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It's a shame more people haven't seen this movie. It's one of my favorite medieval action / dramas.
Rutger Hauer plays Martin, a tough warrior who leads a band of mercenaries as they seek revenge on a king who double crossed them. Jennifer Jason Leigh plays a princess who is betrothed to the king's son, but finds herself torn between the prince and Martin.
The DVD is an unrated version running 2 hours and 8 minutes and has enough action, blood, nudity, sex, banqueting, bubonic plague, intrigue, and medieval filth and grit to satisfy just about any fan of the genre. If you haven't seen it, put it on your list. (One odd casting choice was Bruno Kirby. He doesn't have a lot of dialogue, but his New York accent sneaks through every now and then).
Directed by Paul Verhoeven before he made ROBOCOP. And exploitation fans will be pleased to see Brion James in a supporting role.
This is an underrated flick. I'm so glad when they released this uncut on dvd in addition to widescreen format.
It'a a good movie and well worth viewing by any film buff or film buff wannabe, but not exactly a great film. As it happens sometimes with Paul Verhoeven, I think the film ends up falling under ther weight of its own excess.
Still, I love the first half, until Jennifer Jason Leigh's character ends up in the clutches of Hauer's, but when the film reaches that point it becomes too offensive and exploitative to my taste.
I'd rather stick to his sci-fi stuff, really.
Enjoyed FLESH AND BLOOD also Burgomaster.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lW_InCG4JKc&feature=related