Our Roundtable this week is literally about the Round Table. At least, it’s about movies set in the medieval era in which the myth of King Arthur was spawned.
We’ll take a broad brush in defining movies that qualify as medieval. Basically, any story set in the Middle Ages period from roughly the 5th Century to 15th Century A.D. will do. However, I want to specify that the movie must take place on our Earth, not some fantasy kingdom like Lord of the Rings or Game of Thrones.
Jason Gorber
Well, clearly it’s Monty Python and the Holy Grail. I mean, do I even need to argue, or can we just agree that a duck’s a duck, and small rocks also float?
Deirdre Crimmins
My favorite film set during medieval times (outside of Bryan Adams’ video for “(Everything I Do) I Do It for You”) is The Virgin Spring. Ingmar Bergman’s classic rape-revenge film laid the framework for nearly every other film within that horror genre, without necessarily setting out to be a horror movie. In fact, Wes Craven’s first non-porn film, The Last House on the Left, was a direct adaptation of Bergman’s plot. Even without the historical significance, The Virgin Spring is a great film. It’s slow and atmospheric at first, but then devolves into a rumination on brutality and vengeance. It has a meanness that makes you appreciate how nice most movies tend to be. Given Craven’s translation into a contemporary setting, the plot itself needn’t be set in the medieval era, but that setting does add to the film’s greater sense of innocence lost.
David Krauss
Forget King Arthur and his Round Table. I’ll take King Henry II, his deliciously devious wife Eleanor of Aquitaine, and their three backstabbing, neurotic sons any day of the week. The Lion in Winter may be grounded in history and take place in 1183 at the French castle of a bombastic English king, but it’s really a timeless tale of family dynamics. Peter O’Toole and Katharine Hepburn (in an Oscar-winning portrayal) bicker, spar, flirt, twist the knife, and let their hair down in this bitingly funny and wonderfully literate portrait of palace intrigue. Both O’Toole and Hepburn relish every razor-sharp retort, and their terrific chemistry – as well as the priceless script – drives director Anthony Harvey’s underrated film, which also includes fine performances from Anthony Hopkins and Timothy Dalton.
Brian Hoss
I’m an avowed devotee of Excalibur, and I think it’s the standard by which just about anything involving the Arthurian legend should be judged. However, to offer up another choice, I’ve always found the Robert Zemeckis-directed Beowulf from 2007 gripping. The mo-cap animation is excellent if flawed, and I find the cast’s serious plodding through the rise and fall of the title character to be so compelling that I’m immediately drawn in if I catch it at any point on cable. The movie was great in 3D in theaters (admittedly with plenty of gimmick shots), and it has been great on Blu-ray for ten years now.
Josh Zyber
The film snob in me wants to say The Seventh Seal, but I haven’t watched it in ages and I think Deirdre has Bergman covered for this topic. (Not to suggest that Deirdre’s a film snob!) Instead, I’ll go with lighter fare and admit to really enjoying A Knight’s Tale. The Brian Helgeland comedy is completely frivolous, lightweight entertainment that mutilates history for a laugh and throws out a constant stream of amusing anachronisms. It’s also very witty, breezy fun, and proved that the late Heath Ledger was more than a pretty face and teen heartthrob. He had charisma to spare. I’ve watched this movie a bunch of times and never tire of it.
Your Turn
What are your favorite sword-and-armor movies? Tell us in the Comments.
Csm101
The first one that comes to mind is Kingdom of Heaven Director’s Cut. I actually liked Guy Ritchie’s King Arthur movie from a couple of years ago as well.
njscorpio
Does ‘Army of Darkness’ count? Because I’ll go with that one.
Josh Zyber
AuthorGroovy. 🙂
Trond Michelsen
I’m cheating a bit and nominating a the TV movie “Ivanhoe”, with James Mason, Anthony Andrews and Sam Neill.
photogdave
Almost 700 years before Gil Grissom we had William of Baskerville, the crime-solving friar in The Name of the Rose.
I just picked up The Lion in Winter and am looking forward to re-watching it in wide screen for the first time this weekend!
Judas Cradle
Vincent Ward’s fantastic THE NAVIGATOR just made its debut on Blu ray from Arrow. Set in Medieval times during the plague – and it’s also a time travel story! A great film.
I’d be remiss to not mention another one of the most visually captivating medieval films – MARKETA LAZAROVÁ.
It is literally “you-are-there” cinema. (Available On Criterion Collection).
njscorpio
I picked up the Criterion blu-ray of MARKETA LAZAROVÁ, but have yet to watch it…if I binge watched all of the Criterion movies I own but haven’t seen, that would be an insanely good cinematic weekend.
Erik in Wisconsin
There is no right or wrong to any preference here. It’s like wine … we know what we like and we don’t have to justify it to anyone. A lot of my favorites already are listed. I’m a huge fan of the Merlin and Arthurian legend. In fact, I’m rereading Mary Stewart’s classic series right now. However, about a year ago, I bought Excalibur on Blu Ray, and it was all I could do to watch it to the end. I gave it away at my department Christmas party this year as a white elephant gift. I do like the semi-animated Beowulf movie from 2007. I’ve watched it many times and will continue to do so. But, for me, the 2005 live action Beowulf and Grendel with Gerard Butler and Stellan Skarsgaard is the one to see. And there certainly are others that could be mentioned (e.g., Black Death). Bottom line though – the one that remains at the top of my list is The Name of the Rose.
Dave
Clive Owens’ King Arthur is an underrated medieval classic in my book; great score, action and ensemble cast.