Hollywood Product: ‘King Arthur: Legend of the Sword’

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GENRE: Fantasy

THE PITCH: A gritty take on the Arthurian legend. A clever guttersnipe Arthur (Charlie Hunnam) learns he is the heir apparent and accepts his destiny when he pulls the mystic sword from the stone. Unfortunately his uncle Vortigern (Jude Law) would rather see him dead than be dethroned.

MONEY SHOT: When Arthur’s friends are in peril, he unleashes the power of Excalibur. Without spoilers, an epic smack down wielding the legendary sword like never before unfolds in less than a minute.

BEST LINE: Arthur is questioned by Jack’s Eye (Michael McElhatton) about a row with some Vikings when he asks, “How do you get money from a Viking?” Arthur quips, “I feel a joke coming on.”

FILM COST: $175 million.

LOCATION, LOCATION: The film was shot in Capel Curig and Snowdonia, Wales; various locations in Scotland, and Leavesden Studios in Hertfordshire, England.

MAST FROM THE PAST: Londinum, the town where most of the picture takes place, existed around 45 A.D. It is now the city London, England.

WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT? Vortigern colludes and makes blood sacrifices to the Syrens. Typically in Greek mythology and lore, the sirens are depicted as mermaids whose enchanting song leads sailors to their death. In this film the creature is a grotesque mashup of an octopus with eel-like tentacles and random female faces.

BY THE NUMBERS: Excluding TV series and miniseries, the legend or Arthur and the sword Excalibur has been told 58 times cinematically. Wikipedia cites 21 television series, and seven animated films have also been made.

NUMBER OF TIMES ARTHUR GETS HIS BUTT KICKED: Three

NUMBER OF TIMES ARTHUR KICKS BUTT: Four

BOTTOM LINE: Guy Ritchie continues to take iconic characters of English lore and transform them into blue collar heroes for the masses. Like his previous series of Sherlock Holmes films, Ritchie places his hero on the grimy, sooty streets of London (or Londinium in this instance) to make his character rough and relatable. Hunnam’s Arthur is street smart, lean and rugged b a typical Ritchie protagonist with a gift for gab and one-liners. As in his other films, Ritchie continues to stay within his wheelhouse using all of his signature story and cinematic tricks. A montage is used to tell young Arthur’s back story, and I counted five more throughout b which was two, too many. His use of slow motion and hyper-styled action sequences are par for the course, as well. Law is exceptional as a villain, while his rat pack of soon-to-be knights that include Djimon Hounsou, Aiden Gillen, Tom Wu, Kingsley Ben-Adir, and Neil Maskell have very little utility in this origin story, adding to the awkward lags and lulls throughout the film.

King Arthur Legend of the Sword is a likeable but bland adventure that looks, sounds and feels like a Guy Ritchie film. The takeaway is far too dependent on the temperament of his cockney-style of storytelling. If you like a rough-and-tumble story of a bloke done good, this matinee film will not disappoint. If you are seeking more structure, balance, and meat, this legend is not for you.

King Arthur: Legend of the Sword, Rated PG-13. 2.5 stars. 126 minutes. Directed by Guy Ritchie. Starring Charlie Hunnam, Jude Law, Astrid Berges-Frisbey, Djimon Hounsou, Eric Bana, Aiden Gillen. Opens May 12.