Tristan & Yseult

Beautiful, full of emotion and moving. The characters are portrayed skillfully and are generally believable - they fit into the legend but aren't overly heroic. Not overdone. The love between Tristan and Isolde is so powerful that it's impossible not to feel for them, but it is also impossible not to feel bad for the King, who is deeply in love with Isolde as well. The film's main departure from the traditional story is it's decision to leave out the love potion between T+I, which for modern audiences is a smart choice; it makes the whole relationship appear more 'authentic.' This is also one of Rufus Sewell's only' sympathetic roles, and it's a treat to see him play someone we don't automatically hate. The real heart-wrencher comes from watching the love grow between T+I while their obstacles grow larger. The movie also had some great battle scenes, just violent enough without going for the gross-out factor, convincing but not painful to watch (for most). And like most good dramatic movies it's not completely without humor, there are definitely some moments that make you laugh, or at least smile. Overall, it is one of the best romantic historical movies I have seen in a very long time. This movie is sure to make the entire female population fall in love with James Franco, and it's story is unforgettable.

In response to comments disparaging this film for neglecting to use music from the opera-- that hardly seems relevant. This story was written long before Wagner's work existed, and it would be foolish to demand that his music be a part of the film. It seems to be of greater significance that the film neglects certain elements of the original texts, although as an entirely different art form, the film has every right to take its liberties. It is unfair to credit or discredit any film based on its relationship to other works of art. It is important to appreciate and discredit this film within the context of the art form in which it functions.

I have to admit that I do not remember much about this story from my college Western Civ class, but I enjoyed this director's work in other films, so I took a chance. What a lovely film! The story is well told, paced well, and full of thought provoking moments. I found the leads, particularly Sophie Myles, who plays Isolde, to be mesmerizing in their roles. The supporting cast is also terrific. I know this won't be for everyone, but it's also not strictly a chick flick. There's plenty of war scenes, adventure, action, etc. to keep those action film fans happy, and yet there's a lot of good love stories, and not just between the two leads as you might expect. I recommend this one!

I must say that I didn't even originally plan on going to this movie, but after I was asked by a friend to see it on its opening night, I said that sure, I would go. I figured that it would be alright, nothing more than mediocre at the most, but this movie was amazingly wonderful.

I have heard many people's comments on how they didn't like it because "Myles' accent was completely wrong," "the chemistry between Franco and Myles was horrible," "it didn't even follow the original story," and many other miscellaneous things. While the story line was changed a little from the original story, I believe that it was still good. And come on, how many times does Hollywood actually stick to the original story anyway? I think that the way the story went was much easier for people who were not familiar with the story of Tristan and Isolde to follow.

Further, I thought that Myles did a wonderful job with her accents. I found it very easy to differentiate between the Irish and the English.

And lastly, I found the chemistry between Myles and Franco to be simply wonderful. They really showed me that the characters were truly in love; it was compelling and deep, put together for a very good movie.

I can honestly say that this is one of the best movies I have seen in a while; it was not the watered-down relationship kind of thing that comes from Hollywood most of the time. From the battles to the most intimate of scenes, it stayed simple; not the high-tech kind of thing that you would usually see. There were some parts meant to be funny, some meant to be sad, and the movie averaged out to give you the best of both. I will tell you that in its opening weekend I saw it more than once, something that I would usually never do. It's a movie that gets better and better each time you see it; one where you pick out things each time that you had not seen before.

Simply put, this is a wonderful movie. I loved it, but I would not recommend going if you're just going because you think that James Franco is hott! I know some people who didn't like it, I won't lie, but if you come to the movie with an open mind and know that some things are going to be different, you will absolutely love it, as I did.

There are love stories,and then there are love stories that pack a powerful punch.Tristan and Isolde indeed falls in the latter category. I must confess to not being an avid watcher of romance films,and was expecting not to enjoy much,if any of this film at all.I came away pleasantly surprised,as this film has a power that is hard not to acknowledge.It is two love stories in one.An English warrior is torn between the love of a woman from a country with which they are at war, and the man to which he owes his very life.The problem is,his two loves are sworn to one another,though not by the lady's choosing.The story is told well,and the film beautifully done.As of this writing,it is still in theaters and is worthy of the admission price,not to mention a worthwhile future rental.