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A
Knights Tale
A movie review by John Hatchett
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Before
I review this movie, I have to tell a fable:
Once upon a time, there was a magical place that turned stories
into celluloid dreams. People flocked to movie theaters where the
magic of watching what was once words flowed on to a silver screen
in golden images. Great heroes peopled this fabled town and made great
things - but then, things changed. An invasion of accountants, executives,
managers and (worst all) marketing departments has meant that instead
of producing our dreams, Hollywood now produces our nightmares.
What has this to do with A Knight's Tale?
Well, occasionally Hollywood will get a good idea and............well,
until the accountants, executives and marketing departments get through
with it, it was a good idea.
Now, Knight's Tale has a good premise - in the late middle
ages, tournaments WERE popular sporting events. Winners WERE treated
much the same way we treat popular sports heroes today. In order to
participate, you did have to be a nobleman.
The plot of Knight's Tale has a novel twist - in the midst
of a tourney, an elderly knight dies. An apprentice dons the dead
knight's armor and wins the tourney. Rather than split up the purse
and go their separate ways, the apprentice convinces his fellows to
pretend that he is a knight and enter more tournaments. Of course,
a knight needs a lineage and, by a stroke of fortune, the lads run
across a naked Geoffrey Chaucer.
At this point, it would be a good time to run for the exits.
It's not just any Geoffrey Chaucer - it's THE Geoffrey Chaucer.
(Author of The Canterbury Tales, for you non-English majors.)
Chaucer needs our heroes since he is not only addicted to gambling,
he keeps losing his shirt (and everything else apparently). The lads
need Chaucer since none of them write and he IS a writer. (chuckle,
chuckle) As fast as you can say forgery, Chaucer writes a phony lineage
and Sir Ulrech is born.
Sir Ulrech naturally trounces his opponents, falls in love with a
noblewoman and becomes bitter rival of a rich, thoroughly nasty and
no good knight.
Now let's pause for a discussion of the film's soundtrack.
Let's face it, Queen and David Bowie were not around in the Middle
Ages - but that does not stop the film maker. In fact, there are numerous
historical inaccuracies, but I leave the discovery of them as an exercise
for the student.
As one caveat, I will allow that the jousting competitions are excellent,
the action is realistic and the camerawork superb.
But Knight's Tale is still a good idea gone bad. Hollywood
starts with a good idea - Poor kid pretending to be nobleman, so he
can earn a living in the tournaments. Tournaments as the sporting
event of the Middle Ages. Rich girl, poor boy romance. class struggle.
Virtue vs. evil. That should be enough to make a good movie.
Instead, we have the dissonant soundtrack, hackneyed dialogue apparently
intended solely to be used in the trailer and a transparent commercial
reference that you have to see to believe.
Furthermore, the filmmakers can't seem to decide on what sort of film
to make. The film is alternatively funny, poignant, romantic or uplifting.
It is a hodgepodge of themes that fails to deliver on any of the motifs
that I mentioned.
I think that by trying to be all things to all people, Knight's Tale
squanders it's original premise. It is sort of like getting the staff
of the local McDonalds to prepare a gourmet meal.
What should you do? Listen to my wife. In the middle of this film,
when I was grousing about yet another historical inaccuracy, she whispered
to me - "It's only a movie."
So, get it on video or DVD, plop on the couch with your wife (if you
have a girlfriend, you can take invite her as well) and try not to
be too critical.
It will spoil the dream. |
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