King Arthur

I watched this film on DVD, and had heard that it was pretty poor. With a cast of class Brits including Ray Winstone, Ioan Gruffeld and Clive Owen, I really wanted to like it. The best I can say is that it was OK.

In this telling of the famous legend, Arthur was a half Roman, half British leader who was serving Rome, with his Sarmatian knights in Britain by guarding Hadrian's Wall. There has been a lot of criticism to historical inaccuracies in this story - that the Saxon's invaded via Scotland and over the wall and after getting their backsides kicked, buggered off home again. It appears to be a gratuitous excuse for lots of sword fights and charging around on horses. And getting Keira Knightley to film a battle scene is a skimpy leather number.

You have to feel a bit sorry for all the male leads who are worthier of much more. Ray Winstone seemed to be the character with the token one liners, Clive Owen was the brooding hero and Ioan Gruffeld an extra brooding hero in case Clive Owen wasn't your cup of tea. Keira Knightley was the token bit of stuff in flimsy outfits in the middle of winter.

Verdict: Could do better.