King Arthur: The Legend of the Sword

THE STORY of King Arthur has been adapted many times, be it in books, movies, TV series or theatre productions. Some were good, and some were pretty bad.

While this version is not as bad as King Arthur (2004), it is nowhere in the league of Excalibur (1981), or Camelot (1967).

As a filmmaker, Ritchie has a lot to prove after the dismal The Man From U.N.C.L.E. This movie is not going to help pad up his resume.

The story is essentially about how Arthur is raised by prostitutes in the back alleys of Londinium, after his father King Uther Pendragon (Eric Bana) and his mother are murdered by his uncle Vortigern (Law), who practises dark magic.

Years later, with Arthur all grown up and running his own little protection racket, Vortigern plans to find his long-lost nephew and put an end to the hope that the rightful heir to the throne is still alive.

Arthur ends up being forced, along with other men his age, to pull a sword from the stone.

He does pull out the sword, and before Vortigern can execute him, Arthur is rescued in time with the help of a mage (Astrid BergesFrisbey), and knights led by Sir Bedivere (Hounsou) who are still loyal to the late Uther.

At first, Arthur is not keen to be part of their rebellion, but circumstances soon force him to change his mind.

So he sets off to defeat his uncle and regain his place as the leader of his people.

Throw in some kung fu (there is a Chinese martial arts master called George who has his own fight school), scenes inspired by other movies (including Excalibur and the Lord of the Rings), football legend David Beckham playing a knight spouting lines in his whiny voice, and you essentially get this hodge-podge of a film.

With Hunnam strutting around saying lines like “why make enemies

when you can make friends”, this is not the classic tale that we are used to.

It works in parts, but as a whole, it lacks that magic that drew us to all the multitude of adaptations that sprout out around this mythical king.