King Arthur

I initially was content with King Arthur's medieval atmosphere and tone, given that I don't mind grey films, which was one criticism. In this case I didn't care that the violence was PG. The acting was adequate although Ray Winstone (Bors) reminded me more of a British Soccer Hooligan.

The film eventually dragged for me and strained my credibility on a number of points. Firstly, I just couldn't see Arthur and his seven or so "knights" single handedly being asked to traipse around the British landscape like some bad gun-slinger/Conan movie (I identified more with Arnold in Conan by the way). Secondly, it made no sense that Arthur kept referring to his cronies as "my knights" since he never actually became king until the end of the movie. Who knighted them and how can an indentured soldier of the Roman Empire have the status of knight? Even a squire has higher status than a slave-soldier. How pretentious can you get?

In the end the movie dragged and I didn't feel the sense of connection Arthur had for his people. It seemed as if he hardly knew them, but was willing to make the ultimate sacrifice. The Excalibur explanation also seemed weak and devoid of the meaning that the legend gave it. It seemed almost pointless to include it. I also expected more of Merlin, who really didn't say much or earn his "sorcerer" title. It's unclear, other than Merlin's influence, why the Britons even bothered to make him king. I guess it's possible that he organized the final battle, but you didn't see that in the movie. The only ones he seemed to be motivating were his own buddies, the handful of knights, who for some reason were the only ones who had horses.

In short this film needed more depth and more of a connection between the myth and fact. Instead the screen writer just used the ambiguity of history to make up his own film based on a smattering of general historical facts.

What can I say that most already have not? Well not a lot.

My opinion on the movie is that, like many others have said, it's nothing like the legend. I went into this movie expecting it to at lease follow some of the story line for what I knew.. But nothing really happened. They touch small bases of the story and sure they say 'the true story' but no one knows if it even happened! So no one can really make such a statement. Also if they are trying to make a more 'realistic' one then they could of still used the King Arthur story that he actually dies? There is the love affair between Lancelot and Guinevere? King Arthur's love affair and his son? Really if they had to make 2 or 3 movies to fit it all it, I would be more happy with that than how this one turned out.

I went in knowing the story and didn't enjoy it as much, but my cousin went in not knowing much more than there was a King Arthur and a sword.. He enjoyed it a lot more.

It's just another war movie, and I really think it would be a good one! If it didn't use it as the King Arthur story.

Most King Arthur fans will be disappointed I believe, but none the less.. it's a good movie if you take away the whole 'King Arthur' legend from your mind.

But this movie is anything but misunderstood. The beautiful scenery and brooding atmosphere don't make up for the poor writing and formulaic plot.

Clive Owen is great. He's a subtle, powerful actor. His eyes alone are capable of showing strength, experience, sorrow, and amazement, all at once.

He epitomizes the strong, silent type. No one better to be cast as the legendary King Arthur. His character arc is one of the only believable aspects of the film. I owe it mostly to Owen's nuanced performance, as the writing unfortunately does not support him adequately.

According to the script, Arthur's allegiance to Rome is fueled, not by his love of the military, but rather his love of Roman philosophy. Apparently this love informs his compassionate approach as a leader, and turns his loyalties further away from Rome. But this motivation is only given cursory explanation. Repeatedly, Arthur shouts out, 'This is for freedom,' or 'We are all equal.' Even though his passion is believable, we never learn much more about the reasoning behind these generalized statements.

Guinevere, played by Keira Knightly, is given some 'girl power' as a rebellious pagan, capable of fighting with the men. But her story is undermined by her laughable romance with Arthur. True to formula, Arthur 'rescues,' her, and within minutes her attempts at seduction begin. Happily this is undercut by a shift in the plot involving fellow rebel 'Merlin,' but unfortunately this part of the story is also under-written. We are given no information about Guinevere's connection to Merlin, especially considering the character's young age. Knightly is barely 20, and it shows. This is nothing remarkable by Hollywood standards, but her performance shows a lack of life experience.

Costume and make-up choices for Guinevere were equally laughable; she wears full glamour makeup for the majority of the picture. Later she appears in the costumer's interpretation of pagan warrior garb (a few leather straps and some blue face paint), which is equally unbelievable as effective coverage for battle.

The formulaic screenwriting undermines the supporting cast of knights as well. It uses the typical action film technique of giving each knight their obligatory character highlight, or sympathetic moment, so we can be sure to spot them when they fall.

In triumphant moments, the underdeveloped theme of 'freedom' returns. Considering England's history, this so-called freedom would be in question for centuries to come. It would have been far more interesting to see how Arthur actually united England in the years that followed. Unfortunately this film instead shows Arthur massacring many Britons, spouting this 'talking point' as an afterthought.

I was really disappointed, given the claim about historical accuracy. For an hour and forty minute film, too much time given to battle scenes (which, apart from one scene on ice, were not very memorable). Not enough time was spent fleshing out the script. Or to be fair, perhaps those parts of the script ended up on the cutting room floor. But you could get just as much out of watching the previews of this movie; there's just not much more to it. If you're a fan of Clive Owen, then by all means... But otherwise, don't waste your time.

I have been a huge King Arthur fan ever since the night that I sat in an empty theater, in my hometown, awestruck by John Boorman's Excalibur.

Since then, I have seen the legend of King Arthur mutilated in films such as First Knight and The Mists of Avalon.

My high hopes for the movie, King Arthur, were dashed before the film even opened in theaters, by critics who were panning the movie from advanced screenings.

So, I stayed away while it was in theaters and most definitely passed on special discounts on the week it was released to DVD.

After finally getting around to renting a copy, I am left with just one burning question - Why in the hell do I listen to movie critics? The movie King Arthur has it all - a tight, well written story, believable characters, gritty realism, a great musical score by Hans Zimmer, epic battles, and more blood and splatter than you probably really wanted to see.

The bottom line is that King Arthur is a very good film. No, it's not the mythical Camelot, but it does not try to be. Nor, does it trample all over the name of King Arthur by making him a shallow or less than heroic character.

This is not Braveheart or Gladiator , but it is a film worth seeing and appreciating. Now that I think about, it's worth buying a copy to add to the home video library.

I have just seen King Arthur and what a disappointment! I have seen heaps of movies, and I am able to stomach a lot, having enjoyed mediocre films like, Van Helsing for instance. Van Helsing at least was silly, but had no pretensions of being anything else, King Arthur on the other hand, is a little movie, very predictable, filled with plot clichés that you have seen in countless other motion pictures, but has pretensions of being something extraordinary. Well, surprise, surprise it is not! There is not even enough camp in this movie to grant it a sort of je ne se quois to make it enjoyable. Even the soundtrack is a rip off of Gladiator, without even fitting the movie adequately. Hans Zimmer should know better than to copy/paste from is own work, some of us might notice!

Most of the acting is pretty good. I have especially enjoyed Ioan Gruffud as Lancelot and Clive Owen and Arthur, both of them make a very good effort given the silly lines they have, especially Owen who's lines are extra silly. Most of the actors are competent with the exception of Til Schweiger as Cynric and I felt that such a great actor as Stephen Dillane (Merlin) was completely wasted and given no chance to show is quality.

The direction was pretty bad and uneven. Antoine Fucqua doesn't show the talent he has demonstrated in Training day or even Tears of the Sun, the movie is a mess from start to finish. Visually, I must admit, it looks good. Slawomir Idziak's cinematography is really good and I hope to see some of his work in the future.

I have a lot more problems with this movie which I won't detail much further, with the exception of two that I cannot overlook. First of all, trebuches (the catapult thingies) were invented by the French during the 100 year old war, several centuries later, and not by Merlin. In a movie that brags about historical realism and accuracy, this strikes as odd. Besides, if Merlin had this kind of weapons, why not used it against the Romans in the first place? Another gripe, and this a big one, is the complete absence of gore! Did people in the "Dark Ages" not have blood? The battle scenes are violent but no blood! What's the point? Again if you want to have a realistic take on this period of history, why the absence of realism in the battle scenes? Do the filmmakers think that a PG-13 rating will get them more money at the box-office? Having seen this mess I seriously doubt it!

Summarizing, this movie is a complete mess with the exception of some of the performances, namely the Knights and most of all Gruffud's and Owen's acting. As for the rest, it is dumb, predictable, not very original in terms of plot and a complete disappointment! Long live Excalibur (John Boorman) that with it's 23 years it is still the best Kig Arthur story in movie history.