The Tale of Sir Richard

Once upon a time there was a very brave knight called Sir Richard. He very badly wanted to slay a dragon and he kept on practising and practising so that he would be more than ready when the day eventually came. He was the finest swordsman for miles around and all he needed was a dragon but for all his waiting, no dragon ever appeared. Eventually Sir Richard tires of waiting and is about to chuck it all in when finally a dragon appears but is he up to it now the moment has come?

A very weird little film this one and all the more unusual for Channel 4 screening it at lunchtime of all times. The short film basically revolves around Sir Richard who, when it comes time to use his massive shiny sword to get at a dragon find himself unable to perform. To cut to the chase, he finds his sword goes all floppy. It is difficult to think of another film that so clearly echoes the issue of male impotence and even more difficult to think of one that deals with the issue in an animation involving a mythical creature, so for that alone it is worth a glance.

It is not brilliant though and I didn't think that it was clever enough with what it was doing to make the material work. That it is quite amusing is mostly down to a strong scripted narration that is delivered by a perfectly cast Hohnen, OK he could have done with a touch more incredulity in his voice but mostly he was spot on. The animation is simple but effective with the 2D design and backdrops being used well with the circular framing of the shot and use of metallic grey as the dominant colouring.

Not brilliant then but amusing despite it not making more of the material or the central concept. Quite what Channel 4's scheduling department were thinking though, is anyone's guess.