With the movie released in 1981, I did not see Excalibur until many years later. I got the epic board game Hero Quest for Christmas in 1989 and my uncle said that I would probably like a movie called Excalibur as it is the same thing…. It was not, but they both were fantasy and I loved fantasy as a kid. Movies like The Beastmaster and Conan the Barbarian were some of my favorites. I eventually saw Excalibur and I loved it.
How to Download Excalibur
Excalibur was released on 10 April 1981. You can download or stream the film from a digital platform. Click on the Download button at the end of this review and make your choice.
The Movie Review
A Memorable Experience on Blu-ray
I got the awesome Excalibur Premium Edition on Blu-Ray for Christmas a couple of years back and watched it again for the first time in years! Now, this edition is awesome, but the movie, the movie was kind of disappointing. Hey, I am not saying it is bad or anything like that, but in my memories, this was one of the greatest fantasy movies of all time and the ultimate version of the King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table story.
Practical Effects and Timeless Visuals
Yet, the movie after all these years was just ok, I was kind of disappointed, to be honest with you. I can appreciate how great the movie looks for a movie made in 1981 and even now, the practical effects hold up and look fantastic. Speaking of looking fantastic, Hellen Mirren as Morgan le Fay is pretty much all I have to say. Also, it is kind of neat that she played Morgan le Fay back in 81 and then four decades later, she got to once again be in a fantasy epic thanks to Shazam! Fury of the Gods.
A Retelling of King Arthur’s Legend
The story is a version of the classic tale of King Arthur. We get to see all the big hits here that you would expect from this story. I liked how we got a little bit of what happened before Arthur was born and how Merlin looked out for this “bastard child” Hey, those are the movie’s words, not mine. We get the classic scene of Arthur pulling out the Sword in the Stone and this is what leads to him becoming King Arthur.
The Conflict Between Arthur and Morgan le Fay
Well, as the saying goes, heavy is the crown, and Arthur’s half-sister, Morgan le Fay comes knocking and she tricks Arthur and ends up carrying his child… yup that happens. She gives birth to a child called Mordred who becomes the ultimate villain of the movie. What I told you about the plot sounds quite simple right?
A Complex Narrative Structure
However, Excalibur is a movie that is kind of all over the place from a story point of view. Yes at its core it is Arthur making the Knights of the Round Table and fighting Morgan le Fay and Mordred, but there is so much stuff that happens around this that it is hard to keep track of. The movie comes in at two and a half hours too so it is not like it is rushed. To get the best out of this, you have to just go with the flow and take it for the fantasy action epic that it is. To be fair, I think that they wanted to give as many characters as possible a time to shine and they do that, but I am not sure it was necessary.
A Cast Full of Future Stars
Oh, I do have to talk about the cast before we go. I already name-dropped Helen Mirren who is gorgeous in this movie. However, many other actors who would go on to become big names are in this movie such as Liam Neeson, Gabriel Byrne, and Patrick Stewart which I think is really cool.
A Fantasy Milestone That’s Hard to Follow
I can appreciate what an achievement this was back in 1981 and I would probably guess I saw this around 1990 and I loved it as a kid. Yet, watching it again recently, I certainly like it, but the movie is kind of hard to follow. Still, I am glad I have this in my collection and it is a movie I would watch again. Actually, this needs to have some kind of Arrow or Criterion 4K release as I would wager it would look incredible with a good 4K transfer.
