The Headsman

The actors played very well, the atmosphere was very sharp, so they got the feel right. I remember reading the Name of the Rose and noticing that the movie failed to mention almost anything about the religious background of the story from the book. When watching The Headsman, I felt like they presented more of that background in detriment of the story which felt a bit rushed. But, after all, some viewers actually complained about too little information regarding the Anabaptists so I guess the movie actually showed the actions, rather than the background, just as the Name of the Rose movie.

Bottom line: it was a good script. It would have probably been better as a miniseries and with a slightly different ending, but it was a story worth knowing. You should be warned about some torture and pure human stupidevil scenes.

I love historical films, even the bad ones. But this movie is one of the best. It hits the dark and depressing atmosphere in the shadow of the all-mighty catholic church well. The acting is on a high level by all actors, especially Coaster-Waldau and McDonald. Coaster-Waldau seems to be getting more and more to a main actor in movies. After seeing him alongside Bettany (another shooting star) in Wimbledon and Firewall, I was expecting a lot. And I was not disappointed. But I was most surprised by McDonald, never heard of him before, and his acting as a troubled prior torn between his duty and friendship.

So if you want to see a great movie set in the middle-ages, buy or rent both "The Reckoning" and "The Headsman".

This movie gave me whiplash. It started off with about a History Channel Reenactment quality, then got pretty good through the middle, and then ended like an average B-Movie. I feel like the main issue was editing, there were moments where I laughed out loud. Like when the dude's life flashed before his eyes and they threw in a clip of the sex scene from earlier in the movie (a "we're definitely using that again" moment). I was expecting a movie more sympathetic to the church, but I liked the angle they took instead. Berkoff was doing some Star Trek bad guy acting, Coaster-Waldau was pretty good, and Eddie Marsen is always a pleasure.

How make a rare movie on low budge and receiving a best reviews from the best critics, this picture means all that, set place on dark ages when the evil spanish inquisition were the latest word to decide without mercy the people's fate over own point of view, blasphemers, witchcraft were their target, the Catholic church rules under heavy hand mainly by spanish radical wing and how everywhere such power were dreaded, the story is told by eyes's a former warrior who falling in love with a daughter of the headman, after that he has to replace him by right after his sudden death, Mongs's monastery, City's mayor and Archbishop trembled when a spanish inquisitor was sent to solve by power the insurgents by any means, a true near masterpiece over such gloomy period of our past!!

Resume:

First watch: 2012 / How many: 2 / Source: DVD / Rating: 8.5

I like history. Sometimes I read it. Sometimes I watch documentaries. And occasionally, a movie with enough realism to keep my addiction satisfied at the same time I'm entertained will surface. From the descriptions I read of Shadow of the Sword, I had some small hope it might be one of those movies. You can't imagine how delighted I was when that turned out to be the case.

In the Europe of the 1500's, the Catholic Church was almost literally all powerful. It was involved in every facet of every life, from the ceremonial to the governmental to the day-by-day. It's only natural that the church — for both reasons of charity as well as the replenishment of the priesthood — would take charge of orphaned boys. Martin and Georg are two such children. Raised together and raising hell together, the two are close friends until they day they're old enough to be separated into training for their adult responsibilities.

Georg (Peter McDonald) is taken by the Archbishop (John Shrapnel) where he is groomed to return to his home town as the prior of the local monastery. Meanwhile, Martin (Nikolaj Coaster-Waldau) becomes a soldier for the empires and achieves the rank of captain. After some fifteen years apart, Martin finds himself camped near his former home and he takes the opportunity to visit his old friend. The two men are delighted to see each other and spend a few hours catching up.

Martin, however, has one more errand he to run. He's been wounded in the fighting and needs medical care. After a brief chance meeting in the village, Martin discovers a pretty local girl named Anna (Anastasia Griffith) who, among other things, is reputed to be a witch and a healer. When Martin visits her in her remote home, he discovers two things: he loves her, and her father is the local executioner. The former is difficult at best since he's got to leave with his troops in the morning. The latter is almost as much of a problem since executioners are considered untouchable by the rest of the citizens.

Eventually, Martin is released from his duties and he returns to Anna only to find that her father has died. With little else for which he's qualified, Martin reluctantly takes over as executioner and soon finds himself a very busy man. The Catholic Church has virtually no tolerance for dissent, and punishments are harsh at best. Things only get worse when the Archbishop demands that Georg tighten up his control of the local populace and leaves an Inquisitor (Steven Berkhoff) behind to ensure that that's what happens.

Soon enough, the old friends are caught up in a battle of conscience, fear, and power that can only partly be solved by getting to the bottom of their own secret past. But time is short, betrayal looms, and failure means banishment or death for them and those they love.

The casting in Shadow of the Sword is excellent. You believe in Martin's strength and courage even as you entirely buy into Georg's innate piety. While that has something to do with the look of the men chosen to fill these roles, it's primarily due to the fact that Nikolaj Coaster-Waldau and Peter McDonald are very capable actors, the former in particular. Anastasia Griffith holds her own and John Shrapnel is terrific every time he's on screen, but my pick for most impressive performance comes from Julie Cox in a relatively small but pivotal role as the prostitute Margaretha.

The script was quite good, and the sets, costumes, and make-up effects were even better. The only real complaint I have about Shadow of the Sword involves a number of terribly jarring edits. I suspect these were made in an effort to lower the running time (almost two hours), but too many were too careless. I would have much preferred to have a longer movie. Besides, since what I saw was pretty good, I can only imagine that much of what I didn't see was pretty good, too.

The bottom line: Shadow of the Sword isn't perfect. But it's interesting and entertaining, and that's plenty. I liked this movie, and those with an interest in drama, history, or both will find something there for them, too.

POLITICAL NOTES: Even Catholics will likely confess that the church isn't always right. But it's rarely been more wrong than it was during the course of the Crusades and the later Inquisition. The Catholic Church has obviously mellowed and learned from some of its mistakes. But it's apparent that not everybody has. It seems that the word "crusade" and all of its inherent evils can be crudely translated as being synonymous with "jihad."

The fundamentalist Islam war on everybody who isn't a Muslim has nothing and everything in common with what the church did so long ago, and certainly Shari'a has an appalling amount in common with the techniques of the Inquisition we now so roundly condemn. Shadow of the Sword shows both the politics and the lust for control behind such campaigns all too clearly, and the graphic results offer up some lessons we'd do well to continue to remember today.

FAMILY SUITABILITY: Shadow of the Sword is rated R for "violence and a scene of sexuality." This is not a movie I'd recommend your children see. Some scenes of torture, while not gratuitous, are quite graphic and more than a little difficult to watch. The subject matter is also likely beyond the understanding of younger kids. I'd recommend Shadow of the Sword only for those age 14 or so and up. I'd also recommend that, if you and your family do see the movie, you have a little conversation afterward about just what religious fanaticism means for the fate of freedom, and that you do your best to take those lessons to heart!