Up on the blog of DMR Books is the big Excalibur post I've been meaning to write for years. 2K words about not just one of my favorite fantasy films of all time, but top 10 favorite films of any genre. It's also my attempt to analyze what director John Boorman's vision and objective was with this film, why the King Arthur myth endures, and what it can still teach us today. Why we need the old stories, and our inherited mythologies, which we abandon at our peril.
I think many viewers get hung up on Excalibur's sometimes stilted and declarative dialogue, the historical anachronisms, etc., and are too quick to dismiss what I believe is a masterpiece (YMMV). I've watched many subsequent King Arthur films that embrace more traditional filmmaking techniques, but none have managed to do what Excalibur did, which is render myth on screen for a modern audience.
Fellow DMR blogger Deuce Richardson has pointed me in the direction of a "making of" documentary on Excalibur, "Behind the Sword in the Stone," which I shall view next: https://www.tvguide.com/movies/behind-the-sword-in-the-stone/2030331927/.
Finally, I'm glad Excalibur has resisted remakes some 42 years after its debut. I welcome new King Arthur films, but not a remake.
I saw this at the drive-in in Medford, MA, with my parents. I was about 12. Boobs, my man. Glorious boobs. So good!
ReplyDeleteYes, and boobs too! And limbs lopped off.
ReplyDeleteSeeing Excalibur at age 12 in a drive-in with your parents must have... changed you:)
Saw this film in the theater when it first came out and it marked me. An amazing cast brought this film to vibrant life.
ReplyDeleteAlso where I first fell for Helen Mirren.