“A Knight’s Tale” – PG-13 – New This Week to Video/DVD
It’s been called a modern day Knight’s tale . . . and that it was!
A peasant, William (Heath Ledger) finds his Knight dead and decides to take his place at a Knight’s Jousting competition. His two peasant friends, Roland and Wat (Mark Addy and Alan Tudyk) accompany him. After winning the competition and getting the much needed prize money, William figures he too should be a Knight. They start off toward the next competition when they meet a naked stranger, Chaucer (Paul Bettany). Chaucer, an unknown writer, informs them he can forge Knight paperwork, so he can enter the contests. So, they take him along too.
At the next competition William meets the girl of his dreams, Jocelyn (Shannyn Sossamon) and a Knight who is soon to be his biggest nemesis, Count Adhemar (Rufus Sewell). While William is busy winning his matches to impress Jocelyn and win the prize money, he is also infuriating Adhemar. Adhemar wants to find a way to stop William, but can he?
Brian Helgeland wrote and directed A Knight’s Tale. When this movie first came to the theaters, we heard so much about the music. The audience in the movie banging to “We Will Rock You” by Queen was a bit strange for this era of movie, but it wasn’t done with too much overkill. It actually made the movie a bit more fun. The soundtrack is one of the best movie soundtracks in a long time.
The movie was more of a comedy than any other genre. William’s sidekicks, Mark Addy, Alan Tudyk and Paul Bettany were fabulous. They were all very funny and made the movie really enjoyable. Heath Ledger did a great job in his first starring role. He played his character with wit and compassion. When I first saw Ledger in 10 Things I hate about You I predicted great things for him. I am sticking to that conclusion!
Ok, the villian. Rufus Sewell is indeed creepy. Each time I see him in a movie, he is usually playing the bad guy. This was no exception. He made me despise the character of Adhemar, which was his job and he did it well. I did get the chance to see Sewell in a romantic comedy and he was quite convincing in that also. My conclusion: He is a really good actor!
All in all, I would recommend this movie. Most of the higher paid critics, lol, did not give this movie good reviews, but that’s why you have me! I don’t usually agree with those said critics. I also came away from this movie with a new up and coming star to watch out for. No, it’s not Ledger, but an actor I had never seen before. He had the small role of Colville/Edward, but he was fantastic. His name is James Purefoy. Keep an eye out for him!
So, rent this movie if you are interested in a light comedy with a group of talented actors. If you disagree with my opinions, let me know!
Enjoy!
©2001 KAC