Rei David

Beautifully if somewhat glacially shot in Italy but sorely missing Miklos Rosza's music. Bruce Beresford rolled up his sleeves and got stuck into this throwback to the sort of thing that DeMille had made so profitably for Paramount during the twenties & thirties; but who this time took a bath to the tune of $2,500,000 on their original $22 million investment in this implausible project that was probably slightly ahead of it's time, five years before the huge success of 'Gladiator' made ancient history sexy again.

Described by David Thomson as "a genuine eccentricity", it's very much of it's time, including a spot of slow motion swordplay, gorier violence than in the fifties and the scruffy eighties beards and shaggy mullets worn by the men as they address each other in hushed tones.

This is one unjustly maligned film. For the most part, the acting is well above average. Edward Woodward's love/hate relationship (enfasis on the hate) with David comes across excelently. Richard Gere does an adequate job. I can't stand his style on most films that I have seen him but here he is just fine. The Jonathan character is heroic and handsome, while the actor who portrays the prophet Nathan does as best a job as anyone could do. Some minor problems/irritations, the location of Jerusalem should have been a more scenic and lush one, not desert-like. Jerusalem might be semi-desert today but 3,000 years ago it was a beautiful land flowing with milk and honey. Highlights include David's dance before the Ark of the Covenant, the battle scene versus the Phillistines where King Saul is killed with his sons (Mel Gibson must have seen it) is Braveheart light, but realistic nonetheless. There are many more, I just wish it could have been longer due to them skipping a whole part of his later life all the way up to his deathbed. One of the better Biblical adaptations nonetheless.

It's the life of David (Richard Gere) who would be the King of the Isrealites. Prophet Samuel chooses the youngest son of Jesse of Bethlehem. He dies and leaves a message to King Saul (Edward Woodward) that God has forsaken him but not his people. In the battle against the Philistines, David strikes down the giant Goliath. David befriends Saul's son Jonathan who saves him from Saul's plots against him. After Jonathan and Saul are killed in battle with the Philistines, David is crowned king. The Godly rule is brought down by David's affair with the married Bathsheba (Alice Krige).

Everything is fine until Richard Gere shows up. It's a bit slow sometimes but Woodward is a solid British actor. The scale is big enough when it's required. Goliath is great. It's all good but there is something too modern about Gere's beautiful hair. His mannerisms and his voice is too modern, too American and too different from everybody else. He simply looks out of place. Otherwise, this could have worked.

There were two Golden Ages of the Biblical epic. The first was during the silent era of the 1920s. The second started in the late forties, when Hollywood needed to rely upon spectacle in its battle with the upstart newcomer television. DeMille's "Samson and Delilah" can be seen as marking the opening of this revival, and several notable dramas such as "The Ten Commandments" (also by DeMille) followed it over the next fifteen to twenty years.

This second Golden Age lasted until about the mid-sixties, with Huston's "The Bible" perhaps marking its close. Thereafter there were occasional productions based on the New Testament, but the Old no longer seemed to be of interest to film-makers. "King David", therefore, made in 1985, is virtually unique, an Old Testament epic from the eighties, a decade during which not only Biblical epics but also those based on Classical or Mediaeval history had fallen from favour. When eighties film-makers wanted to work in the epic style they generally turned to modern history, as Richard Attenborough did with "Gandhi" or Bertolucci with "The Last Emperor".

The look of this film is far less grandiose than that of the traditional epics directed by the likes of DeMille. I think that this is historically accurate; the Kingdom of Israel was not a great empire like Rome, Egypt, Babylon or Persia but a modest Middle Eastern state, notable not for its wealth or power but for the fact that its monotheistic religion gave rise not only to modern Judaism but to Christianity and Islam as well. The costumes and architecture, therefore, are far more sober and restrained than those on view in most epics, and the battle scenes are fairly small-scale.

The film is relatively faithful to Biblical accounts of the life of David, although there are some discrepancies. Filming this particular story does, however, pose some problems which director Bruce Beresford and the scriptwriters never really overcome. The first problem is that the story of David is one of the Bible's more complex narratives; this film draws upon four different Books, Samuel I and II, Chronicles I and the Psalms. (Some well known Biblical heroes have their stories told in a few verses, or at most chapters). This narrative contains several different stories- the power struggle between David and Saul, the friendship between David and Jonathan, the love-story of David and Bathsheba and the rebellion of Absalom- any one of which could have been the basis of a complete film in its own right. This film tries to deal with all of them, and does so rather perfunctorily. An example of what I mean is that Bathsheba's husband Uriah the Hittite never appears, even though as the third party in the triangle he would be a key figure in the love-story element. David's estranged first wife Michal is not omitted entirely, but her role here is a very minor one.

The second problem- one common to a lot of Biblical epics- is the discrepancy between the harsh and often intolerant tribal morality of Old Testament religion and the gentler ethos of modern Christianity. In the film David is seen as the advocate of a greater tolerance when he spares the lives of the Philistine civilians after defeating their armies, an act of mercy for which he is taken to task by the prophet Nathan. Nathan's position is that if Jehovah has mandated the wholesale slaughter of pagan nations, then it is not for David, as Jehovah's anointed, to question the justice of His commands.

There is an attempt to soften, even justify, the David/Bathsheba affair by painting Uriah as a brute who refuses to consummate his marriage and who treats his beautiful young wife with savage cruelty, a version of events not found in the Biblical story This does not, however, prevent the scriptwriters from presenting us with the scene (which is in the Bible) where Nathan rebukes David for adultery and his part in Uriah's death, although its impact is lessened by the fact that the man now appearing as the voice of conscience and morality was, only a few scenes earlier, appearing as the advocate of religiously sanctioned genocide.

The best acting contribution, by a considerable margin, comes from Edward Woodward as the tormented Saul, a man quite literally driven mad by rage and by his unreasoning jealousy of David. (Woodward was better known for his television work than for films, but he had earlier collaborated with Beresford on the excellent "Breaker Morant"). Richard Gere, however, seems miscast in the title role; even Beresford was later to admit that Gere, who received a Razzie nomination for "Worst Actor", is much better in contemporary pieces than he is in historical dramas. Alice Krige as Bathsheba is never given much to do except stand around looking beautiful. There are a surprising number of little-known actors, some in quite major roles. It would, for example, make an interesting quiz question to test the knowledge of the most enthusiastic movie buff to name two films starring, say, Jack Klaff (Jonathan) or Jean-Marc Barr (Absalom).

Like a number of other reviewers I was amused by that scene in which Gere, dressed only in a loincloth, does a dance through the streets of Jerusalem. Yes, I know it's in the Bible- it was presumably part of the coronation ritual of the Israelite monarchy- but that doesn't prevent it from looking ridiculous. That last comment, in fact, could sum up my view of the film as a whole. A lot of this stuff might be in the Bible. That doesn't necessarily mean you can put it in a modern film without looking ridiculous. 5/10

Exciting Biblical story with rousing battles , intense drama , love and hatred , being some moments proceeded in slow moving pace . The film focuses the epic David's epic life (1010-970 B.C.) , retelling his complicated family relationship , rebellion his son Absalom , and generally tackling the intricacies of his love story with Bathsheba. The movie takes place in the thirty-nine year period between 961 and 1000 B.C. , David , (Richard Gere portrayed him from ages as young as twenty-three to as old as seventy years), who had five wives , is a very human figure who is recorded in the Bible (Samuel, Books 1 and 2) , conqueror Jerusalen and author of the Psalms . King Saul of Israel is jealous of the fame and adoration of David, who long ago slew Goliath and brought victory to Saul's armies . It tells from the prophet Samuel (Dennis Quilley) appointed him , when after in his kingdom Saul (Edward Woodward , second of three films he made with Bruce Beresford) and his son Jonathan (Laff) were vanquished by Philistines . When Saul was murdered by a blade slashed himself, David claimed his reign by right of his marriage to Saul's daughter , Michal (Cherie Lunghi) . The continued threat and domination of invaders countries forced the Jewish tribes uniting under a strong king : David . He's specially recorded his acquisition of his favorite spouse , Bathsheba (Alice Krige), though he had a harem, too . After King David sees the beautiful Bathsheba bathing from the palace roof, he enters into an adulterous affair which has tragic consequences for his family and Israel . The new wife was accomplished by sending her husband named Uria the Hitita , a warrior serving as mercenary , into way in war . He is attracted to Bathsheba, the wife of one of his soldiers who is more devoted to army duty than to his wife . David & Bathsheba succumb to their feelings . Their affair, her resulting pregnancy, & David's resolve to have her husband killed so Bathsheba will be free to marry, bring the wrath of God upon the kingdom . David must rediscover his faith in God in order to save his kingdom from drought & famine, & himself from his many sins . His throne was marred by the habitual dynastic fights between his sons , Absalom (Jean Marc Bar) killed Ammon and after rebelled and then was murdered . There are developed various events about David-life , such as the arrival in Jerusalen the Ark of the Covenant with holy qualities ; David playing harp , in fact , David had entered Saul's household as a sort of musical therapist , the Hebrew politics intrigues and pitting against the Old Testament wrath of the Prophet Nathan (Nial Buggy) and , of course, David- Goliath (George Eastman or Luigi Montefiori) fighting is also seen , defeating with a throwing wave a ten-foot-tall Philistine giant . Finally , Absalom rebellion and killing Ammon, succeeded Salomon , son of Bathseba, he inherited the reign at David'death and became himself a major king of Israel , building the famous temple of Salomon where held the Ark . David and Salomon were the two great kings of Israel .

This Biblical epic contains good set decoration and art direction but some moments being a little boring that it makes stately pace . The movie gets a colorful cinematography by Donald McAlpine and evocative music score by Carl Davis. The motion picture was professionally directed by Australian director Bruce Beresford in his second American Hollywood movie whose first picture stateside had been Tender mercies. He's a good director with success (Breaker Morant) in Outback . Since the 80s , he has worked mainly in Hollywood and far away places (Mister Johnson , Black robe) with hits (Double jeopardy , Crimes of the heart, Tender mercies) and misfires (Silent fall, Her alibi , King David) ; however his own film-making has been overlooked . Although a number of actors have been prized in his movies, he has obtained too many flops .

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Other films about this Biblic king are the following : ¨David and Bathsheba¨ (1951) by Henry King with Susan Hayward , Gregory Peck and Kieron Moore ; ¨David and Goliat¨ by Ferdinado Baldi with with Orson Welles as King Saul , Ivo Payer as David and Edward Hilton as Prophet Samuel ; ¨A Story of David¨ (1961) with Jeff Chandler , Basil Sidney and Donald Pleasence . And ¨David¨ (1997) TV by Robert Markowitz with Nathaniel Parker as David , Jonathan Pryce as Saul , Leonard Nimoy as Samuel , Sheryl Lee as Bathsheba and Ben Daniels as Jonathan