King Arthur (2004)

Director:

Antoine Fuqua

Writer (WGA):

David Franzoni (written by)

Release Date:

7 July 2004 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | History | War

Tagline:

Rule Your Fate

Plot:

A demystified take on the tale of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table.

Plot Keywords:

Knight | Roman Empire | King Arthur | Britain | Knights Of The Round Table

Awards:

3 wins & 7 nominations

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Clive Owen	...	Arthur
Ioan Gruffudd	...	Lancelot
Mads Mikkelsen	...	Tristan
Joel Edgerton	...	Gawain
Hugh Dancy	...	Galahad
Ray Winstone	...	Bors
Ray Stevenson	...	Dagonet
Keira Knightley	...	Guinevere
Stephen Dillane	...	Merlin
Stellan Skarsgård	...	Cerdic
Til Schweiger	...	Cynric
Sean Gilder	...	Jols
Pat Kinevane	...	Horton
Ivano Marescotti	...	Bishop Germanius
Ken Stott	...	Marius Honorius

Also Known As:

King Arthur: Director's Cut (USA) (DVD title (director's cut))
Knights of the Roundtable (USA) (working title)
El rey Arturo (Argentina) (International: Spanish title) (Spain) [es]
Le roi Arthur (Belgium: French title) (Canada: French title) (France) [fr]
Король Артур (Russia) [ru]
King Arthur (Germany) [de]
Kral Arthur (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]
Kuningas Arthur (Finland) [fi]
Kuningas Artur (Estonia) [et]
Rei Arthur (Brazil) [pt]
Rey Arturo (Argentina) [es]
Vasilias Arthouros (Greece) [el]

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for intense battle sequences, a scene of sensuality and some language.

Runtime:

126 min | USA:142 min (director's cut)

Country:

USA | UK | Ireland

Language:

English | Latin | Irish Gaelic | Welsh | Scottish Gaelic

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Canada:13+ (Quebec) (director's cut) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Iceland:16 | Netherlands:16 (director's cut) | Malaysia:18PL | Malaysia:U (cut version) | Australia:M (Video rating) | USA:PG-13 (original rating) (certificate #40970) | Canada:G (re-rating) | New Zealand:M | Spain:18 (DVD rating) | Sweden:11 | Argentina:13 | Australia:MA (director's cut) | Australia:M (original rating) | Canada:14A (director's cut) | Chile:14 | Czech Republic:12 | Finland:K-11 (original rating) | Finland:K-15 (director's cut) | France:U (director's cut) | Germany:12 (original rating) | Germany:16 (director's cut) | Ireland:15 | Netherlands:12 | Norway:15 | Peru:14 | Philippines:PG-13 | Singapore:PG | South Korea:15 | Spain:13 (director's cut) | Spain:7 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | UK:12A (original rating) | UK:12 (video rating) (2004) | UK:15 (director's cut) | USA:Open (director's cut) (rating surrendered) | USA:R (director's cut) | Greece:K-13 | Brazil:14

Filming Locations:

Ardmore Studios - Herbert Road, Bray, County Wicklow, Ireland

Company:

Touchstone Pictures

Trivia:

Laurence Fishburne narrated the teaser trailer.

Goofs:

Factual errors: The film is set specifically in 467A.D., yet includes: the official withdrawal of the Roman army from Britain actually prior to 410, one of St. Germanus' visits to Britain in 429 or 447, Cerdic and Cynric's arrival in 495 and deaths in 534 and post-556 respectively.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Lancelot: [voiceover] By 300 AD, the Roman Empire extended from Arabia to Britain. But they wanted more. More land. More peoples loyal and subservient to Rome. But no people so important as the powerful Sarmatians to the east. Thousands died on that field. And when the smoke cleared on the fourth day...
[...]

Movie Connections:

Featured in Blood on the Land: The Making of a King (2005) (V)

Soundtrack:

Tell Me Now (What You See)

Move over Mallory. I really loved this one! ****

It is an excellent story about an ancient contemporaneous-to-post Roman occupation of Britain and the beginnings of the Saxon invasions. Merlin and Lancelot and Guinevere and Gawain and Galahad are all there, but in more ancient and believable roles. It is a different tale never before told and in a different time. The screenplay, acting, scenery, cinematography and casting are all extremely well-done. The men especially are cast well, and Guinevere is perfectly beautiful. The music is haunting and beautiful and fit for the time and reminds me of The Last of the Mohicans. The fights and battle scenes are exciting and done well. The only reasons I have read that some people did not like this film are that they wanted more of the same old Arthur/Camelot tale, and a 14th century setting, which, when you think about it, is totally unbelievable. This, to me, was much more believable and realistic. Move over Mallory. I really loved this one.