Excalibur
Excalibur is a 1981 epic dark medieval fantasy film directed, co-written 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.
Plot
In the Dark Ages, the sorcerer Merlin retrieves the magical sword Excalibur from the Lady of the Lake for Uther Pendragon, who is declared king. In exchange for their future child, Merlin helps Uther seduce Igrayne, the Duke of Cornwall's wife, while the Duke dies in battle. Igrayne gives birth to Arthur, and Merlin takes the boy. Ambushed by the Duke's men, a dying Uther thrusts Excalibur into a stone, as Merlin declares that he who pulls the sword from the stone shall be king.
More details
| author | John Boorman Rospo Pallenberg |
|---|---|
| contentLocation | England |
| director | John Boorman |
| editor | Donn Cambern John Merritt |
| events | Arthurian romance incest |
| genre | adventure fantasy horror romance |
| keywords | ambush arthur attack avalon break camelot dark ages drown duke of cornwall ector excalibur follow gawain gorlois guenevere guinevere holy grail igraine igrayne kay king arthur lady of the lake lancelot leodegrance lightning merlin mordred perceval percival round table sir ector sir kay sleep speak stonehenge the king urien uryens uther pendragon warn wed wound young man |
| musicBy | Trevor Jones |
| nomination | Academy Award for Best Cinematography |
| producer | John Boorman |
| productionCompany | Orion Pictures |
| publisher | Warner Bros. Pictures |
| theme | coming-of-age epic |