Arthur and Merlin | |
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Directed by | Marco van Belle |
Written by |
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Produced by |
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Starring |
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Cinematography | Phil Wood |
Edited by | James Page |
Music by | Graham Plowman |
Production company | Movie Works |
Distributed by | Signature Entertainment |
Release date |
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Running time | 104 minutes [1] |
Country | United Kingdom |
Language | English |
Budget | £230,000 |
Arthur and Merlin is a 2015 independent British feature film directed by Marco van Belle and written by Kat Wood and Marco van Belle. The film, which stars Kirk Barker, Stefan Butler, Nigel Cooke and David Sterne, is based on the original Celtic tales of Arthur and Merlin. [2] [3]
This article needs an improved plot summary.(July 2018) |
In ancient Britain, a time of magic and legend, a powerful druid named Aberthol(Nigel Cooke) is bent on destroying the Celtic people. Keeping the aging Celtic King under his control, Aberthol sends many warriors to their death under the guise of fighting the Saxons. However, Arthur (Kirk Barker) a young warrior, questions Aberthol's true motives. After saving a Christian Celt woman from Aberthol's men, Arthur is mysteriously given a powerful sword that grants him visions showing him not only Aberthol's true intent, but also the one man who can defeat him. When Arthur is banished after confronting Aberthol over the Celt's latest defeat, he sets out to find the man for he knows who he is. The man is Merlin (Stefan Butler) a hermit wizard, who Arthur had saved many years ago, when both were young boys, from Aberthol. While Merlin first refuses to help, he changes his mind once he sees the sword Arthur wields, realizing that the gods that created him, have also chosen Arthur. Now Arthur and Merlin must fight together and defeat Aberthol and save their people. However, they soon learn that Aberthol's plan is far more sinister and far bigger than they originally thought.
The film premiered at the BFI Southbank cinema on 11 April 2015. [4] Later in 2015, the film was released digitally on 14 September via iTunes UK and on 6 November via numerous VOD services in the United States. It was also released in DVD format on 21 September in the United Kingdom, on 7 October in France, and will be released on 16 January 2016 in the United States and around the second quarter of 2016 in Germany. [5]
The film received some positive reviews. It was praised with regards to the relative quality and atmosphere in the movie when compared to its "shoestring budget". [6] [4] [7] [8]
Excalibur is the mythical sword of King Arthur that may possess magical powers or be associated with the rightful sovereignty of Britain. Traditionally, the sword in the stone that is the proof of Arthur's lineage and the sword given to him by a Lady of the Lake are not the same weapon, even as in some versions of the legend both of them share the name of Excalibur. Several similar swords and other weapons also appear within Arthurian texts, as well as in other legends.
Merlin is a mythical figure prominently featured in the legend of King Arthur and best known as a magician, with several other main roles. The familiar depiction of Merlin, based on an amalgamation of historical and legendary figures, was introduced by the 12th-century British pseudo-historical author Geoffrey of Monmouth and then built on by the French poet Robert de Boron and prose successors in the 13th century.
The Lady of the Lake is a name or a title used by several either fairy or fairy-like but human enchantresses in the Matter of Britain, the body of medieval literature and mythology associated with the legend of King Arthur. She plays several important roles in many stories, including providing Arthur with the sword Excalibur, eliminating Merlin, raising Lancelot after the death of his father, and helping to take the dying Arthur to Avalon. Different sorceresses known as the Lady of the Lake appear concurrently as separate characters in some versions of the legend since at least the Post-Vulgate Cycle and consequently the seminal Le Morte d'Arthur, with the latter describing them as a hierarchical group, while some texts also give this title to either Morgan or her sister.
Excalibur is a 1981 epic medieval fantasy film directed, cowritten and produced by John Boorman, that retells the legend of King Arthur and the knights of the Round Table, based loosely on the 15th-century Arthurian romance Le Morte d'Arthur by Thomas Malory. It stars Nigel Terry as Arthur, Nicol Williamson as Merlin, Nicholas Clay as Lancelot, Cherie Lunghi as Guenevere, Helen Mirren as Morgana, Liam Neeson as Gawain, Gabriel Byrne as Uther and Patrick Stewart as Leondegrance. The film is named after the legendary sword of King Arthur that features prominently in Arthurian literature. The film's soundtrack features the music of Richard Wagner and Carl Orff, along with an original score by Trevor Jones.
Morgan le Fay, alternatively known as Morgan[n]a, Morgain[a/e], Morg[a]ne, Morgant[e], Morge[i]n, and Morgue[in] among other names and spellings, is a powerful and ambiguous enchantress from the legend of King Arthur, in which most often she and he are siblings. Early appearances of Morgan in Arthurian literature do not elaborate her character beyond her role as a goddess, a fay, a witch, or a sorceress, generally benevolent and connected to Arthur as his magical saviour and protector. Her prominence increased as the legend of Arthur developed over time, as did her moral ambivalence, and in some texts there is an evolutionary transformation of her to an antagonist, particularly as portrayed in cyclical prose such as the Lancelot-Grail and the Post-Vulgate Cycle. A significant aspect in many of Morgan's medieval and later iterations is the unpredictable duality of her nature, with potential for both good and evil.
King Arthur is a 2004 historical adventure film directed by Antoine Fuqua and written by David Franzoni. It features an ensemble cast with Clive Owen as the title character, Ioan Gruffudd as Lancelot and Keira Knightley as Guinevere, along with Mads Mikkelsen, Joel Edgerton, Hugh Dancy, Ray Winstone, Ray Stevenson, Stephen Dillane, Stellan Skarsgård and Til Schweiger.
Arthur of the Britons is a British television show about the historical King Arthur. Produced by the HTV regional franchise, it consisted of two series, released between 1972 and 1973. ITV had already a reputation for entertaining historical TV shows that would display adventure and swordplay, such as The Adventures of the Scarlet Pimpernel (1956), The Adventures of Robin Hood (1955), The Adventures of Sir Lancelot (1956), Ivanhoe (1958) and Sir Francis Drake (1961). Like Richard Lionheart in the TV shows about Robin Hood and Ivanhoe this King Arthur shows greatness by making peace between the two foremost peoples in the England of his era. The looks of King Arthur and his brother-in-arms Kai resemble contemporary rockstars. Arthur of the Britons was broadcast repeatedly on numerous local ITV stations during the 1970s and 1980s.
Merlin is a 1998 two-part television miniseries starring Sam Neill as Merlin, recounting the wizard's life in the mythic history of Britain. Loosely adapted from the legendary tales of Camelot, the plot adds the antagonistic Queen Mab and expands Merlin's backstory before the birth of King Arthur.
The Sword in the Stone is a 1963 American animated musical fantasy comedy film produced by Walt Disney and released by Buena Vista Distribution. It is based on the novel of the same name by T. H. White, first published in 1938 and then revised and republished in 1958 as the first book of White's Arthurian tetralogy The Once and Future King. Directed by Wolfgang Reitherman, the film features the voices of Rickie Sorensen, Karl Swenson, Junius Matthews, Sebastian Cabot, Norman Alden, and Martha Wentworth. It was the last animated film from Walt Disney Productions to be released in Walt Disney's lifetime.
The Winter King: A Novel of Arthur is the first novel of the Warlord Chronicles trilogy by Bernard Cornwell, originally published in the UK in 1995 by Penguin Group. The book is based on characters and plot elements from Arthurian myth, but considerably changed and re-worked.
Mordred the Evil or Modred the Evil is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. He is based loosely on the Mordred of Arthurian legend.
Merlin is a British fantasy-adventure drama television programme, loosely based on the Arthurian legends regarding the close relations of Merlin and King Arthur. Created by Julian Jones, Jake Michie, Johnny Capps and Julian Murphy for the BBC, it was broadcast for five series on BBC One between 20 September 2008 and 24 December 2012. The programme starred Colin Morgan, Bradley James, Katie McGrath, Angel Coulby, Richard Wilson, Anthony Head, and John Hurt.
Avalon High is a 2010 American medieval fantasy film released as a Disney Channel Original Movie and starring Gregg Sulkin, Britt Robertson, Joey Pollari, and Devon Graye. The movie is loosely based on the 2005 book of the same name by Meg Cabot. It premiered on November 12, 2010, in the United States, January 22, 2011, in Australia and New Zealand, and January 28, 2011, in the United Kingdom.
Ector, sometimes Hector, Antor, or Ectorius, is the father of Kay and the adoptive father of King Arthur in the Matter of Britain. Sometimes portrayed as a king instead of merely a lord, he has an estate in the country as well as properties in London.
King Arthur: Legend of the Sword is a 2017 epic fantasy action-adventure film directed by Guy Ritchie who co-wrote the film with Joby Harold and Lionel Wigram from a story by Harold and David Dobkin, inspired by Arthurian legends. The film stars Charlie Hunnam as the title character and Jude Law as the tyrannical king Vortigern who is attempting to kill him, with Àstrid Bergès-Frisbey, Djimon Hounsou, Aidan Gillen, and Eric Bana in supporting roles.
"The Price" is the second episode of the fifth season of the American fantasy drama series Once Upon a Time, which aired on October 4, 2015.
"Birth" is the eighth episode of the fifth season of the American fantasy drama series Once Upon a Time, which aired on November 15, 2015. The episode serves as the first part of a 2-episode airing night that were unrelated, with the second part being "The Bear King".
The Kid Who Would Be King is a 2019 urban fantasy action-adventure film written and directed by Joe Cornish. A British/American venture, the film stars Louis Ashbourne Serkis, Tom Taylor, Dean Chaumoo, Rhianna Doris, Angus Imrie, Rebecca Ferguson, and Patrick Stewart. The plot follows a young boy who finds King Arthur's legendary sword Excalibur and must use it to stop an ancient enchantress from enslaving the world with help from his classmates from school.
King Arthur(Arthur Pendragon) is a legendary figure used commonly in comic books.
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