King Arthur (USA/Ireland) (Touchstone/Buena Vista) (2004) ***Year: 2004iMDB
Director: Antoine Fuqua Cast: Clive Owen, Ioan Gruffud, Hugh Dancy, Keira Knightley
King Arthur is not the expected 100th re-telling of the legend of Camelot, updated to the 2004 cinema. It is rather the "untold story that insipired the legend". In this context, the movie does not have the grandeur of the legend and the fairy tale atmosphere, but is rather a demistifying, gritty tale about Sarmatian warriors forced to serve the Romans since very young, who become heroes in their own right and are getting ready to be relieved from service. Of course, that one last mission that they have to fulfill is the hardest of all and is the one that will end up changing their lives.
They are led by Arthur and they are called "Arthur's knights" mostly as a sign of respect but also somewhat ironic. They fight out of duty, and they would rather be at home with their families rather than fighting for the romans. However, Arthur's noble character shines through even in these conditions and this is the seed that led to the magical Arthurian legend.
The story is, of course, not accredited by any documents, but the movie is losely accurate in the depiction of the times. I like myths and legends and I think they deserve great movie renditions. Camelot's story has yet to be told in a convincing manner, and King Arthur does not attempt to do it. It attempts to show how behind every legend and myth, there is a grain of truth although it may be quite different from what we expect.
Posted by TheCasualCritic on January 11, 2005 03:40 PM | TrackBack