King Arthur
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By Todd Karella
July 7, 2004
~A King by any other name~
King Arthur-Clive Owen
Guinevere-Keira Knightley
  When you hear the name King Arthur, images of valiant knights in shining armor, the wondrous magic of Merlin and the infamous love triangle between the King, Lady
Guinevere and Sir Lancelot fill your mind. 
   In this latest entry in the King Arthur mythology to hit the silver screen, there is nothing at all familiar other than their names.
   Arthur (Clive Owen) is not the young man who pulls free the magical sword Excalibur and becomes king of the Britons.  Instead, he is the Roman Soldier Artorius Castorus who is stationed at Rome's furthest outskirts to keep the barbarians at bay.
Lancelot-Ioan Gruffudd
  Sir Lancelot (Ioan Gruffudd) is one of Arthur's soldiers who has been taken from his home of Sarmatia as a young boy and forced into military service in order to fulfill his family promise.
    Guinevere (Keira Knightley) is a barbarian warrior who fights against the Romans to preserve her homeland from the invaders.
   Merlin (Stephen Dillane) is the leader of the barbarians, and is more medicine man than sorcerer.
   Even Excalibur is missing the magic from the legends. It's not the all-powerful sword that came from the Lady of the Lake and contributes to the fate of the new king.  It is simply the sword Arthur took from his father's burial mound as a child.
Merlin-Stephen Dillane
We're going to fight how many ??!!
A few minutes ago I had broken fingers? No Way!!
  The Roman Empire is in decline.  In order to try and save it, it's decided that the best thing to do is to abandon the furthermost outposts and bring the soldiers closer to Rome.
   Coincidentally, this happens at the same time that Arthur and his knights are scheduled to receive their papers discharging them from their military duties.
   Even though the men have done everything they've been asked, the Catholic church decides to send them on one last suicide mission.
   They need to ride North through the barbarian territory in order
to evacuate a noble family because the son is destined to become a bishop in the church.  To complicate matters, a large Saxon army is also invading from the North which they must avoid.
   Knowing that they can never return to their homeland if the mission is not accomplished, the men grudgingly decide to go.
   Along the way they discover that Merlin and the barbarians want Arthur to lead them against the invading horde of Saxons.
   Having just found that his faith in Rome was flawed and Guinevere being tortured by the nobles they were sent to rescue, Arthur decides to
stay and fight with his new-found countrymen.
   While most people will be turned off with this deviation from the legend they've heard all of their lives, others will find it a refreshing twist.
   The camaraderie between Arthur and his knights is something that has never been explored in previous films and makes Arthur a more well-rounded individual.
   The fighting scenes and battles are gritty and realistic, with the most impressive battle occurring on a frozen lake.
  It's not until the end of the film where it stumbles and falls prey to current movie clichés.
   During the final battle Arthur gives the rousing speech to his men on horseback reminiscent of Braveheart.  The leaders of both armies inevitably seek out one another and have a long drawn-out fight that results in the hero nearly being defeated only to triumph in the end.
   Even with the predictable ending, King Arthur is a film worth seeing.  Just don't go in with any expectations, because in this version only the names remain the same.