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Excalibur
Arthur fulfills his fate by bringing together the Knights of the Round Table at Camelot and unifying the country. However, this flawed monarch faces greater tests ahead in pursuit of love, the Holy Grail, and his nation's survival.
1981 · Directed by John Boorman · 141 min · Adventure · Fantasy · Screenplay in the scene database · 18 frames
Tagline
Forged by a god. Foretold by a wizard. Found by a king.
Plot
In the Dark Ages, the sorcerer Merlin retrieves the magical sword Excalibur from the Lady of the Lake for Uther Pendragon, who is declared king. In exchange for their future child, Merlin uses his Charm of Making to help Uther seduce Igrayne, the Duke of Cornwall's wife. When the Duke dies in battle and Igrayne gives birth to Arthur, Merlin takes the boy. Ambushed by the Duke's men, a mortally-wounded 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 Arthur, who becomes squire to Ector's son Kay. An annual jousting tournament gives the winner the right to try pulling the sword from the stone, though none have been able to do so. When Arthur loses Kay's sword and is desperate to find a replacement, he effortlessly pulls the sword from the stone, proving he is Uther's rightful heir. Leodegrance pledges his allegiance to Arthur, but they are opposed by knights who dispute Arthur's kingship as a bastard. Defending Leodegrance's castle and his daughter Guenevere, Arthur defeats Uryens and compels him to swear allegiance. Smitten with Guenevere, Arthur ignores Merlin's warning that she'll fall in love with someone else.
Years later, the undefeated knight Lancelot has blocked a bridge and defeats each of Arthur's knights as they try to cross. Arthur himself is nearly defeated before unethically calling on the power of Excalibur to unfairly defeat Lancelot, breaking the indestructible blade in half across the armored heart of the impeccable warrior and plunging Lancelot to the ground as if dead. The Lady of the Lake restores the sword to a remorseful Arthur, and Lancelot swears allegiance to him. Unifying the land, Arthur and his knights create the Round Table and the castle Camelot. Secretly infatuated with each other, Lancelot escorts Guenevere to her wedding to Arthur, declaring that his loyalty to the king outweighs his love for her. Arthur's half-sister Morgana, the daughter of the Duke of Cornwall, reveals to Merlin that she is a sorceress, and Lancelot brings Perceval, who hopes to become a knight, to Camelot.
Plot summary from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA.
Crew
- Screenplay: John Boorman, Rospo Pallenberg
- Cinematography: Alex Thomson
- Edited by: John Merritt, Donn Cambern
- Music: Trevor Jones
- Production design: Anthony Pratt
- Produced by: John Boorman
Cast
- Nigel Terry as King Arthur
- Nicol Williamson as Merlin
- Helen Mirren as Morgana
- Nicholas Clay as Lancelot
- Paul Geoffrey as Perceval
- Cherie Lunghi as Guenevere
- Robert Addie as Mordred
- Gabriel Byrne as Uther
- Keith Buckley as Uryens
- Katrine Boorman as Igrayne
Production
- Country: United Kingdom, United States of America
- Language: English
- Studios: Orion Pictures, Cinema 84
- Budget: $11,000,000
- Box office: $35,000,000
- Themes: witch, adultery, holy grail, love triangle, england, magic, prophecy, fog, mythology, castle
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