The Last Kingdom: Seven Kings Must Die

A nicely done extention of the series but it did nothing to move the Uhtred story forward.

I realize the final battle historically actually occurred and the participants shown were there (except the fictional ones of course) but was the entire movie necessary.

I feel it was not.

I liked the ending of the series and was happy to imagine what may have happened after it ended.

The Last Kingdom was a fantastic series from Bernard Cornwell's exhaustively researched books and I was happy to rewatch the entire series from start every time a new season was released.

Could you miss seeing this film and still feel the series ended well?

Yes, absolutely.

It seems like every show nowadays feels the need to include LGBTQ+ relationships, even if it doesn't fit the narrative. Additionally, the character Aethelstan felt out of place compared to his portrayal in season 5, almost as if the writers were forcing him into the story. It's disappointing to see these kinds of decisions being made. Without giving away any spoilers, I also found the ending to be unsatisfying. It would have been nice for the writers to make a firm decision instead of leaving it open-ended. Furthermore, the transition from the last episode to the finale could have been smoother. I've always admired the character of Uhtred because of his intelligence, but I found some of his decisions in this season to be frustratingly foolish. Although there were some interesting plot twists, the overall flow of the season felt disjointed. Overall, I was disappointed with the final season, but not entirely surprised. I think it would be beneficial for them to do one more season and focus on getting it right. Perhaps they could explore the story of Uhtred's son or draw inspiration from the book series. In my opinion, staying true to the source material would be the key to success. I have been a fan of The Last Kingdom since its inception, owning and rereading all the books multiple times and rewatching the earlier seasons frequently. The first season was phenomenal, but the following seasons were merely good, with the fourth and fifth seasons being mediocre. The film, which covers events from the final three books, was a letdown due to its rushed pacing. Each scene felt crucial to the story, with significant events occurring within minutes of each other, making it difficult to connect with new characters. The climax of the story arrived too quickly, leaving little time for character development. While there were some aspects of the film that I enjoyed, such as the well-executed battle scenes and Finan's humorous moments, overall, it fell short of expectations. It would have been better to have one more season, allowing for more character development and a more satisfying conclusion. If you're a fan of the show, it's still worth watching, but it may leave you feeling unfulfilled. I highly recommend reading the books for a more satisfying experience.

Films that have grown out of a television series face a number of issues, one of the most challenging of which is finding a story that justifies their existence. It's too easy for these films to be cursed with wafer-thin, overstretched plots. This film faces the opposite problem, presumably because it's adapted from multiple books that would under other circumstances have provided the basis of more than one season of television. There's certainly enough to suggest that possibility here. The show was underrated and deserved a more coherent conclusion; it's perhaps because most of the film's viewers have spent five seasons with these characters and this world that we're willing to forgive a plot-heavy, character-light conclusion. For those of those of us so invested, it's enjoyable and immersive, but we do wish it had been more; like the show, the film's climactic battle is thrillingly intense and coherently staged where it could easily have been bafflingly chaotic. The final pay off works; you just can't help wishing it had been more.

The Last Kingdom had been a fantastic series - however this film has not been of the same standard.

The story is sketchy, jumping from scene to scene without a constant flow. It seems to me they have tried to fit too much into the time allowed.

Whereas the series had time to build up tension and develop characters, this feels rushed, the direction clumsy and sometimes disjointed.

It's further spoiled by continuous very loud background music which detracts from the story and is actually annoying.

It does have its moments, the last half being better than the first half, but is not as enjoyable as it was, feeling somewhat repetitious.

I had been looking forward to this film but was sadly disappointed.

I am a huge fan of the show, although it had its flaws it was always very entertaining. This movie however starts out very confusing with one of the main character being gone apparently in between movies without much explanation. Its pacing is extremely rushed, it felt like they where trying to put 1-2 seasons worth of story into one movie. On top of it all because its a movie you are expecting a movie budget and therefor a more epic battle which it did not deliver on at all. There are better and more epic episodes of this show then what this movie gave us. A very disappointing ending to an entertaining show.