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And A Knight's Tale is different - and can best be
described as being in the same mould as the sensational Plunkett
and Macleane, although not quite as enjoyable.
It is a clever blend of action, humour, romance, rock music
and period drama, and it draws you in for a journey through
14th Century Europe following what was the Formula One circus
of the day - tournaments.
There nobles would try to knock each other off horses, whack
heavy armour with heavy swords and generally try to be the
last man standing.
Into this world comes a young peasant who passes himself
off as a knight and begins to make a mark on the jousting
world - not to mention the armour of opponents.
Heath Ledger is terrific as Sir Ulrich von Lichtenstein and
leads a truly excellent support cast with commendable assurance.
Rufus Sewell is the bad guy Count Adhemar and he does his
best to not only beat our main man, but also win the gorgeous
Lady Jocelyn (Shannon Sossamon) away from him.
Helping Ledger out is the very talented crew of Roland (Mark
Addy), Wat (Alan Tudyk), and blacksmith Kate (Laura Fraser),
who really make the movie what it is with their terrific spirit
and humour. Sossamon is the weak link in the acting department,
but looks good.
However, the scene-stealer extraordinaire is Paul Bettany,
who plays Chaucer, and he stands head and shoulders above
the main (spunkier) protagonists. It certainly is a huge step
up from playing the hopeless Prince of Orange in the TV movie
Sharpe's Waterloo.
Now the action scenes are very good - although I found the
continual splintering of lances to be a bit too much in the
end - however the build-up to the big fight is excellent.
The video and sound transfer are superb and make the most
of the sumptuous visuals offered and boost the impact of the
action scenes.
All up you'll find this a worthy evening's viewing and it
certainly has me interested in picking up a copy of Chaucer's
Canterbury Tales.
Conclusion: Movie 85%, Extras 80%
Continued:
DVD details at a glance >
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