King Arthur

[kitty]

Jinjachix: So tonight, both TB4000 and I watched King Arthur
Jinjachix: And we decided to write a joint review for YW.... he's Ebert
Terry30001: while Jenn takes on the role of Siskel
Jinjachix: the hater
Terry30001: with all due respect, of course
Terry30001: ;-)
Jinjachix: lol!
Jinjachix: anyways, so, I think we both agree that King Arthur kicked mucho ass
Terry30001: Jenn and I had to go into geek mode and see it on Wed.
Terry30001: as opposed to the weekend
Jinjachix: a movie like this?
Terry30001: I know, i know
Jinjachix: a sleeper blockbuster?
Terry30001: so sue me
Jinjachix: you gotta see it opening night
Terry30001: Duly noted
Jinjachix: First things first, keira knightley was pretty damn sexy...
Jinjachix: a little too clean for the Dark Ages.... but damn sexy
Terry30001: so says the S&M lover over here
Terry30001: her outfit kinda reminded me of....
Jinjachix: Xena?
Terry30001: ever seen The 5th Element?
Jinjachix: oh my god... the orange thing?
Terry30001: that body wrapping tape thing
Terry30001: yeah
Terry30001: or just a real hardcore bondage
Jinjachix: Oh lord.... and I'm sure the boys were drooling all over that too.
Terry30001: yeah, we sure were
Jinjachix: I liked the body paint thing that they had going for her.
Terry30001: you can never go wrong with having things propped up into place like that
Terry30001: yeah, they were obviously going for that gritty look
Jinjachix: And it was nice to see the character of Guinevere depart from that usual "swoon and bang Lancelot" thing...
Terry30001: yeah, they say that's the one thing they changed for this story
Terry30001: and arthur and her were now the lovers
Terry30001: and Lancelot just looked on
Terry30001: from afar
Terry30001: *cue music swell*
Terry30001: I won't lie about it, I wasn't 100% interested in this at first
Terry30001: with all the hoopla with Troy
Jinjachix: Which I thought was nice. it was a subtle love triangle as opposed to the in your face thing, which woulda made Guinevere just a pre-modern slut
Jinjachix: Me neither. it was a pleasant surprise that it was so good.
Terry30001: Yeah, I think Antoine Fuqua does good work
Jinjachix: I was really worried that Antoine Fuqua (director) would end up being just a flash in the pan kind of phenomenon
Jinjachix: and this would sink his career
Terry30001: but on the flip side you had Jerry Bruckheimer producing
Terry30001: so you know...two sides of a coin
Jinjachix: But y'know... (and I know I've harped enough on Spidey 2), but this was an example of excellent directing
Jinjachix: From the great set up shots that made Arturius/Arthur iconic (but not too much) to the close-ups that managed to convey significant emotion without seeming fake and contrived
Terry30001: I think he's grown some from those days on Replacement Killers
Jinjachix: Fuqua is totally in his element.
Terry30001: His last one before this, Tears of the Sun, showed he could do wartime action
Terry30001: and I think he hooked it up to its utmost in this one
Jinjachix: This far surpassed Tears of the Sun though
Jinjachix: Tears of the Sun had the problem of a terrible screenplay
Jinjachix: What did you think of the battle scenes?
Terry30001: well, the guy that wrote this one also wrote Gladiator
Terry30001: so you can take that with a grain of salt
Terry30001: lol
Jinjachix: well, anyone who goes in thinking this is absolute fact should probably be euthanized
Jinjachix: (hold up... pee break)
Terry30001: by all means, carry on
Terry30001: that'll learn her to drink 3 long island ice teas in one sitting
Jinjachix: more like downing an entire thingie of chocolate milk in the grocery store
Jinjachix: but anyways... what did you think of the battle scenes?
Terry30001: nothing but a damn criminal
Jinjachix: i bought it first!!
Terry30001: honestly...*clears throat and adjusts spectacles*
Terry30001: I had seen Troy, Gladiator, and LOTR before this, and another battle scene just seemed like old hat to me
Terry30001: however
Terry30001: the one on the ice
Terry30001: that got my attention right there
Jinjachix: really?
Jinjachix: i was actually more impressed by the last one.
Jinjachix: which I won't go into detail about.
Terry30001: as will I
Terry30001: ....not
Terry30001: they'll know it when they see it
Terry30001: the ice battle was the one that impressed me, though
Jinjachix: yes, needless to say, it is niiice.
Terry30001: now, as far as the acting jobs
Jinjachix: Am i getting desensitized? But even in this one, I thought the graphic violence coulda been upped a bit.
Terry30001: it was PG-13
Terry30001: cut down from an R
Jinjachix: Fake blood doesn't really convey the deadly power of the sword. How come no one got their limbs chopped off?
Terry30001: so it could've been more
Jinjachix: Ahhh...
Terry30001: not in this rating
Terry30001: you want Kill Bill gushing type stuff
Terry30001: or at least, not that cartoony
Terry30001: PG-13 war movies never work
Jinjachix: Oh, before we move on to acting, one more thing I liked about the screenplay/directing was that Fuqua captured the realistic yet leading to iconic feel of the Arthur characters. You could see how this story would lead to the eventual interpretations of the Arthur mythos, but was still entirely plausible in the context it was set in.
Terry30001: it's too based in reality
Terry30001: right, right...the whole Saxon thing
Terry30001: this is the story that you would learn about in history class
Terry30001: even Merlin had a very realistic touch to him
Jinjachix: Totally. You could totally see how he would eventually be transformed into a wizard, if all this were true.
Jinjachix: Given the level of 'technology' his forces had in the final battle.
Terry30001: exactly
Terry30001: though i would still like to see another take on this story
Terry30001: more sword and sorcery based
Terry30001: just using today's f/x
Jinjachix: they've already had a bunch of those, tho'
Jinjachix: oh, well, today's effects... that's different
Terry30001: not done as of late, though
Terry30001: exactly
Jinjachix: I bet we'll see that in our lifetime
Terry30001: yeah, someone will come around to it
Terry30001: but i know how this one was meant to be seen, though
Jinjachix: i loved how fuqua directed clive owen as arthur
Terry30001: yeah, he did a very impressive job with what he had
Terry30001: they got him lined up to be the next james bond
Terry30001: possibly
Jinjachix: initially, it seemed too stoic, but i realized that fuqua was going for a king before he was king.... like a regal aura about him. and he really delivered the role with such a commanding clarity, you could see how the knights would follow him.
Terry30001: and i think he could do it after this stint
Jinjachix: really?
Jinjachix: i could see that
Terry30001: so they say
Terry30001: and they're gunning for the guy that played lancelot to be Reed Richards
Jinjachix: he might be a good choice.
Terry30001: so this damn movie is spawning all kinds of people
Terry30001: haha
Jinjachix: now i wasn't too keen on ioan grufford as lancelot
Terry30001: what didn't you like?
Terry30001: explain yourself, woman!
Terry30001: ;-)
Jinjachix: he was okay, but he seemed a little sketchy to me. a little too froced in some of his interaction with owen. but only as a comparison to how good owen was
Terry30001: right, right
Jinjachix: i mean, overall, excellent, but compared to the rest of the excellent casting, i thought he was the weak link
Terry30001: i think he was there just as the bad ass one
Terry30001: the pretty boy that's the right hand man
Terry30001: so to speak
Terry30001: so his talents weren't gonna be under as much scrunity as the man that played arthur
Jinjachix: that's true. they downplayed his role somewhat. rather than arthur's righthand man, he mainly acted as representative of the knights to arthur... who was admittedly very detached from them
Terry30001: you picked up on that, huh?
Terry30001: man, i must've been out of it
Terry30001: i interpreted their relationship a whole other way
Terry30001: just more of a mutual respect
Jinjachix: really?
Jinjachix: well, there was that. arthur respected him like he respected all his knights... but he was also not one of them, and that required lancelot to be a sort of emissary for the knights' interests
Terry30001: right, right
Terry30001: i guess i saw it in a different light
Terry30001: i may be going to see it again
Terry30001: you know me and my overanalyzing ass
Jinjachix: well, how did you see it? this is all just my interpretation :-)
Terry30001: the way I just described
Jinjachix: mutual respect thing?
Terry30001: mutual respect, and somewhat of a right hand..he may not have been all at his side non stop
Terry30001: but it was implied, i think
Jinjachix: mmm, but there was definitely conflict there.
Terry30001: yeah, it was
Jinjachix: much more so than with the other knights, who were kind of too afraid of arthur, or saw him as too much of a roman to truly be one of them
Terry30001: see, this is why we go to the movies...not just to gawk at the pretty pictures, but to get an understanding
Terry30001: the movies can teach too, kiddies
Terry30001: but all in all
Jinjachix: exactly. forget this summer blockbuster shit. movies should have some sort of philosophical, introspective, humanistic bent. even just a little, to make it all worthwhile.
Terry30001: even your favorite, E.T.?
Terry30001: ;-)
Jinjachix: the supporting cast and cinematography in king arthur --also great.
Jinjachix: GAH! E.T.!!!! that's a horror movie
Terry30001: it teaches us about feelings
Terry30001: lol
Jinjachix: Any weaknesses in King Arthur you want to talk about?
Terry30001: oh yeah..it was definitely shot very well
Terry30001: i already mentioned my share of weaknesses
Terry30001: if you have any, go ahead and spill it
Terry30001: i wasn't too fond of a couple of the action scenes
Terry30001: and that's about it
Terry30001: my weaknesses are all minor nitpicks
Jinjachix: Oh, the screenplay was a great concept, though obviously not based on fact, but the dialogue was a little stilted in some scenes. Some scenes were kind of ... unnecessary and deliberately done to make the summer blockbuster audience go all a-twitter
Terry30001: in layman's terms
Terry30001: cheesy
Jinjachix: yeah
Terry30001: they have to go that route
Terry30001: it's required
Jinjachix: i guess.
Terry30001: i don't think that's the screenwriter's fault, but the studio honchos
Terry30001: they like that type of schmaltz
Jinjachix: it was pretty much the only thing i didn't like tho'
Jinjachix: schmaltz?
Terry30001: lol
Terry30001: like, cheesy
Terry30001: that type of dialogue
Terry30001: eye rolling
Terry30001: that must've been my dormant jewish side coming out
Terry30001: :pp
Jinjachix: yeah, seriously. but otherwise, great film. i would totally recommend it :-)
Terry30001: as would I
Terry30001: it hasn't been hyped up as much as spidey, but...
Terry30001: we shall see come this weekend and the box office numbers
Terry30001: I think it was a great effort
Jinjachix: i doubt it'll beat spidey 2, or next week's i, robot, but i think it'll pull second.
Jinjachix: good solid profit.
Jinjachix: any last words?
Terry30001: when ya'll head out to the movies this weekend, you know what to see
Jinjachix: dodgeball?
Terry30001: or else we're coming to your house with a croquet mallet
Terry30001: shall we sign off?
Jinjachix: i think we're done here. :-)
Terry30001: all righty
Terry30001: until next time
Terry30001: the balcony is closed
Terry30001: lol
Terry30001: that was fun
Terry30001: we gotta do that again

[mr. x]

wait its out? wow, thought it wasnt gonna be out for a wihle

[rice cracker]

Oh, I should go see this this weekend. Buy books, or watch Arthur? Too many choices, not enough cash :frown:

[Irezumi Kiss]

How is it that y'all are seeing a July 9th movie on July 7th? Sneak preview? Cousin working at the cineplex get ya in fer a private screening?

[thaite]

It was out Wednesday. Looks craptacular.

[kitty]

it opened yesterday. thaite, it was awesome.

[Irezumi Kiss]

it opened yesterday. thaite, it was awesome.
wooooo...next time I'm seein' a flick with you cuz the reviews on this one are NOT kind at ALL....I think I'll make this a matinee movie in Queens for $5!

[537]

Don't take this personally, kittygirl & TB....I'm never listening to any of your reviews ever again. LOL

This movie PALES in comparison to Excalibur. nuff. said.

[kitty]

eh, you disagree with me. it's all good :) but i'm curious, what didn't you like?

my main happy was the directing.

edit: i've never seen excalibur, but i don't think they're supposed to be the same kind of movie. king arthur was intended to be a 'realistic' interpretation of a story that led to the king arthur mythos. it looks like excalibur was meant to be more of a telling of the king arthur mythos, itself, so probably was going to be more iconic and larger-than-life...

[Kuchana]

this movie is definitely one i'd like to see since i'm a fan of king arthur movies. i just wish they'd done the mists of avalon to justice and brought it on the big screen as well. i like how they're finally portraying guinavere as a strong character instead of waiting for a man to do something for her.

[DragonKnight]

Don't take this personally, kittygirl & TB....I'm never listening to any of your reviews ever again. LOL

This movie PALES in comparison to Excalibur. nuff. said. I wanna check this movie out since I like Excalibur and would like to compare the two. Plus, like Kuchana I like how they portray Guinavere as a strong female character. Then there's that documentary analysis about King Arthur I saw on the History Channel (if I remember correctly). I want to see how this story plays out after watching that analysis. :smile:

[Irezumi Kiss]

i just wish they'd done the mists of avalon to justice and brought it on the big screen as well.
Haven't they (Hollywood) kept the big-screen adaption of "Avalon" on the back burner for some time, now?

i like how they're finally portraying guinavere as a strong character instead of waiting for a man to do something for her.
Princess Jasmine from "Aladdin" does the SAME thing, but do I hear you screaming HER praises? Nooooooo....

:tongue:

[kitty]

I wanna check this movie out since I like Excalibur and would like to compare the two. Plus, like Kuchana I like how they portray Guinavere as a strong female character. Then there's that documentary analysis about King Arthur I saw on the History Channel (if I remember correctly). I want to see how this story plays out after watching that analysis. :smile:

do you remember what the documentary said? i'm curious to know what about the movie was inspired by 'recently uncovered archaeological evidence'.

[DragonKnight]

do you remember what the documentary said? i'm curious to know what about the movie was inspired by 'recently uncovered archaeological evidence'. Like how Arthur was based on one of the last of the Roman lords in England and how he organized the original 'Britons' (who later became part of the Norman invasion 500 yrs later) against the invading Saxons of the time. I didn't know much of British history but it was very enlightening. It even mentioned there might have been two Arthurs (father/son or superior lord to designated heir) and that the name Arthur may stand for a royal crest or banner for the character that Arthur was based.

I caught it while I was channel surfing at my parents' place. But it was really interesting to watch.

[SunWuKong]

it was ok in my opinion. there was a lot of your usual transpose-modern-American-values-to-interpretted-ancient-saga ala the emphasis on freedom. the action was cool, especially because some of the fighters have individualistic fighting styles. i wish there was some real magic coming from Merlin. first Troy, now King Arthur. what's up with these movies avoiding magic?

great movie to make into a console/computer RPG.

[kitty]

well, the violence was virtually non-existent probably to keep the rating down. and i liked the lack of magic. my theory is that in the age of war on terrorism, and uber-conservatism, people are looking for movies to reflect the hyper-polarized good vs. evil stuff they see in politics (good americans vs. evil terrorists).

and the push for more fantasy and magical stuff is to try and offer escapism from the complexity of reality. fantasy is all about good always triumphing over evil... sci-fi is about reality being too complicated and dystopic for humanity. that's why comic book movies and fantasy movies are going over really well with audiences right now. it's all about bush.

[s1eve]

Just saw it and thought it was mediocre.