Alfred der Große - Bezwinger der Wikinger

During depths of Dark Ages various kingdoms find in England , the greatest results to be Wessex ruled by King Alfred (David Hemmins) . When in ninth century the Scandinavian Vikings or Danes (led by Michael York) invade England with bloodthirsty raids , the young leader Alfred (849-899) at 22 years old dreams with an united nation . Alfred the Great managed himself to unify the small Anglo-Xaxons states in order to battle and beat the invaders barbarians Vikings . Alfred vanquished the invading Danes and freed the London city , besides he promoted the Anglo-Xaxon culture and the civilized values such us learning read Latin.

David Hemmins makes an excellent interpretation along with Michael York as the brutal Danish chief and attractive Prunella Ransome as a princess wished on both sides , besides appears Sir Ian McKellen's debut as a brave outlaw . The great climaxes of the film are , of course , the spectacularly staged battles scenes which convey us a realist scenario . The sets are properly adjusted although no palaces , silks , satins at a court with no pomp and circumstance but simple cloaks and rags and living in wood-forts . This biography is a historic chronicle developing an enjoyable screenplay by James R. Webb . Sensational and glimmer cinematography stunningly reflected on the outdoors by cameraman Alex Thomson . The motion picture is well directed by Clive Donner . The flick will appeal to historic cinema buffs . Rating : Above average. Well worth watching.

Like me numerous people commenting on this film have done so from memory and have not seen the film since its original release in 1969. This must be indeed be testimony to its lasting appeal for, strangely, it would appear that this film has not been released on DVD/Blu-ray. I will not discuss the historical content which seems to have met with rather mixed reviews (failing memories?) but I shall concentrate instead on the off-screen relationship of the principal protagonists played by David Hemmings and Prunella Ransome. Hemmings was, by his own admission, a 'Jack the Lad' who when asked to kiss Ransome in rehearsal did so in a manner that can only be described as being in the French style. Ransome was so furious that she refused to speak to him offset and in fact there was no communication between them again for nearly thirty years. Hemmings eventually apologised at a function they were attending and it was their final meeting for they were both dead within 4 years. The cause of Ransome's death has never been made public.

"Alfred the great" is an entertaining film with perhaps too much battle scenes.The two leads are convincing but the part of the queen is too underwritten.

The first scenes between David Hemmings and Prunella Ransome are good though: an educated prince who knows the Bible by heart and whose only ambition is to become a monk;an ignorant virgin under her father's thumb who uses her for political reasons.

Then comes Michael York ,the villain who's got twenty concubines and who falls for his enemy's wife .

This is the story of a reluctant king who believed in peace and love and finally discovers that in those troubled times (the 9th century) you had to be cruel to be kind .

Like this?try these...

Richard Fleischer: the Vikings 1958

Jack Cardiff:The long ships 1964

Though I'm quite aware of this film's shortcomings (length and the multitude of exotic names, etc.), I must say that I think Leonard Maltin does this film a disservice. It accurately portrays some of the most important events in English history, and also paints a fine portrait of a monarch torn between earthly passions and the desire for spiritual purity. It is only by truly balancing these two forces that a man can succeed, and Alfred did so.

The conflicting forces in the film also symbolize Alfred's inner struggle -- the church representing his spiritual desires and the Danes standing for the passions and lusts of the physical world. Certainly the Battle of Athelney Marsh, one of the pivotal events in British history, is stirringly portrayed, particularly when the peasants and commoners rise up to save their king. This film, despite its flaws and its abysmal box office performance, remains a personal favorite of mine.

Confession; I have not seen the movie, but I do have some interesting facts to share about the making of the movie: Many of the battle scenes were filmed in Ireland using Irish army regulars as extras. The men learned the marching chants and what you hear in the movie is at least in part the actual chants of the extras.

Some of the men earned extra money by doing some of the riskier shots (guys carrying kicking and screaming women for example; my Father was one such extra and earned his extra money by lying on the battlefield and permitting a horse to walk up to his 'body' and then circle around his head; some extras were unwilling to risk being stepped on, but my father's familiarity with horses convinced him that the horse would avoid stepping on a person).

The Viking ships were motorized with oarsmen acting to produce the realistic effects. One boat was offered to the local boy scouts at the end of filming, but was scooped up by a buyer before the deal was closed.

After days of shooting with large numbers of extras on the shores of the River Shannon near Athlone, the crew would repaint the brown grass using large buckets of green paint.

Although not a review, I hope this information is of interest to the site visitors, it comes from the recollections of my Father. Cheers!