Oooouughh – it’s Hoggle!
Hoggle is my favorite character from The Labyrinth. Aside from a phenomenal puppet, Hoggle has some wonderful voice work done by Brian Henson. His moaning, grumbling, and mumbles of joy (ooruughh plastic!) really round out his personality.
Although similar stature to a goblin, he is described multiple times as a dwarf – and he is the only of his kind that we see.
When we first meet Hoggle, he’s whizzing into a small pond. He follows up this feat by gassing his 60th fairy of the day. His first scene is then concluded by a spat with Sarah, one of many grumpy grumbles. The fact that he does not begin as a friend is an interesting point, which I always forget and am surprised by when I rewatch the movie.
Hoggle’s overall story is very different from some of the overly simplistic characterization we often see in Disneyfied children and fantasy movies. He eventually makes a friend in Sarah, but is then compelled by Jareth to betray her. Most kids movies shy away from that kind of conflicting and painful motivation.
Hoggle has a redemption story arc, which forms a more complex counterpoint to Sarah’s more linear, a-to-z struggle. His progression is something like:
- Jerk
- Rescuer
- Friend
- Coward
- Friend
- Betrayer
- Redeemed hero
- Back to friend
What else can we say about Hoggle? We don’t know much about his life before Sarah, other than his affinity for jewelry, killing fairy pests, and public urination. Much like the rest of the Labyrinth characters, he is spurred into action by Sarah and away from her he stagnates.
Hoggle was voiced by Brian Henson (son of Jim Henson) and performed by Shari Weiser, a little person.
Luckily for Shari, that’s not her real face. A detailed animatronic face was used, controlled remotely by the special effects wizards.
Shari was more than a coat rack for the Hoggle costume though, her gestures and body language are a vital part of making Hoggle Hoggle.
Maybe this is why Hoggle is so charming, and so compelling. He is the combination of many different people – body, voice, face – and when they are brought together they make one complex and unique person… dwarf.
#1 by JarethFan on November 10, 2010 - 8:40 pm
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Hoggle is great – that friend/betrayal thing that goes back and forth is perfect for this movie. It just wouldn’t be Labyrinth without Hoggle.
But I’ve always thought that public urination scene was a little rough. Like, you’d have a hard time finding a bit that graphic even in a modern family movie, let alone one from the 80s, when standards were tighter. It’s the only scene in Labyrinth that squicks me out a little.
#2 by crissy on March 8, 2011 - 12:15 pm
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Hoggle rocks- but how they move looks so unfamiliar to people it doesnt let anyone know “hey they look so real!” that would’ve got my attention more, but i love the movie.
Hoggle is actually more funnier and more active. He and Ludo complete the movie along with Sarah.
#3 by chris on June 2, 2011 - 7:55 pm
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i disagree that scene with hoggle taking a leak is classic. it potty trained my two year old. he wanted to pee like hoggle. its a boy thing only we can fully appreciate the complexities of standing and peeing.
#4 by splurge on August 17, 2011 - 3:17 am
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he looks like my brother
#5 by Cemeke PIRKETOU on January 15, 2017 - 7:22 am
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The flying fairies that Hoggle kills are elves, in the symbolic the elves are the intellect (in the tetragrammaton it is the eagle), Hoggle, which is the corporeal ego, kills his intellect. If the characters are parts of Sarah, perhaps Sarah’s ego must kill her intellect, because in her family culture, she is programmed to remain a silly little girl. The journey through the labyrinth is the test to grow spiritually. All the characters grow up with her.