King Arthur (2004)

User Rating:

6.2/10   

Director:

Antoine Fuqua

Writer (WGA):

David Franzoni (written by)

Release Date:

7 July 2004 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | History | War

Tagline:

Rule Your Fate

Plot:

A demystified take on the tale of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table.

Plot Keywords:

Knight | Roman Empire | King Arthur | Britain | Knights Of The Round Table

Awards:

3 wins & 7 nominations

Cast

Clive Owen	...	Arthur
Ioan Gruffudd	...	Lancelot
Mads Mikkelsen	...	Tristan
Joel Edgerton	...	Gawain
Hugh Dancy	...	Galahad
Ray Winstone	...	Bors
Ray Stevenson	...	Dagonet
Keira Knightley	...	Guinevere
Stephen Dillane	...	Merlin
Stellan Skarsgård	...	Cerdic
Til Schweiger	...	Cynric
Sean Gilder	...	Jols
Pat Kinevane	...	Horton
Ivano Marescotti	...	Bishop Germanius
Ken Stott	...	Marius Honorius

Also Known As:

King Arthur: Director's Cut (USA) (DVD title (director's cut))
Knights of the Roundtable (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for intense battle sequences, a scene of sensuality and some language.

Runtime:

126 min | USA:142 min (director's cut)

Country:

USA | UK | Ireland

Language:

English | Latin | Irish Gaelic | Welsh | Scottish Gaelic

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Canada:13+ (Quebec) (director's cut) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Iceland:16 | Netherlands:16 (director's cut) | Malaysia:18PL | Malaysia:U (cut version) | Australia:M (Video rating) | USA:PG-13 (original rating) (certificate #40970) | Canada:G (re-rating) | New Zealand:M | Spain:18 (DVD rating) | Sweden:11 | Argentina:13 | Australia:MA (director's cut) | Australia:M (original rating) | Canada:14A (director's cut) | Chile:14 | Czech Republic:12 | Finland:K-11 (original rating) | Finland:K-15 (director's cut) | France:U (director's cut) | Germany:12 (original rating) | Germany:16 (director's cut) | Ireland:15 | Netherlands:12 | Norway:15 | Peru:14 | Philippines:PG-13 | Singapore:PG | South Korea:15 | Spain:13 (director's cut) | Spain:7 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | UK:12A (original rating) | UK:12 (video rating) (2004) | UK:15 (director's cut) | USA:Open (director's cut) (rating surrendered) | USA:R (director's cut) | Greece:K-13 | Brazil:14

Filming Locations:

Ardmore Studios - Herbert Road, Bray, County Wicklow, Ireland

Company:

Touchstone Pictures

Trivia:

Cameras were attached to shields, swords, helmets, and spears to capture the realism of warfare.

Goofs:

Factual errors: Despite the claims made at the beginning of the film, factual and historical inaccuracies abound.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Lancelot: [voiceover] By 300 AD, the Roman Empire extended from Arabia to Britain. But they wanted more. More land. More peoples loyal and subservient to Rome. But no people so important as the powerful Sarmatians to the east. Thousands died on that field. And when the smoke cleared on the fourth day...
[...]

Movie Connections:

References "Babylon 5" (1994)

Soundtrack:

Amergin's Invocation

It's all about atmosphere

Jerry Bruckheimer's KING ARTHUR is a shining example of that new breed of mythology adaption. It is similar to Wolfgang Petersen's TROY, in that it dispenses with the supernatural splendour and phantasmagorical intrigue characteristic of traditional tales, and presents the story as (relatively) realistic historical fiction, attempting to convey the "magic" of the story through drama, rather than gaudy special effects.

This is a brave venture by Bruckheimer - and director Fuqua- and they are to be commended for executing it with such style and creativity as is displayed in this film. It has, however, enjoyed somewhat limited success, due to the fact that it presents such a radical interpretation of a story much closer to our hearts than that of the Illiad.

I believe, though, that if the viewer simply opens one's mind and attempts to enjoy the story purely for the sake of itself (forgetting, for the moment, Rosemary Sutcliff and Barbara Leonie Picard), KING ARTHUR will reveal itself as a truly fine piece of film-making.

More than anything else, Fuqua masterfully portrays the atmosphere of the tale, endowing it with a sense of time and place far more eloquent than the rather run-of-the-mill dialogue. The entire experience oozes the ambiance of the early common era, from windswept downs and hills to rugged coasts and snow-cloaked mountains; from the spartan order of a Roman camp to the hellish confines of a torture chamber. Exemplars of this perfectly-presented atmosphere are Arthur's knights(Ioan Gruffud, Ray Winstone, Joel Edgerton, Mads Mikkelsen, Hugh Dancy and Ray Stevenson).These are not the chivalrous, couth, pious Christian knights your mum told you about, but rather a troop of barbaric, lecherous, pagan Sarmatian mercenaries. Together (with excellent performances all round, particularly by Winstone, Gruffud and Edgerton) they epitomise the pragmatic, godless, exquisitely human atmosphere of the period. As Gawaine tells a cowering Roman friar in an early scene - "Your God doesn't live here".

The lead actors, too, are outstanding, from Stellan Skarsgaard's sociopathic Cerdic, to the delicious Keira Knightley's dark and beautiful Guinevere. Only Clive Owen disappoints as Arthur himself, lacking the emotion this characterisation requires to supplement his steely resolve.

Despite the lukewarm reception to which it was subjected, KING ARTHUR is a finely crafted and memorable item of film-making. Forget all your preconceptions about King Arthur - just float with it, and let the rich atmosphere engulf you. 9/10.