Excalibur (film)
Excalibur is a 1981 epic medieval fantasy film directed, co-written and produced by John Boorman, that retells the legend of King Arthur and the knights of the Round Table, based loosely on the 15th-century Arthurian romance Le Morte d'Arthur by Thomas Malory. It stars Nigel Terry as Arthur, Nicol Williamson as Merlin, Nicholas Clay as Lancelot, Cherie Lunghi as Guenevere, Helen Mirren as Morgana, Liam Neeson as Gawain, Gabriel Byrne as Uther and Patrick Stewart as Leondegrance. The film is named after the legendary sword of King Arthur that features prominently in Arthurian literature. The film's soundtrack features the music of Richard Wagner[8] and Carl Orff,[9] along with an original score by Trevor Jones.
Excalibur
- Rospo Pallenberg
- John Boorman
John Boorman
John Merritt
Donn Cambern (uncredited)
Cinema ‘84
- 10 April 1981
141 minutes[1]
English
$11 million[6]
$35 million[7]
Boorman's Excalibur began development as an unproduced adaptation of The Lord of the Rings.[10] The film was shot entirely on location in Ireland and at Ardmore Studios, employing Irish actors and crew. It has been acknowledged for its importance to the Irish filmmaking industry and for helping launch the film and acting careers of a number of Irish and British actors, including Liam Neeson, Patrick Stewart, Gabriel Byrne and Ciarán Hinds.[6]
Film critics Roger Ebert and Vincent Canby criticised the film's plot and characters,[11][12] although they and other reviewers[13] praised its visual style. Excalibur opened at number one in the United States, eventually grossing $34,967,437 on a budget of around US$11 million to rank 18th in that year's receipts.[7] It won the award for Best Artistic Contribution at the 1981 Cannes Film Festival,[14] and received an Oscar nomination for Best Cinematography and a BAFTA nomination for Best Costume Design.
Plot[edit]
In the Dark Ages, the sorcerer Merlin retrieves the magical sword Excalibur from the Lady of the Lake for Uther Pendragon. Merlin also agrees to help Uther seduce Igrayne, the Duke of Cornwall's wife, in exchange for “what issues from your lust". With Merlin's magic, Uther tricks Igrayne into sleeping with him while the Duke dies in battle. Her daughter Morgana, however, sees through Uther's illusion. Uther takes Igrayne as his wife and months later, Igrayne gives birth to Arthur, and Merlin comes for the boy. Furious, Uther chases after Merlin, but is ambushed by the Duke's surviving men. Before dying, Uther thrusts Excalibur into a stone. Merlin declares that he who pulls the sword from the stone shall be king.
Merlin entrusts Ector to raise the infant Arthur, whom he treats as his own son. Ector's son, Kay, grows up with Arthur as his brother, and Arthur becomes his squire when Kay becomes a knight. Years later, Arthur pulls Excalibur from the stone, proving he is Uther's son, the rightful ruler. Leodegrance witnesses this and immediately pledges his allegiance to Arthur.
The knights who oppose Arthur's kingship due to him being a bastard (under medieval law, children born as the fruit of an adulterous union were still bastards even if Uther married Igrayne before Arthur's birth), subsequently attempt to storm the castle of Arthur's ally, Leondegrance. Arthur's bravery and prowess at combat earn him the trust of Uryens, whom he defeats in battle. Arthur makes Uryens knight him and swear fealty to him. During this time, Arthur also meets Leondegrace's daughter, Guinevere and is smitten by her. Merlin warns Arthur that Guinevere will one day fall in love with someone else but Arthur ignores this.
Later, the undefeated knight Lancelot blocks a bridge, seeking a king worthy of his sword. He defeats the king's knights and is challenged by Arthur to a fight. Lancelot almost bests Arthur, but Arthur calls upon the power of Excalibur to defeat Lancelot as they fight in a lake. This breaks Excalibur and Arthur admits that he was wrong for doing this. The Lady of the Lake fixes the sword and hands it back to Arthur. Arthur is victorious, and Lancelot swears allegiance to him. Guinevere and Lancelot become immediately infatuated with each other upon meeting. Arthur and his knights unify the land. Arthur creates the Round Table, and commissions the building of his castle Camelot. On Arthur and Guinevere's wedding day, Lancelot tells Guinevere that he loves her but his loyalty to Arthur means that he can not pursue her romantically. While attending the wedding, Arthur's half-sister Morgana reveals to Merlin that she is a sorceress and becomes apprenticed to him.
Influenced by Morgana's magic, Gawain accuses Guinevere of treachery and a duel over her innocence is set. While Arthur is judge of the trial, Lancelot fights for her honour and wins. Guinevere is moved by this and the two make love. Arthur finds out about it and spitefully thrusts Excalibur into the ground between them. Merlin's magical link to the land impales him on the sword, and Morgana seizes the opportunity to trap him and steal his secret Charm of Making. Taking the form of Guinevere, she has sex with the unknowing Arthur and is impregnated by him.
Morgana later gives birth to a son, Mordred, whose incestuous origin strikes the land with famine and sickness. Struck by a magical bolt of lightning, Arthur is reduced to a weakened state. He sends his knights on a quest for the Holy Grail, hoping to restore the land and himself. While searching, many knights die or are bewitched by Morgana into entering her service. After reaching adulthood, Mordred demands Arthur's crown, to no avail. Before rebuking Arthur's attempt to recognise him as his son, Mordred vows to return with an army and take Camelot by force.
Perceval resists Morgana's attacks and soon becomes the final remaining knight questing for the Grail. Along the way, he nearly drowns and is transported to where the Grail is kept. He proves worthy, gains the Grail and takes it back to Arthur, who drinks from it and is revitalised, along with the land. Arthur calls upon his step-brother Kay to rally his remaining forces to battle Mordred and Morgana.
Arthur finds Guinevere at a convent, and they reconcile. She gives him back Excalibur, which she had kept, and he rides off with his men. At Stonehenge, Arthur falls asleep, and his love liberates Merlin from Morgana's magical prison. After a final conversation with Arthur, Merlin appears to Morgana and tricks her into speaking the Charm of Making. This exhausts her magical powers and summons a mist that envelops her camp and the battlefield. Mordred discovers her aged, true self and murders her in disgust.
Arthur and his men wage war on Mordred's forces, using the mist in their favour. During the battle, Lancelot arrives, reconciles with Arthur and dies fighting. Arthur manages to kill Mordred, but the fight leaves him mortally wounded. While dying, he commands Perceval, the only other survivor, to throw Excalibur into a lake, knowing that one day the sword will rise again when a worthy king comes to power. Perceval complies, and the Lady of the Lake catches the sword, dragging it into the depths. Perceval returns to the battlefield in time to glimpse Arthur being carried away on a ship, sailing towards his rest on Avalon.
Release[edit]
When first released in the United Kingdom in 1981, the film ran to 140m 30s, and was classified as a "AA" by the BBFC, restricting it to those aged 14 and over.[1] In 1982, the BBFC replaced the "AA" certificate with the higher age-specific "15", which was also applied to Excalibur when released on home video.[25] The 140-minute version was initially released in the United States with an R rating. Distributors later announced a 119m PG-rated version, with less graphic sex and violence, but it was not widely released. When Excalibur first premiered on HBO in 1982, the R-rated version was shown in the evening and the PG-rated version was shown during the daytime, following the then-current rule of HBO only showing R-rated films during the evening hours.