King Arthur
Jul. 20th, 2004 10:23 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
erilynThe shoot today went better, though generally, still think those people couldn't organise a pissup in a brewery. Just got back from having dinner with K and seeing King Arthur.
Interesting concept, good cast, boring film. I spent the vast majority thinking "get on with it!". That, and "wow, Clive Owen looks a lot like Richard Burton at times". The pacing was just....way off. And there was some big staged shots that were supposed to be impressive or something but just had me snickering. Some of the camera work was really dodgy as well, especially the non-sexy sex scene, and the nauseating jerky carriage stuff.
I don't know enough about that period to get specifically nitpicky, which I suspect was a good thing, so I could mostly suspend disbelief. Well, somewhat suspend it. A bit. I also would have had slightly more respect for the film-makers if they'd gone with "we thought this would be a cool version of a possible origin story for the Arthurian legend" rather than "this is totally based on actual evidence, like, for real, man".
I liked the Lancelot/Arthur/Guinevere triangle (K thought they cut out some L/G stuff, I tried to point out the triangle was intact, and that she did have a motive for shagging Arthur - she was the bait in the honey trap to get him to stay). I liked that Arthur/Guinevere seemed to be a mostly political match, where she was also the personification of Britain, and he wedded her and the country. Worked far better than as an epic romance. Was she Merlin's daughter? Or have a psychic link with him that enabled her to arrange the meeting with Arthur? In fact, there were quite a few things that just didn't seem explained. Why were the Roman family living beyond the Wall anyway? Heh, when they were shoving their serfs around, I couldn't refrain from whispering to K, "Help help I'm being oppressed". And when Arthur proclaims that this is what Britain stands for, he's referring to what, exactly? Waving one's sword around? Marrying chicks twenty years younger than yourself?
Lancelot, too pretty to live. Don't you know you'll never survive if you happen to mention specific funeral arrangements to someone during the film? And Tristan, with your lovely random pinching of objects - never take on the bad guy that the main hero has claimed for himself, m'kay? The Knights were good, with lovely interaction, but not developed or used enough.
So yes, cute actors, slashiness, nice idea. But rather boring for all that.
Oh, and I saw the best magazine cover in Borders. Some American teen mag called Twist, and it was about celebs and plastic surgery, and it was "Has Justin had a nose job?" So close, I thought, and yet, so far *g*.
Interesting concept, good cast, boring film. I spent the vast majority thinking "get on with it!". That, and "wow, Clive Owen looks a lot like Richard Burton at times". The pacing was just....way off. And there was some big staged shots that were supposed to be impressive or something but just had me snickering. Some of the camera work was really dodgy as well, especially the non-sexy sex scene, and the nauseating jerky carriage stuff.
I don't know enough about that period to get specifically nitpicky, which I suspect was a good thing, so I could mostly suspend disbelief. Well, somewhat suspend it. A bit. I also would have had slightly more respect for the film-makers if they'd gone with "we thought this would be a cool version of a possible origin story for the Arthurian legend" rather than "this is totally based on actual evidence, like, for real, man".
I liked the Lancelot/Arthur/Guinevere triangle (K thought they cut out some L/G stuff, I tried to point out the triangle was intact, and that she did have a motive for shagging Arthur - she was the bait in the honey trap to get him to stay). I liked that Arthur/Guinevere seemed to be a mostly political match, where she was also the personification of Britain, and he wedded her and the country. Worked far better than as an epic romance. Was she Merlin's daughter? Or have a psychic link with him that enabled her to arrange the meeting with Arthur? In fact, there were quite a few things that just didn't seem explained. Why were the Roman family living beyond the Wall anyway? Heh, when they were shoving their serfs around, I couldn't refrain from whispering to K, "Help help I'm being oppressed". And when Arthur proclaims that this is what Britain stands for, he's referring to what, exactly? Waving one's sword around? Marrying chicks twenty years younger than yourself?
Lancelot, too pretty to live. Don't you know you'll never survive if you happen to mention specific funeral arrangements to someone during the film? And Tristan, with your lovely random pinching of objects - never take on the bad guy that the main hero has claimed for himself, m'kay? The Knights were good, with lovely interaction, but not developed or used enough.
So yes, cute actors, slashiness, nice idea. But rather boring for all that.
Oh, and I saw the best magazine cover in Borders. Some American teen mag called Twist, and it was about celebs and plastic surgery, and it was "Has Justin had a nose job?" So close, I thought, and yet, so far *g*.
no subject
Date: 2004-07-20 12:29 pm (UTC)Icon is Lance and his old nose :)
no subject
Date: 2004-07-20 12:33 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-07-20 12:35 pm (UTC)boyfriend'spersonal assistant's ears pinned back.