cambodian tire Posted July 24, 2004 Posted July 24, 2004 Excalibur rocks! I got the DVD cheap. when I was a kid we had this pre VHS/beta movie player that was a big record/casette thing, that you'ld have to flip around half way through the movie. (can't remember what the format was called at this time) I used to pester my parents to rent Excalibur again and again after I had seen it once, some times they caved but I asked non stop for like a year. BTW bsu legato the current DVD isn't totaly bare bones, it includes a feature length comentary by Boorman, trailer and "production notes" I know not exactly earth shattering but for for five bucks ......not so bad. Quote
christ Posted July 24, 2004 Posted July 24, 2004 Zardoz!!!! Best ending evah! It's Sean Connery's Barbarella. Vinny- I had to give you a response as everyone else ignored it. I don't know why everyone doesn't love Zardoz. Brilliant sci fi and proto-Excalibur John Boorman. Quote
Amped Posted July 24, 2004 Posted July 24, 2004 Zardoz!!!!Best ending evah! It's Sean Connery's Barbarella. Arghhh!!!! That is, unfortunately, a fairly good comparison for Zardoz. Overblown sci-fi weirdness, entertaining tho it may be... As for Excalibur... it will always and forever be the ONLY movie versin of the Arthurian mythos for me. God I love that movie. I remember seein' it back in the early 80s on my buddy's VHS (or beta?) and being so stoked... it was the perfect prelude to one of the neighborhood D&D summertime gaming sessions!!! Of course, after seein' that flick everybody who had a Paladin just HAD to have plate armor!!! Quote
bsu legato Posted July 25, 2004 Posted July 25, 2004 BTW bsu legato the current DVD isn't totaly bare bones, it includes a feature length comentary by Boorman, trailer and "production notes" I know not exactly earth shattering but for for five bucks ......not so bad. A Boorman commentary? Well I suppose that's better than nothing. Either way, this is a film I've passed up for too long. Quote
areaseven Posted July 26, 2004 Author Posted July 26, 2004 As for First Knight, how could Connery stoop so low? And why were the knights wearing blue spandex? You're kidding, right? No wonder I skipped this movie after seeing five minutes of it on HBO. Quote
areaseven Posted July 26, 2004 Author Posted July 26, 2004 When I was a kid, we had this pre VHS/beta movie player that was a big record/casette thing, that you'd have to flip around half way through the movie. (can't remember what the format was called at this time) Sounds like you had a CED player. Those things were overpriced and totally cumbersome. I'm glad laserdiscs replaced them. Quote
Agent ONE Posted July 26, 2004 Posted July 26, 2004 As for First Knight, how could Connery stoop so low? And why were the knights wearing blue spandex? You're kidding, right? No wonder I skipped this movie after seeing five minutes of it on HBO. Its one of those movies you wish you could un-watch. Quote
areaseven Posted August 5, 2013 Author Posted August 5, 2013 To celebrate John Boorman's 80th birthday and his six decades of filmmaking, a documentary on the making of Excalibur has been made. However, the producers need at least US$30,000 for post-production. Despite not reaching their goal at Indiegogo, they are still intent on releasing this documentary this year. Behind the Sword in the Stone Quote
Duke Togo Posted August 5, 2013 Posted August 5, 2013 (edited) Holy thread rez. Love this movie, and hope the docu gets finished. Edited August 5, 2013 by Duke Togo Quote
Uxi Posted August 5, 2013 Posted August 5, 2013 I've always wanted a longer cut or at least the material that was deleted (a piece of one scene in particular is shown in the trailer, where Lancelot is taking out some bandit on horseback, said to be attacking Guenevere or something like that (presumably on the way to the wedding?) and I think there's reference to a few more in a couple other places. I have the DVD and the Blu-ray is as probably as good as it gets but will buy anything with more content, including that docu. Quote
Max Jenius Posted August 5, 2013 Posted August 5, 2013 Love this movie! I KNEW Merlin looked familiar! Quote
Duke Togo Posted August 5, 2013 Posted August 5, 2013 Love this movie! I KNEW Merlin looked familiar! Nicol Williamson? Quote
Max Jenius Posted August 5, 2013 Posted August 5, 2013 Nicol Williamson? Yes. The Spawn movie is a guilty pleasure of mine. Quote
Dynaman Posted August 6, 2013 Posted August 6, 2013 Excalibur was THE only good Fantasy movie till Lord of the Rings(*). Hard to fault the anachronism or plate mail when the thing is fantasy to begin with. The Arthur movie that started this thread was pretty bad. (*) - Princess Bride was excellent, but it was a comedy. Sword and the Sorcerer gets an honorable mention for being sooooo bad it was good. "Hawk the Slayer" falls into the almost decent category too, if only for the rapid firing Elf and the machinegun crossbow. Quote
mechaninac Posted August 6, 2013 Posted August 6, 2013 (edited) Excalibur was THE only good Fantasy movie till Lord of the Rings... Almost agree with you, except that I find Dragonslayer to be a very good medieval, sword and sorcery, fantasy movie too; and to this day, Vermithrax Pejorative is the most impressive depiction of a classic western Dragon/Wyvern to ever grace a motion picture (the ones in Reign of Fire were almost as superb, but the film sucked)... can't wait to see what Smaug will look like. Edit: And speaking of dragons, that is one of my minor gripes with Excalibur. Merlin keeps referring to it, but the "dragon" is just a metaphor, and/or a name for the spirit of the land itself, and the semi-sentient source of Merlin's power, and the sword's too. Edited August 6, 2013 by mechaninac Quote
Noriko Takaya Posted August 6, 2013 Posted August 6, 2013 Cherie Lunghi is still a do-able babe for 61. I'd hit that. Quote
Golden Arms Posted August 6, 2013 Posted August 6, 2013 (edited) Time bandits was another excellent fantasy film from the 80's yeah she was pretty hot. Edited August 6, 2013 by Golden Arms Quote
electric indigo Posted August 6, 2013 Posted August 6, 2013 Almost agree with you, except that I find Dragonslayer to be a very good medieval, sword and sorcery, fantasy movie too; and to this day, Vermithrax Pejorative is the most impressive depiction of a classic western Dragon/Wyvern to ever grace a motion picture (the ones in Reign of Fire were almost as superb, but the film sucked)... can't wait to see what Smaug will look like. Thank you for bringing up Dragonslayer, the effects work was spectacular at the time, and the rest of the movie is quite good, too. If you can do without knights, I'd like to add "The Dark Crystal" to the list of "good fantasy movies before LOTR". Quote
1st Border Red Devil Posted October 17, 2013 Posted October 17, 2013 "Hawk the Slayer" falls into the almost decent category too, if only for the rapid firing Elf and the machinegun crossbow. I mean, Hawk the Slayer is such a classic. Its got the original Jabba in it! One of those 'so godawful its great' things. Quote
TehPW Posted October 18, 2013 Posted October 18, 2013 isnt there a scene near the end of Excaliber, where a bunch of knights are hanging around in pieces ala Predator-vibe violence? Quote
areaseven Posted October 18, 2013 Author Posted October 18, 2013 Isn't there a scene near the end of Excalibur, where a bunch of knights are hanging around in pieces ala Predator-vibe violence? Yup, that was during Perceval's quest for the Holy Grail. Quote
EXO Posted October 19, 2013 Posted October 19, 2013 No love for Ladyhawke, around here? I was going to mention that. The 80s actually had a decent amount of fantasy films. They had more of those than westerns. Dragon Slayer is on my tops though... right under Princess Bride... lol. Quote
Duke Togo Posted October 20, 2013 Posted October 20, 2013 No love for Ladyhawke, around here? The soundtrack kills the movie for me. Otherwise I like it. Quote
taksraven Posted October 20, 2013 Posted October 20, 2013 (edited) Of course, the GREATEST KING ARTHUR FILM EVAR has already been made.......!!!!! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QTQfGd3G6dg Edited October 20, 2013 by taksraven Quote
1st Border Red Devil Posted October 20, 2013 Posted October 20, 2013 (edited) No one loved The Sword & the Sorcerer? Sheesh, kids these days. I mean, just because we waited 30 for Tales of the Ancient Empire.... Edited October 20, 2013 by 1st Border Red Devil Quote
Dynaman Posted October 20, 2013 Posted October 20, 2013 No one loved The Sword & the Sorcerer? Sheesh, kids these days. I mean, just because we waited 30 for Tales of the Ancient Empire.... I loved it! But even at the time I knew it was rubbish. Hard to beat the 3 bladed sword with spring action blades though! Quote
PetarB Posted October 21, 2013 Posted October 21, 2013 I hadn't seen EXCALIBUR for over 20 years and just started rewatching it yesterday. Although there have been some good scenes so far, I think it's aged poorly to be honest and Nigel Terry not the best Arthur I could imagine. Having said this Gabriel Byrne's role as Uther is certainly memorable, although sex in a suit of armour was sure to be quite frustrating! I'm looking forward to watching the rest of it though. I think the original 'Le Morte d'Arthur' is ready for a new film. I'd love to see a serious take on it, full of tragedy, blood, celtic magic, and with some great 'unknown' actors in meaty roles. I know over the last decade or two we've had a couple of takes on the subject but they never felt like they drew from the original poem much. The one with Clive as Arthur felt like it was telling a completely different story, and older one with Sean Connery was very forgettable. I think it's time for a nice big juicy production! Quote
Dobber Posted October 21, 2013 Posted October 21, 2013 Anyone ever see Hearts and Armour? I remember seeing it in high school in my history class. Chris Quote
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