Director: John Boorman
Screenplay: Rospo Pallenberg, John Boorman
Based on a Novel by: Thomas Malory
Starring: Nigel Terry, Nicol Williamson, Helen Mirren, Nicholas Clay, Cherie Lunghi, Robert Addie, Gabriel Byrne, Liam Neeson, Katrine Boorman, Corin Redgrave, Patrick Stewart, Clive Swift, Ciarán Hinds
Country: UK, USA
Running Time: 141 min
Year: 1981
BBFC Certificate: 15
John Boorman had been interested in the Arthurian legend since childhood, and it had inspired or played a small part in most of the films he made, even from the start of his career. It was only a matter of time before he tackled it head-on.
Boorman and Rospo Pallenberg started developing a script about Merlin in 1969, but the epic screenplay they turned in to United Artists was rejected. They offered Boorman an adaptation of The Lord of the Rings as a project instead, and he began to develop that idea. However, this also fell by the wayside after the plans grew too ambitious and costly. So, Boorman and Pallenberg went back to their Merlin idea. The lengthy script was cut back, and Arthur was given more prominence in the story.
Boorman was coming off Exorcist II: The Heretic, which was a disaster in a number of ways, so he was taking a gamble with Excalibur, which was unlike anything being produced at the time, particularly in Britain.
Thankfully, the gamble paid off and Excalibur proved to be a hit. It didn’t make a crazy amount of money, but it helped Boorman regain some credibility after getting brutally slated for his work on Exorcist II.
Excalibur can now be seen as more than just a successful film, though. Alongside Clash of the Titans (and to a lesser extent, Dragonslayer, which performed relatively poorly at the box office), it helped kickstart the sword-and-sorcery boom of the 1980s, which exploded further after the release of Conan the Barbarian in 1982.
I’m quite partial to a sword-and-sorcery film, having grown up watching the works of Ray Harryhausen. However, I’m ashamed to say I had never seen Excalibur. So, when Arrow Video announced they would be releasing the film on UHD and Blu-ray, I jumped at the chance of reviewing it.
Excalibur takes numerous stories from the Arthurian legend, many from Thomas Malory’s compilation ‘Le Morte d’Arthur’, and condenses and tweaks them to form one cohesive narrative.
We begin the tale with Merlin (Nicol Williamson) retrieving the sword Excalibur from the Lady of the Lake, to give to Uther Pendragon (Gabriel Byrne), so that he can become king.
Uther gets his wish, but he lusts for Igrayne (John Boorman’s daughter, Katrine Boorman), the wife of the Duke of Cornwall. He begs Merlin to use his powers to allow him to seduce her, to which the magician agrees, on the condition that Uther gives Merlin his firstborn child. Merlin makes Uther look like the Duke, who is killed elsewhere, and Uther beds Igrayne.
The child born of this encounter is Arthur, who is taken into care by Merlin, as promised. Meanwhile, Uther is attacked by the Duke’s men and, in his dying moments, he plunges Excalibur into a stone, proclaiming that whoever can retrieve it will be the next king.
Flash forward a number of years, and Arthur (now played by Nigel Terry) is a young man, but just a lowly squire. He comes across the sword in the stone and easily pulls it out, becoming king in the process.
Arthur brings relative peace to the land, forming the famous Knights of the Round Table. However, jealousy causes problems when it is discovered that Sir Lancelot (Nicholas Clay) is in love with Arthur’s wife, Guenevere (Cherie Lunghi). Also causing trouble is Arthur’s half-sister, Morgana (Helen Mirren), who is a sorceress with a grudge against her sibling.
As mentioned, I enjoy a good sword-and-sorcery film, so I was excited to see this one. However, whilst I quite enjoyed it and found much to admire, something didn’t sit right for me. Weirdly, it was the performance style that I couldn’t get on with. I say weirdly, because most sword-and-sorcery films have a theatrical, faux-Shakespearean air about them. However, I couldn’t help but find Excalibur all a little daft.
The full-blooded, wholehearted approach fits the mythic nature of the story, and it all has an operatic quality to it. However, it’s hard to take seriously. I thought it felt like Monty Python and the Holy Grail in a number of places, with a splash of pantomime thrown in for good measure.
I think I can blame a large amount of my dislike for the approach to one man, Nicol Williamson. He is the liveliest, most charismatic performer in the cast, but he’s a bit too wild in his line readings for my tastes. He’s to blame for a lot of the film’s daftest moments through his wacky performance choices. There are some purposefully comedic scenes with the character, but these are often awkwardly slapstick, and I found myself laughing instead at moments that were supposed to be serious.
The cast, otherwise, is very impressive. It features early roles for a number of actors who had previously worked in theatre and TV but not yet made it big in film. The list includes Gabriel Byrne, Liam Neeson, Patrick Stewart, Clive Swift and Ciarán Hinds. Then you have the great Helen Mirren (not yet a Dame at this point), who had only been in a few films by this point. She’s the strongest part of the cast, for me. The film comes alive in the second half when she takes centre stage, becoming the villain of the story.
I’m not sure how well developed the characters were, though. I know these are legendary figures everybody knows, so we don’t need a lot of background, but I never really cared for them, and the relationship between Arthur and Guenevere, for instance, was pretty tepid.
I shouldn’t badmouth the film too much, though, as I did enjoy it, on the whole. It races through the story at quite a pace, without getting messy, and reaches a suitably dramatic climax.
Also winning me over was the fact that the film is a visual treat. Great use is made of the Irish locations, and it’s beautifully shot by Alex Thomson. He plays with light and colour in some boldly effective ways, and colour plays a big part. The three acts have different colour schemes, with the lush green colours of nature in the first, the shining silvers and golds of Camelot in the second, and then gloomy darkness in the third. Thomson was rightfully nominated for an Oscar for his work.
The production design is impressive, too. Many of the settings and costumes are bold and striking, such as the daringly reflective walls of Camelot and the gleaming suits of armour. They had a proper armourer, Terry English, making pieces for the cast. The suits were technically out of period, but they look the part, regardless.
It’s not a historically accurate view of the Middle Ages, then, but it has a rough, dirty naturalism that sits nicely alongside the more fantastical, comic book elements. These latter touches are often achieved through highly effective in-camera trickery.
The music is suitably bombastic too, with a rousing score by Trevor Jones rubbing shoulders with a number of music cues taken from classical works. On top of the ‘O Fortuna Chorus’ by Carl Orff, you get several cues from Wagner, who was also a fan of the Arthurian legend.
So, to me, Excalibur came across as a little too silly in more than a few places, largely due to some wildly theatrical performances. However, the film has a force of conviction and a love of the legend that keeps you watching. It’s a visual feast too, with its handmade aesthetic and striking use of colour bringing Arthur’s world alive. It’s certainly quite an experience, and I look forward to giving it another shot with a different level of expectation.
Excalibur is out on 23rd February in the UK in separate UHD and Blu-Ray releases, courtesy of Arrow Video. I watched the Blu-ray version, and I thought that it looked fantastic, with bold, rich colours and a natural-looking grain structure. It’s quite a dark and grimy-looking film in places, but this seems to be intentional. I imagine the 4K will look magnificent, retaining more detail in these darker scenes. As for audio, you get a choice of either lossless mono and DTS-HD MA 5.1 tracks. I opted for the former and thought it sounded fantastic.
3-DISC 4K ULTRA HD LIMITED EDITION CONTENTS
• Brand new 4K restoration from the original 35mm negative by Arrow Films presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.66:1 for the first time on home video
• Contains both the 141-minute Theatrical Cut and the 120-minute TV Version of the film
• Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
• Reversible sleeve featuring two original artwork options
• Collectors’ perfect-bound booklet containing writing by Charlie Brigden, K.A. Laity, Kimberly Lindbergs, Josh Nelson, Philip Kemp, John Reppion, Icy Sedgwick and Jez Winship
• Double-sided fold-out poster featuring two original artwork options
• Six postcard-sized reproduction art cards
DISC 1 – FEATURE (4K ULTRA HD BLU-RAY)
• 4K (2160p) Ultra HD Blu-ray presentation of the 141min Theatrical Cut of the film in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible)
• Restored original lossless mono and DTS-HD MA 5.1 audio options
• Brand new audio commentary by Brian Hoyle, author of The Cinema of John Boorman
• Brand new audio commentary by filmmaker David Kittredge, director of Boorman and the Devil
• Archive audio commentary by director John Boorman
DISC 2 – EXTRAS (BLU-RAY)
• The Making of Excalibur: Myth into Movie, a never-before-released 48-minute documentary directed by Neil Jordan during the production of Excalibur
• To Be a Knight and Follow a King, a newly filmed interview with director John Boorman and actor Charley Boorman
• When Death Was but a Dream, a newly filmed interview with creative associate Neil Jordan
• The Charm of Making, a newly filmed interview with production designer Anthony Pratt
• Confessions of a Professional “Pain-in-the-ass”, a newly filmed interview with 2nd unit director Peter MacDonald
• Anam Cara, a new featurette on the working friendship of John Boorman and co-writer Rospo Pallenberg featuring a newly filmed interview with Pallenberg
• Divided Nature, a brand new featurette by film historians Howard S. Berger and Kevin Marr
• Trailers
• Image galleries
DISC 3 – BONUS (LIMITED EDITION EXCLUSIVE BLU-RAY)
• High Definition (1080p) Blu-ray presentation of the 120-minute TV Version of the film, previously unavailable on home video
• Original lossless mono audio
• Excalibur: Behind the Movie, a 50-minute retrospective documentary in which cast and crew look back on the making of the film
One of the big selling points of the Limited Edition release is the inclusion of a third disc with the 120-minute TV Version of the film. I must admit, I didn’t watch this as I didn’t have time, and I couldn’t imagine taking 20 minutes out of an already fast-paced, story-dense film would do it any favours. It’s great to have it included, though, for die-hard fans and completists.
There are three commentaries on the disc. The first features John Boorman. He explains how a lot of the shots were pulled off, as well as telling a few anecdotes about the production. It’s a decent track.
Another commentary features Brian Hoyle. This is fantastic. He’s clearly done his research (he wrote a book on Boorman) and talks in detail about the production and how the film works with the complicated mix of texts dealing with the Arthurian legend. I have to disagree with him when he talks about Excalibur as featuring one of Nicol’s best performances, though, and him being one of the strongest elements of the film, as I felt he almost single-handedly derailed it.
The third commentary is by David Kittredge, another expert in John Boorman’s work. This lies somewhere in between the other two tracks, in terms of content and approach. As such, it seems slightly unnecessary, or at least it did for me after having already listened to the other two. It’s not a bad commentary, though, by any means, and it strikes a good middle ground for someone who only wants to listen to one of the tracks.
John and Charlie Boorman are interviewed in a near-half-hour piece. John struggles a bit with his words, due to his age, but his mind is still sharp, and he starts to tell his story before his son takes over. It’s a lovely piece that ends on a poignant note.
One of the strongest extras is a 48-minute making-of documentary, directed by Neil Jordan during the production of Excalibur. It includes an insightful interview with Boorman, production design artwork and plenty of wonderful on-set material. In the piece, Boorman makes comparisons between the making of the film and the myth itself being told.
Neil Jordan is also interviewed in a new piece. He talks about his involvement in the film, which was one of his first experiences in the medium. He discusses how it might have influenced his future work. He also talks about the documentary he made charting the production.
There’s also a 75-minute interview with 2nd unit director Peter MacDonald. According to a caption, the original recording was 4 and a half hours! He tells the fascinating story of his life and career. He has some wonderful anecdotes. It’s a joy to listen to.
Production designer Anthony Pratt is also interviewed. He talks about his career as a whole, as well as sharing his memories of working on Excalibur. It’s a decent piece.
Howard S. Berger provides a visual essay about Boorman and his collaborations with Rospo Pallenberg. It includes a number of clips from an interview with Pallenberg, as well as excerpts from Boorman’s memoirs. It’s a wonderful piece which gets surprisingly poignant towards the end.
The Flying Maciste Brothers (Howard S. Berger and Kevin Marr) also provide a visual essay. This is a more academic, theoretical affair. It talks about duality and the religious and spiritual themes of Excalibur and how these are reflected in some of Boorman’s other films.
Finally, on disc 3, there’s a 52-minute, expansive documentary about the making of Excalibur, from 2013. It includes interviews with most of the principals, as well as some clips from Jordan’s documentary. It’s an excellent coverall piece.
I didn’t get a copy of the booklet or any of the other physical extras to comment on those, unfortunately.
So, Arrow have pulled out all the stops to produce the ultimate release of John Boorman’s Excalibur. I may not have fully warmed to the film’s bombastic approach, but I still enjoyed it, and the wealth of extra features across the three discs is incredible. It’s well worth picking up and will likely ride high near the top of my ‘release of the year’ list in terms of supplements.
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