(no subject)

[framlingem]

Have finally managed to watch King Arthur. It was okay, despite the lack of any non-superficial research. Why were the people North of Hadrian's Wall speaking Gaelic? The Gaels, the Scotii, weren't there in strength until a couple of hundred years later! At that point we'd be talking Picts. There was confusion as to what language people were speaking (okay... the Woads spoke Gaelic, the priests prayed in Latin, the Saxons were presumably speaking one of the Saxon dialects even if it did sound like English with a German or American accent depending on the speaker - fair enough, they're talking amongst themselves... but what language were the knights speaking? Latin presumably, but then why was the priest singled out as speaking a special language?), and apparent non-acquaintance with a dictionary by the person who wrote the script. Dude, 'decimated' does not mean what you think it does. When you're describing a slaughter, a term that means that ninety percent of the people got away is not the term to use. Annihilation, sure. Massacre, sure. But not decimation. Also, why was Lancelot in it? He was a late French addition to the legends - you can tell by the way his name doesn't fit in with any of the other characters. Arddu, Gwynhwyfar, Bedwr, Bors, Gawain, Balyn, Balan... Lancelot. One of these things is not like the others.

*end persnicketiness*

Aside from that, there was a lot of highly enjoyable shiny stuff and pretty people. Particularly Ioan Gruffudd. I also liked the mentions of Pelagius and Bishop Germanus; that shows that _some_ effort at research was done, and it did go a bit deeper than "I remember this from high school, kinda."

Or maybe the writers have read Jack Whyte... except Whyte did his research.

Oh well. Good action film, as an action film, but forgettable; at least, to me.

Comments

[decken.livejournal.com]

Ohhh, there was so much wrong with that film! But it had lots of man-pretty. And I got so incredibly bored in France I bought the DVD, mostly because I was amazed at how many languages were available in subtitles and dubs.

[framlingem.livejournal.com]

There was stuff wrong with that film I didn't even go into! Oh man... the guy at the beginning who fell into water... in chain-mail... and got up no problem? That stuff's heavy. And sticks to things like mud. Oh, and people waving swords around in ways that would have dislocated things if they'd be iron and not steel. Hacking through a stone wall with an iron ax? I don't think so. Maybe it was a really badly built wall; but the Romans had cement.

But yes, lots of man-pretty. Gawain was pretty good-looking. And Tristan. At least, I think it was Tristan. I don't remember him being referred to by name. The one with the hawk.

I'll have to check out the languages tomorrow, and maybe listen to a bit of the French dub. It always cracks me up to hear Parisien French in movies for some reason. Especially period pieces; the Quebec dialect is much more similar to older French because there was less cross-contamination.

/geek

[decken.livejournal.com]

Ohh yeah, was there ever! I try not to think about it. But um, I liked the one with the hawk, and Ioan Gruffudd of course. ; )

Hm, interesting about the Quebec French, but that makes sense. Since I think they were over here longer than the English were (?), and even American English has retained some aspects that are more historically "correct" than the Brits have. I think Quebec accents are sort of... weird though. The accent reminds me of my high school French classes.

[framlingem.livejournal.com]

European French sounds to me like... well, you know when people talk to babies in that very singsongy voice? Like that. I gotta keep telling myself that people actually talk like that and that they aren't condescending to me :p

And it's so darn slow!

[decken.livejournal.com]

Hm! I have the same problem with mistaking really strong Wisconsin accents for baby-talk, since we don't pronounce "th" and s-[consonant] combinations end up being sch-[consonant]. That on top of the German/Scandinavian lilt, it sounds a lot like someone talking to a kid. Oh, misinterpreting accents...

[full4zaccordion.livejournal.com]

Mads Mikkelsen (Tristan) (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0586568/) and Joel Edgerton (Gawain) (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0249291/). Both yummy men. But you forgot Clive Owen, who is also yummy, though only when he's scruffy and dirty.

[decken.livejournal.com]

Hm, well Mads Mikkelsen definitely backs up my friend's theory that all Danes are really hot...

[framlingem.livejournal.com]

LOL!

[decken.livejournal.com]

Finns too, she said. ;) And I've never seen any unattractive people from either country. Not that I've seen loads of people frome either...

[framlingem.livejournal.com]

Meh - I can live without Clive Owen. Didn't do much for me in the weak knees department.

But Mikkelsen is very nice indeed :)