Tuesday, October 1, 2013

King Richard and the Crusaders



"War, war, war! That's all you talk about, Dick Plantagenet!"
I've found "King Richard and the Crusaders" to be a capable (if overlong) and enjoyable swashbuckler. Yes, there are marvelously insane lines like that of this review's title, but these aren't the real crusades anyway, are they? The swashbuckler is to history what the renaissance faire is to the Middle Ages and Renaissance: a bathed, combed, disease-free and carefree romp in "period" clothing. If you want grim authenticity, the swashbuckler is not for you.

The story, based on Sir Walter Scott's "The Talisman", concerns Sir Kenneth, a Scottish knight who defends King Richard against treachery in the Holy Land. There's a joust, sword fights, chases on horseback, and plenty of swashbuckler intrigue, comedy, and romance.

All the actors in "King Richard and the Crusaders" acquit themselves well and energetically. Rex Harrison is an amusing Saladin, George Sanders is, well, George Sanders as King Richard (and that's fine with me),...

Ineptly written, poor in colorful characters and chivalry...
The fifties was Hollywood's decade of change... With television's continuing stronghold on the public, the film industry had to rethink itself into competing against the monster box and, in so doing, underwent a radical personality change...

Clearly, the only way to lure audiences back into the cinema was to provide them with something that was unavailable on television. The alternatives soon became apparent: new projection ratios that could in no way be matched by the small screen, epics whose production costs were beyond the reach of TV...

"King Richard and the Crusaders" begins with Richard the Lionhearted (George Sanders) and his allies having hardly set foot in the Holy Land on the Third Crusade when a group of treacherous nobles plans to kill Richard and take command of the whole operation...

Sir Kenneth (Lawrence Harvey) makes his appearance as a noble Scotsman, the only knight who is truly loyal to Richard... He warns the king about the...

review
I had been looking for this item for some time and was really satisfied with everything except price. I thought it was a little high but I paid it anyway. somewhat begrudgingly

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