Chivalry, Connery and Camelot. What could go wrong? Alas, plenty does in Jerry Zucker's
version of the King Arthur legend. Sean Connery is Arthur, Richard Gere his noble knight,
Sir Lancelot, and Julia Ormond is the beautiful Queen Guinevere, the woman torn between
them.
There's no Merlin, no Mordred, no Excalibar, no Lady of the Lake. Okay, so it's not
Malory, but for its first hour, the movie works so well that it hardly matters (high
romance, high adventure, all that nifty Renaissance Festival stuff).
But in the second half, the movie doesn't just veer too far from its source; it turns
downright stupid - like the Camelot legend retold by thick-headed 12-year-olds.
Connery looks a bit miffed - as if he doesn't like being too old (finally) to get the
girl. Gere is unexpectedly effective as a Lancelot who's more wandering warrior than beau
chevalier. Best of all is Ormond whose forthright beauty and sense of honor recall Ingrid
Bergman. Plus, she manages to bring a touch of the '90s to the part without falling into PC
cliches.
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