King Arthur: Legend of the Sword

If there there was a film that was built around its soundtrack, King Arthur would be it. And what a soundtrack it is. Guy Richie's use of the music to advance the story is absolutely magical. While many feel that montages have become a lazy filmmakers best friend, in the hands of a truly masterful filmmaker they can be beautiful. The opening montage of King Arthur which advances the film from the young 6 year old life of Arthur to his more mature 21 year old self is truly amazing. It is the best musical montage that I have ever seen. Daniel Pemberton, the musical director earned his paycheck in spades. The film itself is also a wonderfully new take on the King Arthur legend. Gone is the Arthur of old who always knew the right thing to do and is almost holier than thou. Gone is the simple symbolism of Excalibur as the sign of the king. In comes actual usage of magic and Excalibur actually aiding Arthur in battle. At first glance in the film it appears that the story will be simply an origins story where we learn the backstory of Arthur only leading to his ultimate ascension at the end of the film. Richie turns this on its head when Arthur withdraws the sword and his journey truly begins. With witty banter and sometimes over use of the cutting room, Richie keeps us involved with likes of a truly villainous Jude Law as King Vortigern, who is willing to do anything, and the movie emphasizes anything, to gain and then retain power. Eric Bana gives us an as usual excellent performance, calling back to Troy, as Urther Pendragon, Arthur's father who constantly is coming back to haunt him. Unfortunately Djimon Hounsou's magnificent acting chops are delegated third string minor character Sir Bedivere. While his is excellent in the film, it is just disappointing he can not get better, more prominent roles. The faults of the film are evident and they are more quirks of the filmmaker than problems with the film. Guy Richie is a very interesting director who loves to have current naration as the character explains what his happening in the future. The audience is then subjected to many cuts between current and future time as what is being described is also transpiring. This occurs in every Richie film so you know its going to happen here when you buy the ticket. He is also a filmaker that loves to spend time in the cutting room especially during action scenes. Richie attempts to overcome the possible flaws in his actors to make look superhuman when all the cutting can lead to confusion as to what is actually happening. Other than the issues one must accept by going to a Guy Richie Film, King Arthur: Legend of the Sword is a refreshing and welcome new take on the King Arthur legend that unfortunatly will be viewed as a failure and not be rewarded for its ingenuity. Easily 4 stars out of 5, well worth the watch for the Soundtrack alone.