Excalibur (1981)

Justy · January 17, 2008, 09:05:04 AM

I would to offer up John Boormans Excalibur as a good movie. I'd like to hear what others thought of it. It is one of my favorites of all time. And OK... OK... the armor used was completely wrong for the period, this is true. And yes, the story is a mish-mash of various myths while centered around La Morte D'Arthur. However, in spite of those two common criticisms the movie truly captured the feel of Arthurian high fantasy.

The story was good, the acting was excellent and the score well... where would "O Fortuna" be without it.

ER · January 17, 2008, 12:48:31 PM

Yep, the armor is all wrong, etc. but despite the anachronisms I love this movie. Wagner's music fits it so well, it has perfect casting, wonderfully atmospheric scenes, and one of humankind's great stories told in such an over-the-top way it somehow can't fail to succeed. And filming in the lush green Irish countryside, well, that, too, is a joy to behold.

I used to watch this movie with my dad when I was little and he had a copy on VHS. (Do you know movies on VHS in the early '80's could run literally a hundred bucks, easy????) Mysteriously----as I figured out years later---Dad would somehow invent these excuses to get me out of the room so he could fast forward past the parts I wasn't supposed to see. I used to think it was just an odd coincidence he'd get thirsty just about the time Merlin turned the Duke of Cornwall into Uther Pendragon, and he'd ask me to pretty please go get him a drink from the kitchen.

Ah, childhood memories in the harsh light of later reasoning. ;-)

Neville · January 18, 2008, 06:56:11 AM

I re-watched it a while ago. Loved the visuals, but I think the movie goes too fast for us to really care about any character. It does get better after the knights go to their quest of the grail, though, that and the ending are nothing short of fantastic.

Rev. Powell · January 18, 2008, 12:20:25 PM

I loved it, although I confess I haven't seen it since soon after its release. Still, a lot of the bloody images have stayed with me, particularly Mordred in his golden mask roaming a forest of hanged knights. And Nicol Williamson's performance as Merlin. How many movies stick so clearly in the mind 20 years later?

indianasmith · January 18, 2008, 07:24:46 PM

I watched this one in high school. It sticks closer to the core of the Arthurian legend than any film I have seen. That being said, when I re-watched it years later I found the acting to be incredibly flat. Still, it was an ambitious topic for a movie. I own a DVD copy but I haven't watched the whole thing in ages.

Justy · January 23, 2008, 12:55:19 PM

Quote from: EMMR on January 17, 2008, 12:48:31 PM
Yep, the armor is all wrong, etc. but despite the anachronisms I love this movie. Wagner's music fits it so well, it has perfect casting, wonderfully atmospheric scenes, and one of humankind's great stories told in such an over-the-top way it somehow can't fail to succeed. And filming in the lush green Irish countryside, well, that, too, is a joy to behold.

Agreed. The scenery was another of my favorite parts. I love it when Arthur was at the Standing Stones and he woke Merlin back up.

Quote
I used to watch this movie with my dad when I was little and he had a copy on VHS. (Do you know movies on VHS in the early '80's could run literally a hundred bucks, easy????) Mysteriously----as I figured out years later---Dad would somehow invent these excuses to get me out of the room so he could fast forward past the parts I wasn't supposed to see. I used to think it was just an odd coincidence he'd get thirsty just about the time Merlin turned the Duke of Cornwall into Uther Pendragon, and he'd ask me to pretty please go get him a drink from the kitchen.

Ah, childhood memories in the harsh light of later reasoning. ;-)

LOL... I was lucky enough to be allowed to hang around. Its funny what is taboo by yesterday's standards is completely tame today. Just one trip through Google Images is enough to give a sex education class.

Quote from: Neville on January 18, 2008, 06:56:11 AM
I re-watched it a while ago. Loved the visuals, but I think the movie goes too fast for us to really care about any character. It does get better after the knights go to their quest of the grail, though, that and the ending are nothing short of fantastic.

Well the main character is Arthur. You see his rise and fall. All the other characters are supporting roles for Arthur. I have to disagree on the speed of the story, but I respect your opinion. Personally I would have loved it to be longer to allow more spotlight on the other characters and story. Yet, for what we got I thought the pace was OK.

Quote from: Rev. Powell on January 18, 2008, 12:20:25 PM
I loved it, although I confess I haven't seen it since soon after its release. Still, a lot of the bloody images have stayed with me, particularly Mordred in his golden mask roaming a forest of hanged knights. And Nicol Williamson's performance as Merlin. How many movies stick so clearly in the mind 20 years later?

Another good point. I think the reason for that is that Excalibur came out at time when fantasy was popular but much of what was released was subpar or an honest B-movie. It was the big fish in the small pond, therefore the images really imprinted on the memory.

Quote from: indianasmith on January 18, 2008, 07:24:46 PM
I watched this one in high school. It sticks closer to the core of the Arthurian legend than any film I have seen. That being said, when I re-watched it years later I found the acting to be incredibly flat. Still, it was an ambitious topic for a movie. I own a DVD copy but I haven't watched the whole thing in ages.

Hmm... I have to diagree on the acting. But like anything else the effect of acting is relative to the viewer. The acting was meant to be that proper style. Nothing too over the top, save the emotion for the points in the movie where the sudden impact of emotion really stands out.

threnody · January 23, 2008, 06:03:33 PM

I've never heard of this, but I'm going to check it out sometime. I love anything anything related to Arthurian legends.

Justy · January 23, 2008, 07:30:58 PM

Quote from: threnody on January 23, 2008, 06:03:33 PM
I've never heard of this, but I'm going to check it out sometime. I love anything anything related to Arthurian legends.

Oh yeah, definitely check it out. You'll see some familiar faces. If you like the Aurthian stuff you'll enjoy the movie.

Shadow · January 23, 2008, 10:54:17 PM

Back in the 80's a rented this on VHS and then made myself a copy by using two VCR's. I watched that tape so many times, it eventually wore out. I love this flick. The use of Carl Orff's "O Fortuna" is absolutely perfect. I need to dig out the DVD and watch it again, as it has been a while.

CheezeFlixz · January 24, 2008, 01:31:46 AM

I haven't seen this flick in over 20+ years, I'll have to watch it again. As I remember it, it was quite good.

Rev. Powell · January 27, 2008, 03:47:50 PM

I just watched this again (unfortunately in a VHS pan-and-scan version--why did they ever make those things?) It was as good as I remembered. I think at the time it was released the gory violence and sex seemed a little to vulgar and "b-movieish" for a grand literary epic, but now it goes down just fine.

Of course it's not ture to the source material, but what's that old saying? "Adaptations are like women. The beautiful ones aren't faithful, and the faithful ones aren't beautiful"?

Justy · January 27, 2008, 05:51:36 PM

Quote from: Rev. Powell on January 27, 2008, 03:47:50 PM

Of course it's not ture to the source material, but what's that old saying? "Adaptations are like women. The beautiful ones aren't faithful, and the faithful ones aren't beautiful"?

Yeah, this is true. I'm normally somebody who gets annoyed when too many deviations are made from the source material, but I first saw it before I so refined (err... stubborn and crotchety, perhaps). So I can excuse the artistic license.