King Arthur: Legend of the Sword Movie Review

King Arthur: Legend of the Sword is director Guy Ritchie's loud, stylized, violent take on the origin story of England's legendary king and the mythology surrounding his magical sword, Excalibur. Starring Charlie Hunnam and Jude Law, the movie includes most of Ritchie's signature touches quick cuts, rapid-fire dialog, humor in otherwise violent sequences, and creative strong language. Things frequently get pretty intense: There are several assassinations (some at close range, such as a throat-slashing) and battle sequences that destroy villages, castles, and people. There's a high body count; some of the deaths are bloodier and more disturbing than others. Language is occasionally salty, with one use of "f--king," and adults drink at pubs/meals. Arthur is brought up in a brothel; while nothing more graphic than kissing/lying on a bed with clothes on is shown, it's very clear what goes on there. Underlying the action are messages about teamwork and believing in yourself, and while the characters are flawed, the heroes are courageous and loyal.

The film is directed by Guy Ritchie, British film director who made his debut as a 20 minute short film "The Hard Case" (1995). His first feature film was the successful film Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (1998) with Jason Stathan and former football player Vinnie Jones. The film would make him a cult director with many followers. The film exposes its peculiar style marked by choral distributions and different interlaced plots. Two years later he directed Snatch (2000), another great success for Guy Ritchie internationally. The film featured actors like Brad Pitt, Benicio del Toro, Dennis Farina, Jason Statham and Vinnie Jones. He married the American singer Madonna and directed it in a music video for the song "What It Feels Like for a Girl" and in a remake of the successful film of Lina Wertmüller of the 1960s, "Swept Away" (2002). It was a failure of both criticism and public. In those years he also directed the short film of action played by Clive Owen "Star" (2001). Years later he directed Revolver (2005), a film that co-wrote with Luc Besson and starring Jason Statham and Ray Liotta but did not get very good review either. The film changed with RocknRolla (2008), a film with which it returned to regain prestige before the critics and the public thanks to the initial style of its films counting on the actors Gerard Butler, Tom Hardy, Jeremy Piven, Thandie Newton and Tom Wilkinson, between others. In December 2009 he premiered in the United States, Sherlock Holmes (2009), incarnated by Robert Downey Jr. and with Jude Law giving life to Dr. Watson. The film became one of the great successes of the year giving rise to a sequel that also directed and that premiered with the title Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows (2011), counted also with Downey Jr. and Law like the protagonist pair . Following this work, he directed The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (2015), an action film and superagents starring Henry Cavill and Armie Hammer. The film is based on a television series of the same name issued by NBC from September 1964 to January 1968.

WHAT'S THE STORY?
KING ARTHUR: LEGEND OF THE SWORD is Guy Ritchie's retelling of one of the world's most enduring myths. It starts with the tale of how King Uther Pendragon (Eric Bana) defeated an evil mage's attempt to overthrow him but then fell to his own brother, Vortigern (Jude Law), who was willing to sacrifice his own wife for the throne. But before Vortigern can kill his young nephew Uther's heir, Arthur the toddler is saved by a prostitute and brought up in a city brothel. Two decades later, Arthur (Charlie Hunnam) has become a formidable street fighter and protector of his brothel, while Vortigern is a tyrannical leader obsessed with complete control. When the waters part and Excalibur, stuck in a stone, reveals itself, Vortigern sends his guards to force all men of a certain age to attempt to pull it free. Sure of his inability to loose the weapon, Arthur is as shocked as everyone else when he's able to pull it free. Before Vortigern can kill Arthur publicly, a powerful mage (Astrid Bergès-Frisbey) and a group of Uther Pendragon loyalists rescue Arthur and Excalibur and attempt to convince him to lead a coup and take his rightful place on the throne.

MOVIE INFO
Rating: PG-13 (for sequences of violence and action, some suggestive content and brief strong language)
Genre: Action & Adventure, Drama
Directed By: Guy Ritchie
Written By: Joby Harold, Guy Ritchie, Lionel Wigram
In Theaters: May 12, 2017 Wide
Runtime: 126 minutes
Cinematography: John Mathieson
Studio: Warner Bros.
Cast: Charlie Hunnam, Jude Law, Annabelle Wallis