"So Let it Be Written... So Let it Be Done"

The life and times of a real, down to earth, nice guy. A relocated New Englander formerly living somewhere north of Boston, but now soaking up the bright sun of southwestern Florida (aka The Gulf Coast) for over nine years. Welcome to my blog world. Please leave it as clean as it was before you came. Thanks for visiting, BTW please leave a relevant comment so I know you were here. No blog spam, please. (c) MMV-MMXIX Court Jester Productions & Bamford Communications

Saturday, May 20, 2006

SNMR 1.10: "King Arthur"

Tonight's SNMR feature is "King Arthur" (2004, PG-13, 140 minutes) starring Clive Owen, Keira Knightley, Ioan Gruffudd, Stellan Skarsgard, Stephen Dillane, Ray Winstone, Hugh Dancy and Til Schweiger. The film was directed by Antoine Fuqua. I'm watching the Extended Unrated Director's Cut.

This is another in a long line of DVD's that I bought when it first came out and hadn't gotten around to watching it at all until tonight. I bought it primarily because I've always enjoyed the King Arthur legends and because I thought Keira Knightley was excellent in "Pirates of the Caribbean".

From the DVD's dust jacket:

Now, from the producer of "Pearl Harbor" and the director of "Training Day"... Experience the extended unrated director's cut of this hard-hitting action epic! Prepare for more thrills, more adventure and more intensity, as the heroic true story behind one of history's greatest legends explodes onto the screen! It is the valiant tale of Arthur (Clive Owen) and his bond of brotherhood with Lancelot (Ioan Gruffudd), and the loyalty of the Knights of the Round Table as they fight for freedom and those they love. Also starring Keira Knightley as Guinevere, this never-before-seen "King Arthur" is a longer, grittier and more explicit motion picture - don't miss it!


From Martin & Porter's DVD & Video Guide 2006, p.610-11:

This recounting of King Arthur's exploits purports to derive from the "archaeological record," but the plot is actually lifted from director Antoine Fuqua's previous film, "Tears of the Sun," with an overdose of anachronisms - Arthur (Clive Owen) nattering about freedom, Guinevere (Keira Knightley) looking like Xena the warrior princess, "knights" drinking and roaring like Irish soccer fans, etc. Some decent action scenes, but the story is just too silly.


I'll admit, I bought this movie solely because of Keira Knightley being in it. But her character didn't even appear until about 45 minutes into the film. I thought the battle scenes were decent but not on the quality of LOTR. Overall the story had promise but weak writing will kill a good story every time. Even with this extended version, the story could have been told just as well in less time, as I found myself drifting off and having to replay certain scenes. Just seeing the director's cut, I'm not sure what scenes were added from the theatrical release of the film, so it's impossible for me to tell if this version was even necessary... Skin is nice, but would you seriously go into battle wearing Guinevere's skimpy costume? Hardly, I would think.

I'm going to give this film just two out of five stars. Maybe I'm missing something? Maybe repeat viewings will make it better, but I doubt it.

5 Comments:

At 21 May, 2006 01:36, Blogger Kayla said...

Sounds like you saved me from renting this movie.
I like all the King Arthur movies too, but there is a definate art to making a good one.
Enjoy your weekend..
I'm working :-(

 
At 21 May, 2006 16:10, Blogger requiredreading said...

should rather have watched Monty Python and the Quest for the Holy Grail, I think:)

 
At 21 May, 2006 19:43, Blogger DaBich said...

I agree with you Green, you didn't miss anything.

 
At 21 May, 2006 23:17, Blogger Zeppelinlady said...

Never saw it and probably never will now. Thanks!

 
At 22 May, 2006 18:56, Blogger c nadeau & t johnson said...

Excalibur was the quintessential Arthurian movie.

 

Post a Comment

<< Home