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King Arthur

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King Arthur (2004)

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Reviews Counted:180

Fresh:56

Rotten:124

Average Rating:4.9/10

Consensus: The magic is gone, leaving a dreary, generic action movie.

Rated: PG-13 [See Full Rating] for intense battle sequences, a scene of sensuality and some language

Runtime: 2 hrs 19 mins

Genre: Action/Adventure

Theatrical Release:Jul 7, 2004 Wide

Box Office: $51,726,421

Synopsis: From producer Jerry Bruckheimer ('Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl,' 'Black Hawk Down') and director Antoine Fuqua ('Training Day') comes Touchstone Pictures' / Jerry... From producer Jerry Bruckheimer ('Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl,' 'Black Hawk Down') and director Antoine Fuqua ('Training Day') comes Touchstone Pictures' / Jerry Bruckheimer Films' 'King Arthur,' a spectacular, epic tale of one man's destiny to become a king. 'Let me sing with inspiration Of the man born of two nations, Of Rome and of Britain... ... Arthur the blessed Led his assault from the Great Wall...' by the 6th century Welsh poet, Taliesin For centuries most historians believed that King Arthur was only a legend, but that legend was based on a real hero whose actions changed the face of Britain and the world forever. Clive Owen, is 'Artorius' or Arthur, the hero of Roman and British parentage eulogized in the ancient Celtic poem. Like his loyal Knights, he sees only chaos and devastation will follow Rome's final pullout of Britain. Although, as a dedicated Christian he is desperate to return to Rome to influence the budding religion, his first loyalty is to his pagan Knights. Arthur sees his duty is to free them from their servitude to Rome so they may return to their ancestral homeland in Sarmatia. However, before he can, he must lead his Knights of the Round Table on one last mission, deep into enemy territory on a quest of adventure and profound enlightenment. Here, Arthur, Lancelot, Galahad, Bors, Tristan, Dagonet and Gawain are forced to confront their traditional enemy: Merlin and his indigenous guerilla armies. Disdainfully called 'Woads' by the Knights for the Woad plant they use to dye their bodies, Arthur and his Knights will see these guerillas are the soul of Britain, devastated by generations of Roman rule. Now, with Rome gone, and without the help of Arthur and his knights, the invading Saxons will roll over the people like an avalanche. Under the guidance of the shaman, Merlin and the beautiful, courageous Guinevere (Keira Knightley), Arthur will struggle to find the strength to fors ke his dreams of Rome to 'become a leader in this land,' and to change the face of history. Thrilling adventure, edge-of-your-seat action and historical grandeur come together in this unique look at the origins of one of the greatest legends ever told. [More]

Starring: Clive Owen, Stellan Skarsgard, Keira Knightley, Ioan Gruffudd

Starring: Clive Owen, Stellan Skarsgard, Keira Knightley, Ioan Gruffudd, Hugh Dancy, Stephen Dillane, Ray Winstone, Til Schweiger, Joel Edgerton, Mads Mikkelsen, Ray Stevenson, Sean Gilder, Ivano Marescotti, Ken Stott

Director: Antoine Fuqua

Director: Antoine Fuqua
Screenwriter: David H. Franzoni
Producer: Jerry Bruckheimer
Composer: Hans Zimmer
Studio: Touchstone Pictures

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Release:

Dec 21, 2004

[DVD Details]
 
 
  • King Arthur
  • The producer of PEARL HARBOR and the director of TRAINING DAY deliver an immensely thrilling adventure epic that tells the heroic true story behind one of history's greatest legends! It is the valiant tale of Arthur (Clive Owen) and his bond of brotherhood with Lancelot (Ioan Gruffudd) and the loyalty of the Knights Of The Round Table as they fight for freedom and those they love. Also starring Keira Knightley, this spectacular motion picture fuses historical grandeur with edge-of-your-seat action and bestows must-see entertainment!
  • Source: Buena Vista Home Entertainment.
  •  
     
     
     

    Reviews for King Arthur

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    81 - 100 (sorted by date)
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    If King Arthur is as magnificently ridiculous as any Bruckheimer picture, its thuggish charms, which owe as much to Monty Python as to Sam Peckinpah, more than pick up the slack.

    Full Review Source: L.A. Weekly | comment Comment
    07/08/04
    Ella Taylor
    Ella Taylor
    L.A. Weekly

    Though King Arthur is set in ancient times, there's not much difference between this movie and Fuqua's recent film Tears of the Sun.

    Full Review Source: Arizona Republic | comment Comment
    07/08/04
    Bill Muller
    Bill Muller
    Arizona Republic
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    Gives us a Round Table and a flashing Excalibur but no magic, no mystery, no mythic resonance.

    Full Review Source: Christian Science Monitor | comment Comment
    07/08/04
    David Sterritt
    David Sterritt
    Christian Science Monitor

    Who cares about the toying of a sacred legend? This film works on it’s own merits.

    Full Review Source: FilmsInReview.com | comment Comment
    07/08/04
    Victoria Alexander
    Victoria Alexander
    FilmsInReview.com

    The potential of a political bent to this tale is realized nicely, and the film metes out proportions of angst against action with greater care than Spider-Man 2.

    Full Review Source: State Journal-Register (Springfield, IL) | comment Comment
    07/08/04
    Nick Rogers
    Nick Rogers
    State Journal-Register (Springfield, IL)

    ...has complications everywhere but where it counts: in the depiction of its title character.

    Full Review Source: Sun Publications (Chicago, IL) | comment Comment
    07/08/04
    Josh Larsen
    Josh Larsen
    Sun Publications (Chicago, IL)

    It’s rare that a movie can show you something familiar as if with new eyes...

    Full Review Source: Worcester Telegram & Gazette | comment Comment
    07/08/04
    Daniel M. Kimmel
    Daniel M. Kimmel
    Worcester Telegram & Gazette
    N/R

    Click to read the article

    Full Review Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch | comment Comment
    07/08/04
    St. Louis Post-Dispatch

    ...a passable excursion through the Dark Ages.

    Full Review Source: JoBlo's Movie Emporium | comment Comment
    07/08/04
    JoBlo
    JoBlo
    JoBlo's Movie Emporium

    Great fun to watch even though it's completely preposterous.

    Full Review Source: Shadows on the Wall | comment Comment
    07/08/04
    Rich Cline
    Rich Cline
    Shadows on the Wall

    The movie's midsection feels strangely truncated, making room for a drawn-out final act that blithely disregards one of Peter Jackson's tenets: Battlefield sequences get pretty boring if you don't keep cutting away to smaller, character-driven passages.

    Full Review Source: Orlando Weekly | comment Comment
    07/08/04
    Steve Schneider
    Steve Schneider
    Orlando Weekly

    Guinevere spends so much time as a lass who kicks *** that I’m not sure where she finds the energy to work her girlie charm on Arthur.

    Full Review Source: Des Moines Register | comment Comment
    07/08/04
    Jeffrey Bruner
    Jeffrey Bruner
    Des Moines Register

    The only way to derive any enjoyment from King Arthur is to bear in mind it's more of a Jerry Bruckheimerian tale than an Arthurian one.

    Full Review Source: Hollywood.com | comment Comment
    07/08/04
    Guylaine Cadorette
    Guylaine Cadorette
    Hollywood.com

    Beyond the incomprehensible battles, one might find a thoughtful deglamorization of the legend; a gritty, tough movie that shows a surprising willingness to traffic in ideas.

    Full Review Source: Film Blather | comment Comment
    07/07/04
    Eugene Novikov
    Eugene Novikov
    Film Blather

    Makes an argument against religious absolutism, against the prideful righteousness that was part of Christianity at the time...and, implicitly, of modern-day Christianity.

    Full Review Source: Mixed Reviews | comment Comment
    07/07/04
    Gabriel Shanks
    Gabriel Shanks
    Mixed Reviews

    A line from The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, goes, “When the legend becomes fact, print the legend.” And while King Arthur may be closer to fact, I prefer the legend.

    Full Review Source: Journal and Courier (Lafayette, IN) | comment Comment
    07/07/04
    Bob Bloom
    Bob Bloom
    Journal and Courier (Lafayette, IN)

    populated by characters who are frequently spattered with mud or caked in grime... Rarely have the Dark Ages seemed quite so dark.

    Full Review Source: Kalamazoo Gazette | comment Comment
    07/07/04
    James Sanford
    James Sanford
    Kalamazoo Gazette

    An ordinary B-film action story.

    Full Review Source: Ozus' World Movie Reviews | comment Comment
    07/07/04
    Dennis Schwartz
    Dennis Schwartz
    Ozus' World Movie Reviews

    King Artless.

    Full Review Source: New Times | comment Comment
    07/07/04
    Gregory Weinkauf
    Gregory Weinkauf
    New Times

    It's a solid, somber, rousing piece of studio zirconium: cobbled together from Gladiator, Braveheart, Lord of the Rings, The Magnificent Seven, and five tons of Hollywood hooey.

    Full Review Source: Boston Globe | comment Comment
    07/07/04
    Ty Burr
    Ty Burr
    Boston Globe
     
     
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