Advantages: Funny, contemporary, clever script, music Disadvantages: A bit long for some
...it is. It opens with a jousting arena and the sound of Queen's 'We will rock you'! This is apparently done to give the film a contemporary feel, and in a funny sort of way it works! THE STORY
It's the 14th Century and Sir Ector, the master of peasant squire William Thatcher and his two compatriots Wat and Roland, has been competing in a jousting tournament and is apparently resting/recuperating between jousts. He only has to stay on his horse for ... ...to stay on his horse. A damaged visor saves him from having to show his face so he gets away with it. For him this is a dream come true! And so the adventure begins…..
Will now believes he can continue to deceive everyone by pretending to be a knight. His friends protest that he won't get away with it as he's not a noble, but he talks them into helping him. They have a month to train him….As they are walking along, celebrating the fact that the ...
PrincessDi 20.09.2004 (08.04.2006)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of A Knight's Tale (DVD)
Advantages: Good fun for children and adults with no sensibilities Disadvantages: Acting and actors not worth mentioning, ludicrous score, ludicrous modernism, goes on far too long
A letter…
Dear Mr. Helgeland,
I hope you don't mind me writing to you like this, but I need to get this of my chest. Last night I watched your film A KNIGHT'S TALE on television and, although it cost me nothing to watch, this morning I am in urgent haste to inform you that it is truly of the most deplorable, deplorable taste. I am not by any means trying to pick a fight with your sensibilities, God forbid, but God!
To begin complaining then, why ... ...Emmerich for having made GODZILLA, a damn nuisance. For instance, for example, for a film that is set somewhat six hundred years ago the females look remarkably healthy and divine for a century where England didn't stop suffering from famine and disease until the start of the next century. Do they not? And that actress who plays Kate, were you asleep when she read her lines? Surely you must know that people didn't talk like that then, like they've ...
Charles_Strickland 05.10.2006 (07.11.2006)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of A Knight's Tale (DVD)
Advantages: Queen, Paul Bettany Disadvantages: Lack of believability. Too much modernising.
...is in the service of a Knight (Sir Ector) competing in the jousting games who dies just before he is due in a match. Thatcher decides it will be a great idea to take his place and dons his clothes and under such disguise begins his jousting career. Only trouble is, as he is not a noble he is forbidden to take part in the jousting games. So begins the web of lies and deceit He persuades his friends, Roland (Mark Addy - "The Full Monty") and Wat Falhurst ... ...Thatcher to pretend to be a noble and thus enter into the games.
So, why did I have a problem with this movie? It should have been a great movie with such a great cast. Well, there are two reasons.
Firstly, and most fatally in my opinion, the love story was hideously unbelievable. Thatcher meets a girl who is quite attractive and he goes after her. Not that different from most movies, but then for no explainable reason he turns on her in the middle ...
Rebeccs 15.05.2005
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of A Knight's Tale (DVD)
Advantages: Funny, very entertaining Disadvantages: A couple of dubious performances, too long
William Thatcher, a lowly squire in medieval times, is give the opportunity to take on the identity of a knight when his master dies and he and his friends, Wat and Roland, are left with no meal ticket. When they meet Geoffrey Chaucer, a man who has fallen on hard times, he offers to forge documents to prove that William is a knight, so that he can enter jousting competitions to earn their keep. Passed off as Sir Ulrich von Lichtenstein, William ... ...a lady of some consequence and Count Adhemar of Anjou, who is William's rival in both jousting and love. Will William prove himself to be a worthy knight? And will he win the love of Lady Jocelyn? I had absolutely no idea what to expect from this film before I watched it, but I had presumed from the DVD jacket that it was going to be a very serious affair. Within the first two minutes of watching, I found that it was going to be very far from serious ...
sunmeilan 27.05.2008
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of A Knight's Tale (DVD)
Advantages: Acting, story, soundtrack and many others Disadvantages: Slightly cheesy, predictable ending
...one of three servants to a famous and noble knight whom suddenly dies during a jousting contest. Tired and half starved William, helped by his two friends Roland (Mark Addy – “The Full Monty”, “Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas”) and Wat (Alan Tudyk – “Wonder Boys”), decides to compete himself, putting himself in grave danger as only knights are allowed to joust. Luckily he survives the contest, wins the ... ...No. 1”, “The Land Girls”), a writer and poet who helps them fake their way into the jousting circuit. Soon William, under the name of Sir Ulrich Von Lichtenstein, becomes a great competitor and creates an intense rivalry with champion Count Adhemar (Rufus Sewell – “Martha, Meet Frank, Daniel and Lawrence”. “Dark City”) and begins a relationship with the exotic Lady Jocelyn (Shannyn Sossamon). He fights ...
TheUsualSuspect 10.09.2001 (11.09.2001)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of A Knight's Tale (DVD)
Advantages: Extremely funny, very well done in terms of action scenes and use of music Disadvantages: Too sentimental
*ALTHOUGH ITS A PREDICTABLE STORY, YOU MAY WANT TO KNOW THAT I DO GIVE AWAY MAJOR PLOT DETAILS IN THIS OPINION*
With the help of his companions Wat, Roland, Kate and real life famous playwright and gambler Geoffrey Chaucer, a peasant squire by the name of Will Thatcher, disguises himself as a knight of noble blood, hoping to fulfil his life long dream. Entering tournaments all over France, he meets and falls in love with Lady Jocelyn and makes an ... ...gains fame and fortune, in a similar style to football heroes of the modern day, but whether he’ll be able to convince Jocelyn of his love and to hide his true identity is another question.
You must have seen the adverts with a crowd at a jousting tournament clapping in time with Queen’s ‘We Will Rock You’. Equally memorable are the medieval-costumed cast jiving to the ‘The Golden Years’ and one of the funniest lines in the film is Wat’s sarcastic ...
drusilla 10.09.2001 (11.09.2001)
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Advantages: Exellent cast and production, sad, funny, amd Disadvantages: none
If a man believes enough a man can change his stars….
A Knights Tale offers you a taste of what to expect from the film almost immediately, after the initial opening scenes you are presented with a huge crowd of cheering peasants awaiting a jousting contest, clapping and stamping to Queens We Will Rock you..
This sets the precedent for the films entirety, a roller coaster of Medieval with 21st century sprinkles.
~~ Cast ~~
The Knight himself- ... ...age had dreams of becoming a true Knight, told by his father If a man believes enough a man can change his stars…. and this is exactly what he sets out to achieve.
With the aid of a false name Ulrich Von Lichenstein, as only those of Royal standing can partake in Jousting tournaments he embarks on his quest.
Heath to look at is the most pretty knight you will ever see, and clearly this was to attract the females to this film and believe me ...
Broksababie 14.10.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of A Knight's Tale (DVD)
Advantages: Good harmless fun. Disadvantages: Some very dodgy history.
...the fourteenth century. William Thatcher, a squire, dons Sir Ector’s armour to joust when the ageing Ector dies before the last bout. But there is a problem with this. Only high born nobles are allowed to joust. William is a peasant and a commoner, the son of John Thatcher, (a thatcher). If he is caught, he’ll be in big trouble to say the least. Will he be caught or not? Aww! Come on! He’s not going to get caught this early in the film is he!
So ... ...with the ruse. They have a month in which William can practice, then it’s on to the next tournament. Whilst on the journey they meet a naked Geoffrey Chaucer. He is soon enlisted as their herald and the forger of their ‘patents of nobility’ and Sir Ulrik is born. Next our hero espies a fair maiden. But she’s no coy wallflower. This is a fair maiden with attitude. And she won’t even tell him her name. Undeterred, our hero falls in love with this anonymous ...
alma 04.04.2003
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of A Knight's Tale (DVD)
Advantages: Soundtrack (except the Robby Williams one), pretty funny film Disadvantages: Length (it's too long!)
...the end we plumped for A Knight's Tale.
The plot revolves around a servant of a Knight who is killed during a jousting contest. With the competition in jeopardy, one of his 3 servants pulls on his armour and mounts the horse. Despite never having jousted before, he manages to win the tournament (the hard part having been done by his late predecessor) and thus sets the tale in motion.
His name is William, and his sidekicks, the other two servants, ... ...to compete, he must be a Knight, which he obviously is not. Luckily, they meet Chaucer, in a rather humorous portrayal, who joins the group, giving William the faked Knight's papers in return for clothes (he is naked quite often throughout the film).
And so William becomes Sir Ulrich Von Lichtenstein, and after some basic training (which is very funny) he competes and wins tournaments, and all is well.
However, the complication of the lady he loves, ...
Oliy 16.09.2001
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Advantages: Plenty of action good sound track Disadvantages: None that I know of
...review I have done in a long time and if you have read my last one (no plug) then you will know I haven’t been in the right frame of mind to write, but I hope you people like this one.
This film star Heath Ledger as a lowborn squire, who, after his master dies, takes his place in a jousting tournament, and finds he is rather talented in the sport, he does this to follow a dream and “change his stars” his name is William Thatcher. But along the way ... ...whole point in the film a rather nice lady and so the film centres around his fight to win the heart of the fair maiden, who is quite nice but her helper lady is much nicer, so as you can see the film does not centre upon the jousting but upon a love story. There is plenty of jousting in this story and some sword fighting so us action fans can keep happy while the love story fans can be happy as well, they have also added in quite a bit of comedy ...
robin_best 15.08.2002
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of A Knight's Tale (DVD)
Advantages: Great songs and laughs Disadvantages: Flawed
I’ll tell you what A Knight’s Tale is like in one easy picture – it’s the world jousting championships, held in London, and the exiled Englishmen who are the subject of our story have returned to their homeland for the first time in years. What’s the track you get to light up the moment. Why, Thin Lizzy’s The Boys Are Back In Town, of course, what else did you think it would be?
Then earlier as our hero starts his courting scene by showing off his ... ...the point, this film has a truly outstanding soundtrack, featuring some great (but also not so great songs, but the key thing is the way they’re liberally strewn around and spliced in to the action. To see these mediaeval dudes clapping along to We Will Rock You is pretty amazing, as is the jousting practice when it’s conducted to the backing of Low Rider.
The soundtrack album features the following –
1. Queen -- "We Will Rock You"
2. War -- "Low ...
dave27 31.08.2002
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Advantages: I didn't pay for it, I guess the jousting scenes were kinda cool... Disadvantages: It made me ill
I am a very enthusiastic person and I tend to overuse superlatives. At least once a day (my friends can attest to this) I will say something like, ‘That is the cutest baby EVER!’ or ‘She is the stupidest girl I have ever met.’ But I think I can say with certainty that... THIS WAS THE WORST FILM I HAVE EVER SEEN!! They were showing this film for free in my halls’ bar and since my friends and I had spent lots of money ... ...paying attention to it after a while because I knew what was going to happen. A young commoner (William Thatcher, played by Heath Ledger, who is far too pretty to be a real medieval jouster!) really wants to be a knight so his father sends him off to be trained by a jousting master. His master dies and he and his buddies miraculously run into Geoffrey Chaucer who helps William forge a document which makes him a knight -- Sir Oreck Von Lichtenstein, ...
OKkaraoke 04.12.2002
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of A Knight's Tale (DVD)
Advantages: As unlikely a film as you'll see this year - great performances and a sense of humour Disadvantages: One or two minor irritations, but nothing serious
William Thatcher is a young squire who takes up the mantle of his master when the unfortunate knight pops his clogs one joust short of a tournament. After winning, he, along with his yokel chums Roland and Wat decide to tour Europe’s jousting pageants, posing as Ulrich Von Lichtenstein and his entourage. Along the way, they hook up with an English writer by the name of Geoffrey Chaucer, a female blacksmith and the beautiful Lady Jocelyn. They ... ...fourteenth century, but it is a very modern production. Firstly, the film begins with a load of country bumpkins chanting along to Queen’s classic "We Will Rock You" and doing Mexican waves around the arena. The Lady Jocelyn wears a series of increasingly modern frocks, complete with full length hooded top and slinky catwalk saunter and Will even has a lightweight suit of Nike armour. The female characters are very contemporary in their outlook, ...
afy9mab 25.09.2001 (26.09.2001)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of A Knight's Tale (DVD)
Advantages: Very funny, knights in shining armour Disadvantages: None
...(Alan Tudyk) are squires to a knight who is about to win a tournament. They have not eaten for days and are relying on the prize money to feed them so, not surprisingly, it comes as a bit of a blow when they realise their knight has snuffed it! Heath Ledger takes the reins and pretends to be the knight in order to complete the tournament. Getting a taste for jousting, riches and fame, Thatcher proposes that the squires should continue on their own ... ...and so when they meet a wandering writer (who is incidentally completely naked when they first encounter him walking along the road) whose name is Geoffrey Chaucer (yes, THE Chaucer and played by Paul Bettany) they are pleased for him to join them if he will forge patents of nobility. The rest of the film consists mainly of the tournament encounters, while Thatcher falls for the beautiful Jocelyn (Shannyn Sossamon) and is beset by the evil knight, ...
Ophelia 14.05.2003
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Advantages: Some funny moments and tongue in cheek humour Disadvantages: Predictable
...back out of the cinema. A Knight’s tale is almost a spoof movie, from the opening sequences where the crowds at a medieval joust are beating drums and singing the words of ‘We Will Rock You’ it is very evident that this movie does not take itself seriously.
Supposedly written by Geoffrey Chaucer, an eloquent writer whose love of gambling, and his ability to lose his clothes without any trouble, throw him together with ... ...who becomes the squire to a noble knight thanks to the sacrifices of his father. After a particularly fearsome joust, the noble Knight has the audacity to die, leaving our intrepid hero and his companions in a pickle. Rather than give their lives as squires, William decides to masquerade as the knight and somehow he manages to complete the final joust and finish the tournament as champion.
Deciding to make a career of being a Knight, William, with ...
Simoncook1 27.12.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of A Knight's Tale (DVD)
There's no rule against rock anthems from the 1970s in the soundtrack for a movie about a ... more
medieval jousting champion, but if you're going to attempt such jarring anachronisms, you'd better establish acceptable ground rules. Writer-director Brian Helgel...
Postage & Packaging: £1.21 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
The 14th Century takes on a new look in A KNIGHT'S TALE.Heath Ledger is William Thatcher, ... more
a peasant squire who breaks all the rules when he passes himself off as a knight and takes the jousting world by storm. The only thing that stands between William...
Production Year: 2008 - Action/Adventure - Director: Christopher Nolan - Original Language: English - Classification: 12 years and over - Starring:Maggie Gyllenhaal, Aaron Eckhart, Morgan Freeman, Heath Ledger, Gary Oldman, Christian Bale, Michael Caine
Production Year: 1977 - Action/Adventure - Director: Clint Eastwood - Original Language: English - Classification: 18 years and over - Starring:Clint Eastwood, Sondra Locke, Pat Hingle, William Prince, Bill McKinney
Production Year: 2002 - Action/Adventure - Director: Vincenzo Natali - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring:Lucy Liu, David Hewlett, Anne Marie Scheffler, Joseph Scoren, Matthew Sharp, Jeremy Northam
Production Year: 1964 - Action/Adventure - Director: Cyril Endfield - Original Language: English - Classification: Parental Guidance - Starring:Stanley Baker, Jack Hawkins, Ulla Jacobsson, James Booth, Michael Caine, Nigel Green
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