Excalibur 4K 1981 Ultra HD 2160p

Story Movie

The wizard Merlin gives Lord Uther Pendragon the magical sword Excalibur, which allows him to become king. At a banquet celebrating the alliance between Uther and the Duke of Cornwall, Uther falls in love with Igraine, the duke's wife. The next day, Uther unsuccessfully besieges the castle and asks Merlin for help in using magic to spend at least one night with Igraine. The wizard decides to help, but asks for a high price: their child will belong to him. Igraine gives birth to a son, whom Merlin takes away. The duke's betrayal does not go unnoticed — no one trusts Uther, and he is attacked. Before his death, he thrusts Excalibur into a stone and proclaims that the sword can belong only to him. However, Merlin enchants the sword, promising that whoever pulls it from the stone will become king. The wizard decides to name the baby Arthur and predicts that he will become king.

Review 4K Movie

John Boorman's Excalibur is a true epic in a modern style (visual style, of course). And despite the fact that the original source of the work is Sir Thomas Malory, Burman has managed to create a beautiful picture, filled with glorious battles and sexy “princesses.” This fact alone, which sets the film apart from the familiar “noble style,” makes Mr. Boorman's creation worth hearing (and seeing).

Of course, it was not possible to completely abandon bravado, but the cinematography turned out to be excellent. There are also small but very impressive battle scenes, beautiful romantic moments, and the duality of most of the characters (which will not spare the viewer from internal contradictions).

According to those in the know, this adaptation is the closest to the original. But considering that the voluminous tome of almost a thousand pages is squeezed into less than three hours of screen time, it becomes clear where the crumpled and unspoken parts come from. Burman took a lot and, along the way, lost something. This is felt on an instinctive level, but it does not detract from the overall picture: the film is as strong as Excalibur itself, atmospheric in a good way, and completely ahead of its time. For this, we can forgive all the Trojan meanings about women and war that appear in the film.