The historical action film is a popular genre these days, and one that unfortunately is generally not done well. Generaly there will always be a conflict of interests, the balance of making a audience friendly action movie against a potrayal of history is a very difficult thing to do, and with King Arthur I think that the writers, David Franzoni and John Lee Hancock. have done an excellant job. The problem with the story of Arthur is that its such a vague story in its original sources that there is room for so many different versions all with possibilites and merits. What we think we know about the story, Camelot, The Round Table, Excalibur, Merlin and the Holy Grail are a mix of ideas from a range of cultures and ages laided down in medieval France for reasons of propaganda and entertainment, so the fact that the film follows its own story line does not in anyway make it any less possible that any of the other ideas that have been put forward over the years.
The film in set in the fading light of Roman control of Britain. The Roman war machine and administration systems are being recalled by the emperor do defend Rome from incursions by barbarian hordes, leaving Britain under the control of the
Romanised native British people. Arthur Castor is just such a person. Leader of a group of pagan Samarian auxilleries he is the last line of defence against the northern tribes and their Saxon allies, all keen to get a piece of the now undefended Brition. Based around Hadrians Wall this settiing for the film is historically quite accurate as a backdrop and gives the film a level of credibility. As the legions are retreating, Arthurs men are given one last mission before they too are granted freedom to leave the wall and go home, the mission seems suicidal but is the only way they can be released from duty. The mission involves rescuing a familly from north of the wall and returning them to safety knowing that a Saxon warband is headed the same way. If you want to know how that all works out then you will have to watch the film.
The first thing about the look of the film that appealed to me is the attention to detail. Arthurs men, who would be called knights in a later age, are accurate to the times, a mix of late Roman equipment and weapons and the look and feel of men who live in the saddle. The buildings both Roman and native are also spot on and Hadrians Wall is fantastic, the film is almost justified on giving us a depiction of that structure alone.
The film does tend to be a bit slow in places but is sparked up by two fabulous battle scenes, again fairly accurate in the look of the warriors and the numbers involved, battles in the Dark Ages tended to be small affairs, so dont expect to see the opening scene of Gladiator re shot. There are a few historical inaccuracies, but not to the point of detraction and the combat is gripping, heroic and be warned a bit brutal, in a word realistic.
The cast are a fairly familiar bunch, Arthurs shoes are filled by Clive Owen who though not the man I would have chosen, is believable as a leader of men and Romano-British noble. Arthurs men are played by Ioan Gryffudd, Hugh Dancy and the wonderful Ray Winstone who gives his character, Bors, that surley swagger and humour that only he can do. Stephen Dillane is the enigmatic Merlin, the pagan British warrior priest who wants Arthur to become the new king in the power vacuum left by the retreating legions. Kiera Knightleys Guinever, is given a new spin and the love interest is played down to make her a blue dyed warrior girl, again a recorded feature of the british war bands.
The score has a mystical feel to it, reminiscent of Enya on the Lord of The Rings sound track and it comes as no surprise to find the score credited to Hans Zimmer, the man behind the music of Gladiator and many other blockbuster films.
There will be much talk about the accuracy of the story, shouldnt it have been set in Wales, shouldnt it be set later and all of the other arguments will resurface, but this is just one possibility for the basis of the stories, and remember with King Arthur we are dealing mainly with stories. This is not meant to be a history lesson, though you could do a lot worse, but all of the familiar elements of the traditional tales are there, played down and demystified, but there none the less. If you can forget the shining armour, the chivalric knights and the marble towered castles, all medieval additions anyway, then this is a great film with the right feel to it. It also brings some ideas to the subject that have so far remained only in the specialist history books.
This film will not please everyone, as I said at the start, you never can, but this is a better attempt at an Arthurian tale than most and a great action film to boot. If this is your genre then I do recommend adding it to your collection.
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It's got a round table, some knights, and a noble warrior who rises to becomeKing Arthur, ... more
but everything else about this revisionist legend is pure Hollywood. That's not such a bad thing if you enjoyedRob Roy,Braveheart,GladiatorandTroy, and there's so...
Postage & Packaging: £1.21 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
It's got a round table, some knights, and a noble warrior who rises to becomeKing Arthur, ... more
but everything else about this revisionist legend is pure Hollywood. That's not such a bad thing if you enjoyedRob Roy,Braveheart,GladiatorandTroy, and there's so...
Postage & Packaging: free Super Saver Delivery Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours...
The producer of Pearl Harbor and the director of Training Day deliver an immensely ... more
thrilling adventure epic that tells the heroic true story behind one of history's greatest legends! It is the valiant tale of Arthur (Clive Owen) and his bond of brother...
![King Arthur [DVD] [2004]](http://picnicb.ciao.com/uk/78515631.jpg "King Arthur [DVD] [2004]")
Jan 3rd, 2005
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