A One Mann’s Movies review of “A Knight’s Tale”. (2001, 4.5*, 12A).
Receiving a 25th Anniversary release in the UK, “A Knight’s Tale” was the latest “Throwback” screening at my local Everyman cinema. I took the illustrious Mrs Movie Man as well as grandkids Frankie and Eva (aged 10 and 9) and a great time was had by all.
One Mann’s Movies Rating:
Plot:
Page William Thatcher (Heath Ledger) is about to become unemployed when his boss dies just minutes before a jousting contest. But he then has a wild plan: to don the dead knight’s armour and take his place in the form of a fictitious knight, Sir Ulrich von Liechtenstein from Gelderland. But how long will it be before he is either mortally wounded in combat or discovered?
Certification:
UK: 12A; US: PG-13. (From the BBFC website: “Moderate violence, injury detail, language”.)
Talent:
Starring: Heath Ledger, Mark Addy, Rufus Sewell, Shannyn Sossamon, Paul Bettany, Laura Fraser, Alan Tudyk, Bérénice Bejo.
Directed by: Brian Helgeland.
Written by: Brian Helgeland.
Running Time: 2h 12m.
Summary:
Positives:
- Has a joyful quality in not taking itself too seriously.
- A banging soundtrack with modern hits slotted in where they really shouldn’t be!
- Heath Ledger is magnificent, Paul Bettany memorable and Shannyn Sossamon makes an elegant and beautiful love interest.
Negatives:
- There is rather an excess of splintering lances!
- Eva Jones: “Too much kissing”!
Full Review of “A Knight’s Tale”:
Heath Ledger makes you sad.
What a loss to the world when he accidentally died from an overdose in his New York apartment, just seven years after this film was released and at the age of just 28. In his short screen life, he was able to deliver us such joys as “10 Things I Hate About You”, “Brokeback Mountain” and a truly memorable Joker in “The Dark Knight”, widely regarded as a masterpiece and for which he posthumously won the Best Supporting Actor Oscar in 2009. Here he radiates charisma and charm as the young upstart, rising from his Cheapside origins to achieve greatness and the love of a fair maiden. It really makes your heart ache for the actor’s loss.
In great supporting roles are Paul Bettany as Chaucer; Mark Addy and Alan Tudyk as Williams argumentative ‘pages’ Roland and Wat; and Rufus Sewell turning in a suitably menacing performance as the evil Count Adhemar.
Sossa-who??
As the film was progressing, I kept asking myself who it was playing the enigmatic, beautiful and unwinnable Jocelyn. When it got to the end titles, I was non-the-wiser! For Shannyn Sossamon’s name came up and I went “WHO?”. It’s curious that in the midst of a set of male stars, who have generally continued to rise onwards and upwards fame-wise, that two of the female stars – Shannyn Sossamon, in particular, and Laura Fraser, who plays blacksmith Kate – have remained in the industry but largely anonymously. One hit wonders if you like.
Bucking that trend, Bérénice Bejo, who plays Jocelyn’s maid Christiana, did briefly rise to fame of course playing the female lead Peppy Miller in 2011’s Oscar-winning “The Artist”.
Tongue-in-cheek laughs.
Amongst all the jousting action, writer/director Brian Helgeland keeps the mood of the piece light, with some great comedy moments and dialogue. Paul Bettany – like Demi Moore, never knowingly one to keep his clothes on for a whole film! – plays Geoffrey Chaucer and is given the scope to deliver many crowd-pleasing scenes, introducing ‘Sir Ulrich’ to a sceptical audience. In a similar vein to “Cyrano“, Chaucer is also the poet behind William’s wooing of the saintly Jocelyn: a situation that lands him in similar trouble to Christian in that story, when he is left alone with her and needs to conjure up the same magic!
Anachronistic music.
Another reason to love the film is the anachronistic use of needle drops: not just overlaid into the soundtrack but with the cast performing to them. Queen’s “We Will Rock You” being the first example, with the assembled crowds stamping out the famous rhythm in the jousting stands. David Bowie’s “Golden Years” is another memorable inclusion, as William and Jocelyn invent disco dancing 500 years earlier than intended. William is also wearing the most amazingly tailored tunic and trousers for the occasion! All in all, this film would get a 1* from learned historians for historical accuracy.
What’s not to like?
Overall, this is a terrifically fun film, especially to see on the big screen! For me, the number of splintering lances into the dozens of jousting scenes we watch becomes a bit overly repetitive. And animal lovers might not love some of the falls that the ‘stunt horses’ have to make, in a time long before horses could be CGI’d.
A particular complaint came from young Eva Jones, who took off “half a point for the naked man (Bettany) and one point for all of the kissing”! (To be fair, there’s not a HUGE amount of kissing until the finale scene, but some implied ‘rumpy-pumpy’ preparation in a tent before we cut away!)
Summary Thoughts:
What a fun movie! I can’t believe that I had never got to see this before, but I’m glad I now did. A real popcorn movie that is WELL worth watching (or rewatching) on the big screen again.
Where to watch?
Trailer:
The trailer for the film is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n1_cYcE6orA.
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