Ivanhoe (1982) (TV)

Director:

Douglas Camfield

Writers:

John Gay (writer)
Sir Walter Scott (novel)

Release Date:

23 February 1982 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Drama | Romance

Plot:

This is a remake of Walter Scott's Ivanhoe. Ivanhoe, a worthy and noble knight, the champion of justice returns to England after the holy wars...

Plot Keywords:

Castle | Historical | Knight | Robin Hood | Tournament

Awards:

Nominated for Primetime Emmy.

Cast

James Mason	...	Isaac of York
Anthony Andrews	...	Wilfred of Ivanhoe
Sam Neill	...	Brian de Bois-Guilbert
Michael Hordern	...	Cedric
Olivia Hussey	...	Rebecca
Lysette Anthony	...	Lady Rowena
Julian Glover	...	King Richard
George Innes	...	Wamba
Ronald Pickup	...	Prince John
John Rhys-Davies	...	Front de Boeuf
David Robb	...	Robin Hood
Stuart Wilson	...	De Bracy
Michael Gothard	...	Athelstone
Tony Haygarth	...	Friar Tuck
Philip Locke	...	Grand Master

Runtime:

USA:142 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Filming Locations:

Alnwick Castle, Alnwick, Northumberland, England, UK

Company:

Columbia Pictures Television

Quotes:

Brian de Bois-Guilbert: Rebecca, hear me, listen. We can still escape, I have a strong black stallion waiting at the edge of the field.
Rebecca: No
Brian de Bois-Guilbert: In the name of God then, I beg you to renounce your faith and admit your guilt.

Movie Connections:

Version of Ivanhoe (1913/I)

Beats the 1952 version by several leagues

If you have the chance, catch this splendid Ivanhoe remake on the tube or on VHS (it is a crying shame that this doesn't come on DVD, Amazon). It punches several well deserved holes in the tedious, pompous and dire 1952 version with the two Taylors, each performing worse than the other. Come on, Robert Taylor as Ivanhoe?? The 1952 film is clearly a case of a movie being made at the wrong time in Hollywood history.

Anyone questioning the acting capabilities of Anthony Andrews clearly hasn't seen Brideshead Revisited. He is a great, believable, and may I add, gorgeous Ivanhoe.

The film boasts a great, thought provoking script (which granted does take some liberties with the source material although much of the lovely dialog from Scott's book has found its way into the film), great performances (especialy by Neill, Mason and Hussey and the incomparable George Innes as Wamba) as well as beautiful production values and photography.

And, as an added bonus, it is a virtual babe fest (Wilson, Neill and Andrews are all at their physical prime here)!