KING ARTHUR: LEGEND OF THE SWORD (MA15+)
Director: Guy Ritchie ( Sherlock Holmes) Starring: Charlie Hunnam, Jude Law, Djimon Hounsou, Eric Bana, Astrid Bergès-Frisbey, Rating:
JUST as it is apparent what the unorthodox action-fantasy blockbuster King Arthur: Legend
of the Sword might have been, there can be no mistaking what it truly is. And that is a mess. This is not to say Legend of the Sword is unwatchable in any way. The movie can be very enjoyable, even exciting, at times.
Director Guy Ritchie is out to remix the Arthurian legend with the same anarchic, anything-goes verve he applied so successfully to Robert Downey Jr’s Sherlock Holmes output.
So when the movie is simply tracking a young, hungry and hard-up Arthur (Charlie Hunnam) kicking back with the lads in his gang, the knockabout charm of it all is hard to resist.
However, when it’s time for some computergenerated spectacle to fuel the mythic mayhem that will help Arthur conquer Camelot, Legend
of the Sword forgets how to be fun for a while. The push-pull effect gets quite annoying, as Ritchie was on to something here and the obligations that come with filling out a mammoth $200 million production have pulled him way off-course.
Old-school purists who prefer their Arthurian adventures to stick to the traditional playbook might want to stay away, lest they be infuriated by all the liberties taken.
Merlin, the magnificent wizard of yore, is nowhere to be seen. Ditto the Round Table or, for that matter, most other familiar threads from previous spinnings of the yarn.
This Arthur might well one day be king — his birthright is established in a hokey prologue — but for now, his palatial home is the seedy London brothel where he was raised.
As for a noble calling, let’s just say Arthur is a bit slow on the uptake. He’s the head of a gregarious gang of petty hustlers. This being a Guy Ritchie film, known associates of our hero include surly, burly blokes with names like Goosefat Bill, Mike the Spike and, umm, Kung Fu George.
When we finally get to the all-important bit where Arthur pulls the fabled Excalibur from its stony placeholder — guarded by former soccer star David Beckham, of all people — everything goes a bit Game of Thrones- y. And not in a good way.
The chief villain of the production is Vortigern (Jude Law), a triple threat of treachery in that he is Art’s uncle, the unrightful holder of the crown, and an unabashed guyliner enthusiast.
Word has it Legend of the Sword is supposed to be the first instalment in a planned six-flick saga which could end up costing a billion to complete.
If indeed so, this ain’t exactly an ideal start, possibly leaving Guy Ritchie in more trouble than that time he married Madonna.