and sub-genres. They define the heart of fantasy heroes and their abilities to battle against the unknown threats that await them. Sean Connery’s Ramirez knows this, and, though the words he speaks right after the legendary quote, “There can be only one”, are perhaps more well-known, they are only as impactful because of his prior wisdom.
As silly as it sounds, Juan Sanchez Villa-Lobos Ramirez is secretly one of the greatest supporting characters in fantasy movie history, and Sean Connery’s ability to simultaneously sell the sillier dialogue right alongside the deeply emotional lines is nothing short of breathtaking. Connery was a generational talent that redefined so many genres, and his greatest Highlander line helped to do that for fantasy.
