King Arthur: Excalibur Rising

What a terrible movie. I give it every opportunity, but after 40 min's I had to turn it off. Low budget, poor acting, don't waste you time folks. There are plenty of movies out there, This will waste an hour and 40 Min's of your life, you have been warned. Sorry but its a thumbs down for me guys.

I watched this movie hoping for an imaginative re-working of a legend which enthralled me as a kid . . . but I was appalled at how badly this one was put together. Although the story-line was encouraging, the acting, editing and direction was absolutely abysmal. My wife and I were laughing during the supposedly climactic moments, watching third-rate actors stumble through lines that were truly forgettable, scenes that were embarrassing in their stupidity, and ultimately left us wondering why - Why would anyone allow this movie to be released?

Truly awful. I was hoping with a 2017 production that this would be a gripping tale with good acting and great special effects. What a waste of time. It felt like a very poor episode from a third rate TV series rather than a movie in its own right. The concept of the story was quite good, but completely let down by poor production, awful camera work, bad acting and truly awful special effects. AVOID AVOID AVOID !

This viewing was a real struggle. There was little mystery, poor film direction, and the action and dialogue were badly contrived. I tend to not blame actors since they too can be victims, but most could have tried to have given their roles some character. I mean, Merlin was casted because he looks like Ian McKellen's Gandalf...talk about being desperate for viewers. And Arthur's evil son was filmed hooded and from behind because...wait for it...he had a nasty scar on his cheek...sigh. I think if this was viewed under MST3K setting, it could provide humor, something I had trouble finding as it currently stands. Just doesn't have enough outrageousness, like Hawk the Slayer, to obtain cult status.

First, I am pretty forgiving of movies. I watch to enjoy myself. I can deal with mediocre movies and still enjoy myself.

Second, I don't mind the re-telling or re-imagination of a tale. For example Excalibur 1981 is amazing. I also enjoyed the 2004 version of King Arthur with Clive Owen. 2 very different approaches to King Arthur.

Now, about this movie. As I said in the title, wow, and not in a good way. The acting isn't just bad, it's laughable. The story is an interesting idea that gets lost in the horrible script and horrible CGI. And making Merlin look like a cut-rate Gandalf was a bad idea. The Lady of the Lake lives in a scum filled pond.

One good thing is the movie is 99 minutes; about 30 minutes less than a real movie. One other good part was the opening scene of the Battle of Camlann. After that, it is all down hill.

Thanks Redbox for the bait and switch. You see, I only saw this movie because I thought I was renting a different movie. Who knew there were 2 movies in 2017 named King Arthur. I guess I should have paid closer attention to the subtitles. There is no reason Redbox should have this horrible of a movie to rent. The only reason I can think is they wanted my $1.50 now and then pay again when King Arthur Legend of the Sword is released.

So, watch this movie if it is cheap or free but be prepared. Set your expectations very low and you might do alright.