movies-msg - 3/17/08 Reviews of medieval and renaissance movies. NOTE: See also the files: info-sources-msg, med-letters-msg, publications-msg, videos-msg, masks-msg, puppets-msg, theater-bib, theater-msg. KEYWORDS: movie review medieval period renaissance ************************************************************************ NOTICE - This file is a collection of various messages having a common theme that I have collected from my reading of the various computer networks. Some messages date back to 1989, some may be as recent as yesterday. This file is part of a collection of files called Stefan's Florilegium. These files are available on the Internet at: http://www.florilegium.org I have done a limited amount of editing. Messages having to do with separate topics were sometimes split into different files and sometimes extraneous information was removed. For instance, the message IDs were removed to save space and remove clutter. The comments made in these messages are not necessarily my viewpoints. I make no claims as to the accuracy of the information given by the individual authors. Please respect the time and efforts of those who have written these messages. The copyright status of these messages is unclear at this time. If information is published from these messages, please give credit to the originator(s). Thank you, Mark S. Harris AKA: THLord Stefan li Rous Stefan at florilegium.org ************************************************************************ From: donna at envy.kwantlen.bc.ca (Donna Hrynkiw) Date: 3 Jan 90 18:15:00 GMT Organization: Society for Creative Anachronism Subject: Movie Review: Henry V I can't believe that nobody else has posted about this yet... Went to see the new Henry V movie on New Year's Day with some other SCA folks (in our party of 4 there were two Laurels and two Knights - and I'm not a peer). Overall impression: Excellent. An SCA must-see. Don't wait for the video, see it on the big screen. Diverse comments: - remembering that this is Shakespeare and not necessarily real history... - a young welshman (who's name escapes me at the moment - d*amn!) adapted the play for screen, directed AND starred as Harry. Did an excellent job. - costumes are not magnificent/opulent/glittery, but IMHO fairly accurate and probably very close to what a nobleman would wear day-to-day. They reminded me very much of SCA-wear. (Especially the cloaks and surcoats.) - effective use of narrator ("Chorus"). - Too many close-ups of Henry's face during his speeches. - good to see Henry and other nobility wearing heraldic surcoats. I wonder if the mundanes realized the significance? Also: watch for French nobility in their fancy-quilted gambezons. - armour is a bit sparse, but according to the Laurel-for-Armour in our party: "Wow! I want that!" Watch for the brass stars and trim. - helps to know a little French. Used in two scenes: Catherine, Princess of France in conversation with her Lady-in-Waiting and near the end where Henry is asking Catherine for her hand. (Both scenes very amusing, understanding French or not.) - Agincourt battle scene: awesome. If for no other reason, you *must* see this movie for the battle scene. Don't wait for it to come out on video - this deserves the big screen. - Personally, I think they placed too much emphasis on the showers of arrows from the English longbows. But then again, it *is* an English production. (And Knight in our party claims that the English didn't charge at Agincourt.) - I'm not familiar with Shakespeare's Henry V - does Part I really end with the humorous scene of mostly English-speaking Henry asking mostly French-speaking Catherine for her hand in marriage? I found the contrast between the desperation, violence and gore of the battlefield with the light love-banter a little jarring. - Effective use of humour. In one scene, the night before the big battle, Henry dons a cloak and goes among his men anonymously to hear what they have to say. One soldier, in the course of his discourse, strikes the "stranger" with a glove. His reaction when the King returns the glove is priceless. But after all is said and done, I want to see this movie again before it leaves the theatre. And then I want a copy for my video library and maybe I'll even look for the soundtrack (great welsh chorus). Elizabeth Braidwood Donna Hrynkiw Barony of Lions Gate, Kingdom of An Tir Kwantlen College donna at envy.kwantlen.bc.ca Surrey, B.C. */ Things won are done; joy's soul lies in the doing. -Troilus & Cressida /* From: inmet!justin at UUNET.UU.NET (Justin du Coeur MKA Mark Waks) Date: 4 Jan 90 15:07:16 GMT Organization: Society for Creative Anachronism Elizabeth Braidwood asks why no one else has posted to recommend the new film of Henry V. Good question; I'm not sure how I overlooked doing so myself. (I've only been telling everyone in Carolingia (at some length) to go see it for the past two weeks!) Well, I'll echo her recommendation: this is a *marvel* of a movie, one of the best adaptations of Shakespeare to film I've seen yet. The director/ producer/adaptor/star is named Kenneth Branaugh, as I recall (spelling probably mangled); his acting is quite good, the production and adaptation are excellent, and the direction is top-notch. (The only fault in the direction is that he isn't as good directing himself as he is the rest of the cast.) Lessee; little points... The heraldry is *really* neat, and looks quite authentic to my half- trained eye; I suspect that the heraldry used is generally historically accurate. Brian Blessed is marvelous playing Essex. (Granted, he's playing Essex playing Brian Blessed, but he's always *so* entertaining...) I have mixed feelings about the Agincourt scene. It's very ... realistic. That is to say, it's *very* long, and *very* bloody. On the other hand, it's quite dramatic, and seemed pretty true to what history I know about the battle. Yes, they put quite a bit of emphasis on the archery; on the other hand, those arrows *were* pretty important in the battle. (Of course, I went to see it on a Carolingian Company of Bowmen field trip, so it's a tad hard to be impartial in this matter...) As for buying the tape when it comes out: yes, yes, yes! This is the fourth movie I've ever decided is worth full price, *whatever* the full price is, out of my fairly huge tape collection. (For reference, the other three are Knightriders, Lion in Winter, and Fantasia.) Definitely a film worth keeping for posterity... Ah, I'm missing it already. Fortunately, I'm running another trip to go see it tonight... -- Justin du Coeur Fan of good medieval cinema From: aluko at portia.Stanford.EDU (Stephen Goldschmidt) Date: 4 Jan 90 20:04:01 GMT Organization: Stanford University I saw the film in Berkeley before Christmas. The Agincourt scenes are definitely a must-see, but I found the dialogue quite difficult to understand, (esp. the heady dialects and French parts). Perhaps it was partly the acoustics of the theatre. The Herald (Montjoy) and the heraldry were extremely well done. The St. Crispin's Day speach should be memorized by every King who ever hopes to lead troops in battle. Those were my impressions. mka: STephen Goldschmidt aka: Juls Siwaldsen net: aluko at portia.Stanford.EDU (If your mail bounces, don't post it!) geo: Palo Alto, California USA phone: (415)494-1748 From: joshua at paul.rutgers.edu (Joshua Mittleman) Date: 8 Jan 90 17:50:19 GMT Organization: Rutgers Univ., New Brunswick, N.J. Greetings from Arval! My lady and I went to see Henry V last weekend, and loved it. It is grand, splendid, spectacular, and good Shakespeare. Derek Jacobi makes a fine chorus. The interpretation is different from Olivier's version, but quite valid. BTW: If anyone out there HASN'T seen Olivier's Henry V, Shame on you! Rent it & watch it. It is better. However... Any medievalist seeing the new Henry would have some quibbles. If you haven't seen it yet, you might want to skip the rest of this posting. It has a few minor spoilers Did anyone else notice the following, positive and negative? Negative: ...The only full suit of armor in the movie was 3 or 4 hundered years out-of-period? ...Why don't warriors in movie wear helmets in battle? ...Why did they all get off their horses to fight in the mud? ...Why didn't they show us the French charge. I know it would have been expensive, but after that build-up, it would have been WONDERFUL! ...In the scene after the battle, did you notice that two of the dead bodies twitched? ...Are we really supposed to believe that the King of England lives in such Spartan surroundings? ...Phooey. They cut the scene where Fluellen makes Pistol eat a leek. Olivier's version did that so well. ...There were only two pieces of heraldry used before the battle. Seems odd to me. ...Where was the English herald? He's in the script, and should have been there (Professional jealousy). And, they cut my favorite line, when, after one of the scenes between Henry & Mountjoy, Henry tooses him a bag of gold, saying "Here's for your troubles." :) Positive: ...Did you notice that the treaty signed in the last scene has an illuminated capital? ...The heraldry in the battle made up for lots of the negatives. Wow! ...Period tennis balls!! ...I love that they made all the noblemen young, just like they should be!! A lot of the play is much more believable when Henry, the Dauphin, etc. are in their twenties, rather than their forties. ...Was the actor who played Essex REALLY the same guy who fought Danny kaye in the Court Jester? No, not really, but he sure looked the same! Awaiting your flames :) Arval. ======================================================================== Joshua Mittleman (joshua at paul.rutgers.edu or mittle at ibm.com) H0-E12 T.J. Watson Research Center PO Box 704, Yorktown Heights, NY 10598 From: WAXY at CORNELLA.CIT.CORNELL.EDU (Wendy Alberg) Date: 8 Jan 90 16:57:58 GMT Organization: Society for Creative Anachronism William de Corbie mentions Polanski's Macbeth, which appeared here in late '72 or early '73 and then vanished. It's a very real-feeling film, not stagey or self-conscious; it was so real I found it terrifying. It is a very good film nonetheless. -Gwdiauwen Gwdiauwen ferch Gwdolwyn Wendy Alberg Dominion of Myrkfaelinn Ithaca, NY BITNET: WAXY at CORNELLA Internet: waxy at cornella.cit.cornell.edu From: trifid at agora.rain.com (Edward Fitzgerald) Date: 22 Feb 91 08:32:24 GMT Organization: Open Communications Forum Mercy,mercy ME! My dear, hast thou not heard that "Henry V", new version, is now available? And what about Ladyhawk, Dragonslayer, and Highlander? (Admittedly the last three have a strong streak of fantasy/SF...but my friends all have copies! :) Oh, and despite the terrible fantasy armor, Excalibur has some good points...certainly no worse than Black Shield of Falworth! (And to soothe the nerves of us high-strung Gaels I very strongly recommend a little thing by Tapestry Productions/Paramount called "Portrait of Ireland" with NO dialogue...just swooping vistas of Ireland accompanied by music by Enya, James Galway, and The Chieftains. May be hard to find, but very lovely!) For the smalls..."Castle" and "Cathedral", educational partly animated videos by the same fellow who drew the books of the same name. (Look in your local library for these last three if you're lucky enough to have one that has videos like ours does! Oh, and in the same vein as "Portrait" is a video of "Prague Castle" with some lovely, spooky effects as the camera plunges and swirls through the huge castle and its many chapels, accompanied by music. Whoever the Czech film crew were, they were true artists! Distributed in the US by Kaw Valley Films. Happy hunting, and enjoy! :) Elaine NicMaoilan, who hopes you are as thrilled with Henry V, Portrait, and Prague, as she! :) From: Colin_Hart at mindlink.UUCP (Colin Hart) Date: 21 Feb 91 13:47:59 GMT Organization: MIND LINK! - British Columbia, Canada One more movie not to forget or miss is REVENGE OF THE BARBARIANS, despite its title an excellent movie on the Norse and a raid on Ireland by some Vikings and the problems that it leads to. This is a Swedish film and really good. On the other hand their is Lee Majors starring in the Norsemen. This should be junked for starters! Norsemen in furry bikinis horned helms etc! It gets even better, the leader Lee Majors often dons his armour, looks suspiciously like Italian Renaissance Parade Armour! also the Longship has a cabin below deck with a least at a guess a 12 foot ceiling! One of our local Norse types would like to buy every copy in existance and destroy them! Great movie for all the Hollywood Cliches, but definately not period! Colin Mackay of Balmaghie, Lions Gate An Tir From: david at twg.com (David S. Herron) Date: 25 Feb 91 21:32:37 GMT Organization: The Wollongong Group, Palo Alto, CA Jabberwocky -- humorous, yes, and at the same time rather accurate in some more gruesome period aspects. (Monty Python) Pathfinder -- An old Lapp legend about a kid who returns home from hunting to see his family be murdered. Runs away & has adventures & eventually revenges the murder. The acters & producers & everything is by native Lapp Landers. *GOOD* It was circulating about the bay area last summer Cyrano -- George Depardieu playing the ultimate fop. It's waaaaaay out of period for me, so it wasn't so interesting. But still very good and gave me a good chance to practice listening to French. It is currently circulating about the bay area. Knight Riders -- Er.. well, it's not period. But is SCA-related ;-). David -- <- David Herron, an MMDF & WIN/MHS guy, <david at twg.com> <- Formerly: David Herron -- NonResident E-Mail Hack <david at ms.uky.edu> From: lefaivre at lclark.UUCP (Rick Lefaivre) Date: 27 Feb 91 00:43:46 GMT Organization: Lewis & Clark College, Portland OR A really good movie that seems to have been overlooked is "The Return of Martin Guerre." It is a French movie with English subtitles and does a most fantastic job of recreating a French medieval village and has a captivating plot line to boot. I highly recommend this film to everyone. -- Rick LeFaivre From: CONS.ELF at AIDA.CSD.UU.SE (Ake Eldberg) Date: 28 Feb 91 22:28:01 GMT Greetings from William de Corbie! If you aren't determined to see all films in a cinema, there is a very good Ivanhoe on Video. It was made for television, as far as I can see from the text on my copy, but it has the format of a real movie theatre film. Starring James Mason, Olivia Hussey and several other stars. Contains VERY GOOD jousting scenes and has very good, authentic equipment (though at least parts of it is a little later in style than the 12th century, but nothing that sticks out as out-of-period). I recommend this wholeheartedly if you can find it over there. I believe it was made around 1980. There is also a very long video film entitled "The power of the Sword" in Swedish -- original title unknown -- which comes on two cassettes and tells the life and times of William the Conqueror. This has a lot of fighting and very good costuming, but rather poor actors. Worth seeing, though. William From: dlc at hpfcso.FC.HP.COM (Dennis Clark) Date: 27 Feb 91 18:52:24 GMT Organization: Hewlett-Packard, Fort Collins, CO, USA One more to add to the list is a VERY hard to find film, *The Sword and the Dragon* This movies had some american nonsense tacked onto the front and the end of the film, but the middle was a very obviously dubbed slavic fairy-tale! The movie was wonderful! Slavic may also be misleading, because as I think on it, it seemed to be somewhat Finnish in nature also... Costuming was great, story was charming, acting was of the "Larger than life" style that one finds in the Kalevala or Mabinogian type of tales. My squire and I got it because it had "cast of dozens, ten thousand horses!" on the credits, and it was correct. The ten-thousand horses part came towards the end during what looked like a real Mongul horse-charge! The story is kind-of an Ivanhoe sort, I can't really explain it, I guess that I'll need to see it again! Kevin - Outlands From: 0002853615 at mcimail.COM (William Linden) Date: 5 Mar 91 02:37:00 GMT Reply-to: Alfgar the Sententious (0002853615 at MCIMAIL.COM) In <9040005 at hpfcso.FC.HP.COM> Dennis Clark <dlc at hpfcso.fc.hp.com> writes: >*The Sword and the Dragon* > This movies had some american nonsense tacked onto the front and the end of >the film, but the middle was a very obviously dubbed slavic fairy-tale! The >movie was wonderful! Slavic may also be misleading, because as I think on it, >it seemed to be somewhat Finnish in nature also... Costuming was great, story No, Russian! It is a very loose adaptation of the sagas of Ilya Murometz and the Golden Table champions of Kiev. From: CONS.ELF at aida.csd.uu.se ("]ke Eldberg") Date: 16 Apr 91 03:47:59 GMT Organization: The Internet Greetings from William de Corbie. I just got home after seeing a really good movie which should suit most of us SCAdians. It is Gerard Depardieu's "Cyrano". This is 17th century, i.e. not period, but who cares. The story is about Cyrano de Bergerac, the fencer with the enormous nose. It is fun, tragic, moving, beautiful. The photography is masterly, there are great battle scenes, wit, poetry, duels. The film is French, and Hollywood could never have made it. See it. William From:_Hollie Domiano Subject: A great film Date: 18 Apr 91 On the <Apr 16 20:13>, "]ke Eldberg" (1:114/15 at v_p) whispered in my ear: "E>Greetings from William de Corbie. "E>I just got home after seeing a really good movie which "E>should suit most of us SCAdians. It is Gerard Depardieu's "E>"Cyrano". This is 17th century, i.e. not period, but who "E>cares. "E>The story is about Cyrano de Bergerac, the fencer with "E>the enormous nose. It is fun, tragic, moving, beautiful. "E>The photography is masterly, there are great battle "E>scenes, wit, poetry, duels. The film is French, and "E>Hollywood could never have made it. "E>See it. Greetings, m'lord William. I saw Cyrano myself and thoroughly enjoyed it. Gerard Depardieu was fantastic, and the nose was very convincing makeup. As for the period, well, there is some controversy about it, but I like cavalier costuming. Our barony had a cavalier event last year. Four stars! Ysabeau Madeleine deRouen Axemoor, Meridies From: esp at cup.portal.com (Emily Sue Pinnell) Date: 16 Apr 91 04:56:21 GMT Organization: The Portal System (TM) Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Another great film for SCAdians starring the same actor is "The Return of Martin Guerre." Also French, it is period, and is fantastic. Everyone should see it. (My own humble opinion.) Amelie d'Anjou From: klw30 at duts.ccc.amdahl.com (Karen Williams) Date: 4 Jun 91 20:56:22 GMT Organization: Amdahl Corporation, Sunnyvale CA CONS.ELF at aida.csd.uu.se ("]ke Eldberg") writes: >From the latest Robin Hood movie (the one with Patrick Bergin) >I quote: >(Will Scarlet berating a Norman baron:) > "A land ruled by thieves, robbers, murderers and autocrats!" ><snicker> I got a chuckle out of that one, too. I saw this movie last night (through the magic of videotape), and I was impressed. When I first saw Robin Hood, I thought, "Hey, he's dressed like a Saxon!" And the Normans were dressed like Normans, and had Norman haircuts, and carried Norman kites and spears, and had Norman helms. And the Saxon clothes were different from the Norman clothes, and everything. Of course, I wasn't surprised when I saw in the credits that the historical advisor was Professor Sir James Holt, who is the premier Robin Hood scholar around. Branwen ferch Emrys The Mists, the West -- Karen Williams klw30 at duts.ccc.amdahl.com From: mittle at blinn.watson.ibm.com (Josh Mittleman) Date: 14 Jun 91 20:05:14 GMT Organization: IBM T. J. Watson Research So much for this summer's big SCAdian draw. Better to rent the Errol Flynn version, and Connery's 'Robin and Marian", and do a double feature at home. Arval. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- (excerpts from The New York Times, 14 June 1991, p.C1) by Vincent Canby If you let a bunch of unskilled carpenters loose in Sherwood Forest, don't be surprised if you wind up with a load of kindling. That's about the only coherent response to Kevin Reynold's "Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves," starring Kevin Costner as that once-merry man Robin of Locksley, aka Robin Hood. The new movie is a mess, a big, long, joyless reconstruction of the Robin Hood legend that comes out firmly for civil rights, feminism, religious freedom, and economic opportunity for all. ... It's a measure of hwo muddled the movie is that the only two entertaining characters are subsidiary: Robin's beloved Marian, a beautiful, intelligent, strong-willed woman played by Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, and the screenwriters' own invention, Azeem, a Moor, played by Morgan Freeman with a wit and humor that are otherwise not found in the film. Mr. Costner and his associates seem to ahve approached their subject without a clear idea about the kind of move they wanted to make. In the production notes, there are jokey references to the classic 1938 version and the fact that Mr. Costner refused to wear the sort of green tights sported by Errol Flynn's Robin Hood. It takes chutzpah to look down upon your betters. ... It is just one of the film's oddities that when Robin and Little John have their initial encounter on the bridge, Mr. Costner's Robin seems a good 20 pounds heavier than he does that same evening. With or without the extra weight, Mr. Costner is the film's big problem. He plays Robin as if the character were a movie star being gracious to his fans. He is polite, but he doesn't exert himself... This Robin Hood gives the impression of being lethargic and dull. Sometimes he may be under-acting. At other times, he seems to be doing nothing at all... From: dlc at hpfcso.FC.HP.COM (Dennis Clark) Date: 19 Jun 91 22:33:09 GMT Organization: Hewlett-Packard, Fort Collins, CO, USA / badorion at watyew.uwaterloo.ca (Brian A. Dorion) / writes: >In article <9106171724.AA20900 at inmet.inmet.com> justin at inmet.inmet.COM (Justin du Coeur MKA Mark Waks) writes: >> >>The cast was fine, except for a minor annoyance named Kevin Costner. Having >>the only really conspicuous American accent in the cast, he managed to mouth >>pretty speeches in a rather lifeless manner. > >??????????????????????????????????????????? > >I have to ask, wasn't Christian Slater in the movie you saw? Every time >"Will Scarlet" opened his mouth, it was like getting kicked in the teeth. >I thought his american accent was much, much worse than Kevin Costner's. > >Overall the best comment that I heard was that Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves >was a live action cartoon, and the actors who did best were those like the >sheriff who recognized that they were in a cartoon. I agree completely. Azeem, the Sheriff (and his cousin), Marian, and several others overplayed their parts to the larger-than-life theme quite well. Rather like the job that Kurt Russel did in _Big Trouble in Little China_. Costner _underplayed_ his part, he almost seemed embarassed to be Robin; he would have done better to ham it up for this movie. Still, it was a fun movie. Good action, good characterization, even the majority of the garb was period, though not all of the same period, rather like the SCA... I had hoped for better, but for the price I payed it was worth it. I and about 50 other SCA-types got in for free by doing a demo for opening night. The theatre asked us back in the fall, to do one for this movie in the fall!? >Brian Dorion Konrad Matthias Jager >---------- Kevin MacKinnon - Unser Hafen - Outlands From: jvincent at eagle.wesleyan.edu (The Ulair) Date: 17 Jun 91 02:15:19 GMT Organization: Wesleyan University > So much for this summer's big SCAdian draw. Better to rent the Errol Flynn > version, and Connery's 'Robin and Marian", and do a double feature at home. I had a somewhat better appraisal of the film, but that IS a damn good time at home. > > (excerpts from The New York Times, 14 June 1991, p.C1) > > by Vincent Canby > the screenwriters' own invention, Azeem, a Moor, played by Morgan Freeman Wrong. Azeem (Azim) appears rather frequently in the legend prior to the Douglas Fairbanks film. I found the more fully fleshed Will Scarlet intriguing, and Alan Rickman ( the Sherrif) gives a typical good performance (mixed w/ off-center humor). > It takes chutzpah to look down upon your betters. True enough. > It is just one of the film's oddities that when Robin and Little John have > their initial encounter on the bridge, Mr. Costner's Robin seems a good 20 > pounds heavier than he does that same evening. Trivial. > With or without the extra weight, Mr. Costner is the film's big problem. > He plays Robin as if the character were a movie star being gracious to his > fans. He is polite, but he doesn't exert himself... This Robin Hood gives > the impression of being lethargic and dull. Sometimes he may be > under-acting. At other times, he seems to be doing nothing at all... True. But, perhaps the view of Robin not a charismatic Hero, but as (roughly) highly-motivated Everyman is the look he was after. I recall your review of HENRY V. What do you think of the actual LOOK of the film (Grimy castles, costumes, etc.)? -J From: Ioseph Subject: Re: Arval's Robin Hood review Date: 21 Jun 91 TU>From: jvincent at eagle.wesleyan.edu (The Ulair) TU>> the screenwriters' own invention, Azeem, a Moor, played by TU>Morgan Freeman TU> TU> Wrong. Azeem (Azim) appears rather frequently in the legend TU>prior to the Douglas Fairbanks film. ???????????? Would you tell me -where- he appears? As a -rabid- Robin Hood fan <grin> I would remember such....and such a person appears nowhere in the ballads (to my knowledge) nor in the published versions of the story (of which I prefer Howard Pyle's)..... -Ioseph of Locksley (the -original-) From: jakos at DPW.COM (Ceilene Jakos) Date: 19 Jun 91 13:49:07 GMT Organization: DP&W, New York, NY Rented "King Arthur--Young Warlord" last night and thought it was murky, messy and muddy enough to be an accurate accounting of an 'historical' legend! To my untrained eye, it was GOOD. Thea From: artemis at hlafdig.stonemarche.ORG (Diana Goldsmithe) Date: 14 Jul 91 06:00:47 GMT In all this talk of period matches and movies I had to share this one: we took out an old movie called *Knights of the Round Table* starring Robert Taylor and (I think) Ava Gabor. It said on the box it was a classic, and I certainly think everyone in the SCA would enjoy it- especially the tournament they have for Lancelot when he comes back from Scotland ("the Scots are revolting" says Lancelot, "The Scots are always revolting" says Arthur. Well, `in revolt', but my mind turned it around the right way) I won't tell you why you'll like the tourney- when someone goes out and rents it and sees, they can tell you. But anyway, while Lancelot is up in Scotland he is caught by a Pictish ambush, and his archers use this nifty little gadget with a tiny bellows attached to a fire box to light their flaming arrows. If someone could tell me whether the producers made it up, or whether they really had something like that, it would ease my mind considerably. Thank you Arastorm From: Richard.Boyko at weyr.FIDONET.ORG (Richard Boyko) Date: 26 Jul 91 23:09:21 GMT Organization: Benden Weyr, Saskatoon Sk. (306)-382-5746 Greetings from Werewulf of London! Yes, that's documentable! Seriosly, though, an excellent period movie is Lion in Winter. It stars Elizabeth Taylor as Elenor of Aquitaine. Peter O'Toole plays King Henry. a much more recent one is called Sorceress. It is in French with English Subtitles. It is a true story based on a manuscript in the French equivalent of the British Museum Library. There is Erik the Viking, if you want something silly. It stars John Cleese as Halfdan the Black. These are the only ones I can remember right now. There is an early film about Henry and Elenor. I can"t remember it's name right now. Avoid it like it was plutonium- laced plague rats. By the way, my persona's name is actually Layamon of York. Werewulf is my alter ego persona. -- Richard Boyko - via FidoNet node 1:140/22 UUCP: ...!herald!weyr!Richard.Boyko Domain: Richard.Boyko at weyr.FIDONET.ORG Standard Disclaimers Apply... From: moss at cs.umass.edu (Eliot Moss) Date: 27 Jul 91 15:42:41 GMT Organization: Dept of Comp and Info Sci, Univ of Mass (Amherst) Elizabeth Taylor as Eleanor of Aquitaine in Lion in Winter? It was Katherine Hepburn and she got an Academy Award for it. Still a great film, though! Aell Aethelwita, called Ellethel Bergental, East Kingdom -- J. Eliot B. Moss, Assistant Professor Department of Computer Science Lederle Graduate Research Center University of Massachusetts Amherst, MA 01003 (413) 545-4206, 545-1249 (fax); Moss at cs.umass.edu From: rhe6 at quads.uchicago.edu (mindy miriam rheingold) Date: 27 Jul 91 16:34:47 GMT Organization: University of Chicago _Lion in Winter_ stars Katherine Hepburn, not Liz Taylor, as Eleanor. It also features Timothy Dalton and the actor who played Arthur in Excalibur. Another great movie is _The Return of Martin Guerre_ (French, with subtitles), which is based on actual 16th century French court documents. One caveat about Lion in Winter: even though it has some of the best lines in cinema history ("I made Louis take me on a Crusade, etc...), some of them are rather anachronistic. I do not think, for example, that Eleanor of Aquitane would really have said "It's 1193, we're all barbarians," a) because seh would have felt no need to mention the date, and b) because she wouldn't have thought of herself as a barbarian (The English, on the other hand...) Mindy/ Madeleine From: rick at olivee.ATC.Olivetti.Com (Rick Meneely) Date: 30 Jul 91 01:21:55 GMT Newsgroups: rec.org.sca An excellent non-historical fighting scene is in "The Princess Bride" Staged between Cary Elwess ('The man in black') and Mandy "... Prepare to die" Pankin (sp???). It does an excellent job of playing with the audience. First it starts out as a simple line fight as in modern fencing but bursts into evermore complex exchanges. I would not say that it is the most realistic fight scene but it is certainly one of the best staged. Romeo and Juliet: There is an old version with Basil Rathbone (no - not as Romeo). He does an excellent rapier and dagger duel (and loses of course). This is no surprize as Basil I believe was an international fencing master. Unfortunately he made too good of a bad guy and always had to lose to that Errol Flynn guy. Errol Flynn by the way - was a very poor swordsman. Robin and Marion: This is simply an all around great film. It has Sean Connery (Robin), Audrey Hepburn (Marion), Robert Shaw (Sheriff) and Nicol Williamson (Little John) - remember him from "Excalibur" (Merlin) and "The 7 percent solution" (Sherlock Holmes). The armor is real (yes - even the mail) and correct for the time period. The fight scene between Robin and the Sheriff is excellent. It demonstrates the weight of the armor well, they even take a break during the fight to recover their wind. Probably one of the more realistic fight scenes I've seen. This film also does something that is very hard - it actually adds to the Robin Hood legend instead of simply retelling it. Some other good historical films: --------------------------------- The Conqueror: Charlton Heston, Tony Curtis (blaah!), Richard Boone (I think) Very good film of the Norman era in England - even the haircuts are right. El Cid: Charlton Heston The screenplay is a bit to much like a stage play but it's still worth watching. The Return of Martin Gueirre (sp??): Someone has already mentioned this film. It is very well made and based on a real person. - Anatar Mael Duin ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- | Rick Meneely | Internet: rick at .ATC.Olivetti.Com | | Olivetti Advanced Technology Center | | | Cupertino, Ca 95014 | When in Rome, do as the Visigoths...| | Disclaimer: The buck stops...There! | SACK IT!!! | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: trifid at agora.rain.com (Roadster Racewerks) Date: 1 Aug 91 05:26:30 GMT Organization: Open Communications Forum In article <416.28965438 at weyr.FIDONET.ORG> Richard.Boyko at weyr.FIDONET.ORG (Richard Boyko) writes: >Greetings from a much repentant Layamon of York! Terribly sorry to get >Katherine Hepburn and Elizabeth Taylor mixed up. >another good period movie is The Name of the Rose, Starring Sean >Connery as a 13th or 14th century Franciscan who solves a series of >murders at an italian[?] monastery. Several caveats, though. I don't >think that monks ewre quite as depraved and lecherous as Umberto Eco, >the Author, woul like us to believe. Second, the theory behind >witchcraft was not as well developed in the forteenth century as it >was portrayed in the film. F. Murray Abraham plays an excellent >Inquisitor. Another strongpoint is that the various theological, >philosophical, and social currents of the time are accurately >portrayed. It is a "heavy" film, in the sense that it helps to have at >least some idea what the nominalist/realist debate was all about. >Please stay away from Arthurian movies. If I had a dime for every >person who thinks that Excalibur is the Sword in the Stone, I would be >wealthy indeed. The Sword in the Stone was named Clarent. Read The >Sword in the Stone by the fourteenth century french poet who wrote it. >I can't remember his name offhand. >-- >Richard Boyko - via FidoNet node 1:140/22 >UUCP: ...!herald!weyr!Richard.Boyko >Domain: Richard.Boyko at weyr.FIDONET.ORG >Standard Disclaimers Apply... Milord, you will find the movie a good deal less confusing (though no less "heavy") if you read the book, which does give some better clues as to which heresy was which. It also makes a lot of the motivation easier to understand. (I recommend *both* forms.) NicMaoilan trifid at agora.rain.com From: cctimar at athena.cas.vanderbilt.edu (Charles de Mar) Date: 1 Aug 91 07:18:46 GMT Organization: Vanderbilt U. Student of Numerology To all the fisher folk upon the Rialto doth Charles de Mar send his greetings! Layamon of York hath written: > Please stay away from Arthurian movies. If I had a dime for every > person who thinks that Excalibur is the Sword in the Stone, I would be > wealthy indeed. The Sword in the Stone was named Clarent. Read The > Sword in the Stone by the fourteenth century french poet who wrote it. > I can't remember his name offhand. Is it not trouble enow to correct errors of historical fact, without trying to make others know the same myth thou dost, with the same details thou knowest? The sword in the stone, to the best of my knowledge, was not a historical fact, so its name is also not historical fact. The best we can do is say what the various authors say. In the English tradition, Sir Thomas Malory is probably the most "authoritative." Almost every author is agreed that Excalibur was the name of the second sword - the one that the Lady of the Lake told Arthur to take from the hand sticking out of her lake. Some authors use the alternative version, Caliburn, for the first sword, drawn from the stone, but this probably shows a desire just to name it something. The confusion of calling the first sword Excalibur is quite understandable: it is the only widely accepted name of Arthur's sword. In fact, the mistake is made by Malory himself, making it a documentable, period error. Arthur receives the second sword at the end of Book I, entitled, "Merlin." Prior to that point, he uses the sword he drew from the stone. Nonetheless, about a third of the way through this book, when Malory describes Arthur's battle against the six kings (on p. 19 of the Vinaver version, representing p. 9 of the Caxton edition, and probably the eighth leaf of the Winchester manuscript (the first eight leaves are missing)) we find: Syr said Merlyn to Arthur fyghte not with the swerde that ye had by myracle til that ye see ye go vnto the wers. Thenne drawe it out and do your beste. ... and euer sir Arthur was in the formest prees tyl his hors was slayne vndernethe hym. And therwith kynge Lot smote doune kyng Arthur. With that his four knyghtes rescowed [receyved?] hym and set hym on horsback. Thenne he drewe his swerd Excalibur but it was so bryght in his enemyes eyen that it gaf light lyke thirty torchys and therwith he put hem on bak and slewe moche peple. Incidentally, the movie, _Excalibur_, remained very close to the tradition of Malory. Not exactly authentic, but otherwise good. -- -- Charles de Mar, Vanderbilt University student of numerology and geometry From: KGANDEK at mitvmc.mit.EDU (Kathryn Gandek) Date: 5 Nov 91 18:41:19 GMT Organization: The Internet The other day I picked up The Black Arrow by Walt Disney in the children's section of the local video store. The background of the movie is supposed to be the War of the Roses. It has lavish costumes, okay fighting (there's only one actor who appears to have had any serious training, Oliver Reed, and I'm told the archery was awful), a nasty villian, a spunky heroine and a happy ending. The number of costume changes was actually quite amazing. I don't know if the style of clothes all belonged in the same time period, but they were quite lavishly constructed. The plot is a frothy one (minimal substance) about an evil man with innocent wards and an avenging figure from the past. A thoroughly enjoyable no-brainer. Catrin o'r Rhyd For Kathryn Gandek Barony of Carolingia Boston area East Kingdom kgandek%mitvmc.bitnet at mitvma.mit.edu Newsgroups: rec.org.sca From: fnklshtn at ACF1.NYU.EDU Subject: Russian garb (was Polish garb sources <was Re: Headdresses & Colors) Organization: New York University, NY, NY Date: Tue, 6 Apr 1993 20:49:20 GMT Genevieve asked after Polish and Russian costume sources. Soviet movies often did an incredible amount of historic research. I hardily recomend "Andrey Rublev" - a movie about the life of an important 15th cent. artist (it's also got lot's of blood and gutz and quite a bit of philosophy). Aside from Russian costume it's got a few Mongols running around. Incidentally, since both Polish and Russian clothing has a strong Persian influence I'll mention this: Look at clothing on DuraEuropos synagogue paintings (Persian 2nd cent.) and that worn by some of the more traditional Hasidim (based on Polish 18-19th cent.) - not much difference, ius there? Also, some of the Russian peasants still have not changed their clothing (since the 15th cent.). Nahum haKuzar <FNKLSHTN at acfcluster.nyu.edu> Newsgroups: rec.org.sca From: sclark at epas.utoronto.ca (Susan Clark) Subject: Re: Mailed feet (again...) Organization: University of Toronto - EPAS Date: Sat, 3 Apr 1993 03:33:18 GMT OK, I'll bite. I didn't see your original post, but I take it you're looking for references to armoured footwear. I'm not an armourer, but I have seen a terrfic video called "How a Man Schall be Armed"...it's put out though the Tower of London musuem, but I got my copy at the Metropolitan Musuem of Art in New York. I'm sure you could order it through one of these museums. Anyway, there are nifty close-up shots of a man putting on 16th century armour, including sabotons. BTW, there is a nother vido on the tape called "Masters of Defence" which describes the beginnings of fencing. Hope this helps... Nicolaa From: odlin at reed.edu (Iain Odlin) Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Subject: Re: Robin Hood; Men in Tights Date: 2 Aug 93 06:33:33 GMT And to Moreach's note of "Robin Hood: Men in Tights"'s existence, I add a rousing: Grab your friends and see it! It's stupid, it's ridiculous, and it's great fun! And a bloody good laugh. It helps if you're a movie trivia buff (There're dozens of sight gags referring to other movies -- I love being the only person in a theatre giggling at certain moments!), but that's only for the (sometimes not-so-) subtle stuff -- there's plenty of slap- stick, too. Besides: Cary Elwes almost does Errol Flynn better than Errol did! And he's cute to boot! ;) [And for those of you wondering about my 'orientation' right about now: I'm straight, but I'm able to appreciate beauty where I find it.] Your mileage may, of course, vary, but I've met noone who didn't at least find the movie amusing. Enjoy! -Iain Odlin, a man in tights "Are my seams straight?" ------------------------- Iain Odlin, odlin at reed.edu ------------------------- 10 Crosby Street, Level 3, Portland ME 04103 --------------------- N is for Neville who died of ennui --------------------- Newsgroups: rec.org.sca From: brandon at gauss.math.brown.edu (Joshua Brandon) Subject: Re: Robin Hood; Men in Tights Organization: Brown University Mathematics Department Date: Wed, 11 Aug 1993 20:28:26 GMT Dixit Vincent: > >A bunch of us at Canton Skraeling also went in garb (six atomic bodices, >several tunics, 2 men in tights, everyone else in mundanes) and enjoyed >the movie. Lots of groans at the jokes, lots of laughs at the slapstick, >no complaints about authenticity (yeah, like, who expects authenticity >from Mel Brooks?). Note: this is *not* a complaint about authenticity. Did anybody else notice that Prince John's men spent the entire movie going around with the arms of Castile and Leon on their chests?!? It *must* have been on purpose --- it was perfectly consistant, and when Patrick Stewart came in, he was wearing England! (Okay, it wasn't perfectly consistent --- Prince John's throne had France on it.) I was in hysterics! My girlfriend said "they must have put that in just for you, dear...." Great movie. :):):) ---Simon -- Joshua Brandon Brown Math Department brandon at gauss.math.brown.edu "It's never too late to have a happy childhood!" ---Cutter John YAZ/socrates Newsgroups: rec.org.sca From: mittle at watson.ibm.com (Arval d'Espas Nord) Subject: Re: Robin Hood; Men in Tights Date: Wed, 11 Aug 1993 20:54:41 GMT Organization: IBM T.J. Watson Research Greetings from Arval! Simon wrote: > Did anybody else notice that Prince John's men spent the entire movie > going around with the arms of Castile and Leon on their chests?!? It > *must* have been on purpose --- it was perfectly consistant, and when > Patrick Stewart came in, he was wearing England! It gets weirder: Stewart, as Richard, was wearing France quartered with England, the form of the English royal arms during the Hundred Years War. The answer is simple. Captain Picard travelled back in time twice: Once to take the English throne as Henry V and again to take the throne as Richard I. Which further explains why I was sitting on the edge of my seat waiting for Richard to bless Robin & Marian's marriage with "Make it so!" PS: I'm not sure when Castile and Leon were first quartered together, but I'm fairly certain it was after Richard I. > My girlfriend said "they must have put that in just for you, dear...." If it makes you feel better, everyone with whom I went noticed it, and only half of us were heralds. =========================================================================== Arval d'Espas Nord mittle at watson.ibm.com Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc,rec.org.sca From: Alexx at world.std.com (Alexx S Kay) Subject: Re: Three Musketeers movie Organization: The World Public Access UNIX, Brookline, MA Date: Wed, 17 Nov 1993 18:51:08 GMT There have been a number of people making reference to the current version of the Three Musketeers in comparison to the 70's version. I would just like to remind or inform you all of the truly excellent 1940's version, with Gene Kelly as D'Artagnan. Many of the stunts in the current version which were done with tricky camerawork and stunt doubles, Gene Kelly just *did*, and with more grace than I would have believed possible if I hadn't seen it. Go down to the video store and check it out! Alexx Alexx at world.std.com Newsgroups: rec.org.sca From: tbarnes at silver.ucs.indiana.edu (thomas wrentmore barnes) Subject: Re: Need Late Period Video Recommendations Organization: Indiana University Date: Fri, 25 Feb 1994 22:29:07 GMT The Return of Martin Guerre (15th c. French Peasants) Anne of 1000 Days (Anne Bolyn) Romeo and Juliet (Fellini 15th c. Italian) Blackadder (English War of the Roses comedy) All of these have their problems from a historical point of view (except maybe Martin Guerre) and all of them will have something that the Authenticity Police will gripe about, but they're good films in their own right. They also don't butcher history and grind the carcass into mincemeat like Robin Hood: Dances with Bows or some of the more dreadful 50's costume dramas. Romeo and Juliet has some duello, but since I'm not a light weapons fighter I don't know how good it is. Lothar (who's STILL waiting for a decent film set in the 14th c. to come out. The Navigators was O.K. but hardly distinctively 14th c.) From: julifolo at ux1.cso.uiuc.edu (watkins julia k) Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Subject: Re: Need Late Period Video Recommendations Date: 26 Feb 1994 11:49:21 GMT Organization: University of Illinois at Urbana I missed the original thread, so I don't know how late is late. I would like to recommend NAME OF THE ROSE (14th century) THE BLACK ROSE (17th century) Richard Lester's THREE MUSKETEERS (17th century) Yrs, Folo From: sclark at epas.utoronto.ca (Susan Clark) Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Subject: Re: Need Late Period Video Recommendations Date: 27 Feb 1994 02:15:17 GMT Organization: EPAS Computing Facility, University of Toronto This isn't a feature film, but it is germane to the discussion. The Metropolitan Museum of Art puts out an excellent film called _Masters of Defence_ which discusses the evolution of personal defence (fencing) from the early 16th-18th centuries. I highly recommend it. Cheers-- Nicolaa/Susan Canton of Eoforwic sclark at epas.utoronto.ca P.S.....lots of nifty swordplay, too! From: faust at ace.com (Faust) Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Subject: Re: thought experiment Date: Sun, 17 Oct 93 13:00:51 EST Organization: Argus Computerized Exchange Just to insert a small aside. The movie ARMY OF DARKNESS (nee' Evil Dead III) reads as a very silly version of A CT. YANKEE. With all the attendant problems being discussed here. (gunpowder, cars as battlewagons, etc.) Thomas of Berwick faust at ace.com From: UDSD073 at DSIBM.OKLADOT.STATE.OK.US (Mike Andrews) Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Subject: Re: Costumes: 6 Wives of Henry the Eighth Date: Mon, 23 May 1994 10:05 Organization: The University of Oklahoma (USA) MMS6824 at tntech.EDU writes: >I have been watching "The Six Wives of Henry the Eighth" and I am wondering if >anyone has any comments on the Costuming? It looks rather good to me, but I do >think that in at least one case (The Countess that dies with Catherine Howard) >the actress should have had more than one costume. >MArian of Clann Kyle. They're rather interesting close-up, too. My Lady Wife and I were privileged to see all the costumes for this film on our second voyage to England, where they were on display in the crypt of (?) Canterbury Cathedral, I think. They were still impressive close at hand, but it was obvious that some shortcuts had been taken in construction. As an example, the Archbishop's golden pectoral cross, so impressive in the film, turns out to have been made of some hundreds of the very smallest cup-hooks, all glued together and then spray-painted gold. Sic transit gloria mundi. -- Mike Andrews udsd007 at ibm.okladot.state.ok.us (192.149.244.2) From: melys at jabba.cybernetics.net (many waters cannot quench love) Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Subject: Re: movies Date: 29 Jul 1994 16:22:33 -0400 Dwight Kraai (dak at inel.gov) wrote: : What are your favorite medieval movies out there? The Warlord? El Cid? : Henry V? Going to buy some and am wondering what to get. my votes: the lion in winter (and who was it who had the "knowledgeable family" quote in his sig, anyway?) lady jane henry v and *don't* get 'the king's whore' (also known as 'the king's mistress'). it's pure schlock. Lady Angharad Melys Sacred Stone, Atlantia -- melys at cybernetics.net From: ESRLJHD at MVS.OAC.UCLA.EDU (Siohn Ap Govannan) Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Subject: Re: movies Date: Mon, 01 Aug 1994 07:09 Organization: UCLA Microcomputer Support Office melys at jabba.cybernetics.net (many waters cannot quench love) writes: >Dwight Kraai (dak at inel.gov) wrote: >: What are your favorite medieval movies out there? The Warlord? El Cid? >: Henry V? Going to buy some and am wondering what to get. > >my votes: > >the lion in winter >(and who was it who had the "knowledgeable family" quote in his sig, anyway?) >lady jane >henry v > >and *don't* get 'the king's whore' (also known as 'the king's mistress'). >it's pure schlock. > > ...melys, looking forward to seeing > other people's favorites... Alfred the Great (Good battles nice period feel, characters are rather 60's ish) Robin Hood (No not the silly one but the one with Patrick Berghan sp? once again nice period feel and this time fun characters) The Crusades (C.B. deMill at his gaudiest) Robin and Marian (Very good Richard cameo by Richard Harris) Ivanhoe (There are two versions in most video stores both are good for different reasons rent them both and you decide which you like best) Well this is a short list for now, More to come. Siohn ap Govannan Caid (Who is butting in on someone elses conversation but I'm a celt so its natural) >Lady Angharad Melys >Sacred Stone, Atlantia >-- >melys at cybernetics.net >that which does not kill me had better run like hell... Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Subject: RE: movies From: Mary Catherine Miller <D982 at ACADEMIC.NEMOSTATE.EDU> Date: 01 AUG 94 18:20:09 CST Organization: Northeast Missouri State University MUSIC System >What are your favorite medieval movies out there? The Warlord? El Cid? The Name of the Rose The Seventh Sign A Lion in Winter Any Robin Hood movie not matter how cheezie Much Ado about Nothing 1993 That's all I can think of for now. I look forward to making a checklist of of SCA folk's opinions on this matter. Slaine ni Cieran BTW I have a professor who says that Monty Python's The Holy Grail is one of the best medieval movies ever made. From: mabr at sweden.hp.com (Morgan "the Dreamer" Broman) Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Subject: Re: movies Date: 3 Aug 1994 10:49:26 GMT Organization: HP/SCA/SKA/FSTS/AMTS/SLRP/ETC Sweden Dwight Kraai (dak at inel.gov) wrote: : What are your favorite medieval movies out there? The Warlord? El Cid? : Henry V? Going to buy some and am wondering what to get. El Cid w. Charlton Heston (nice athmosphere, great masses of soldiers etc) Excalibur..;) (I know it is romantic fantasy...but then so is SCA..) Robin and Marion (Good clean fun...;) ) Ivanhoe (Simple and heroic...) Robin of Sherwood (TV-series w. Michael Praed(sp?) ) Monthe Python & The Holy Grrrraaiiil... Ciao Morgan// ....too many videos...sigh...;) -- HP : Morgan Broman mabr at sweden.hp.com Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Subject: Re: movies From: jvincent at eagle.wesleyan.edu (The Ulair) Date: 4 Aug 94 07:58:27 EDT Henry V (Branagh) is excellent, esp. as Agincourt reminds me of the Pennsic 18 field battle. Hamlet (Mel Gibson), especially the clothes and artistic direction. The Lion in Winter. Just darn good. The Vikings. Go figure ;-) A Man for All Seasons Assorted silliness: Erik the Viking The Black Shield of Falworth The Court Jester and for those in later period: The Three Musketeers (Richard Lester) The Four Musketeers (Richard Lester) -Splendid examples of '70s costume films. Richard III (Olivier) Much Ado About Nothing (Branagh) Elizabeth the Queen (Bette Davis) The Sea Hawk (Errol Flynn) From: mchance at crl.com (Michael A. Chance) Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Subject: Re: movies Date: 3 Aug 1994 20:22:12 -0700 Organization: CRL Dialup Internet Access Kvedjur fra Mikjal! Here are some of my favorites that haven't been mentioned yet: Becket (the first movie in which Peter O'Toole played Henry II) Has some scenes that rival _Lion in Winter_ for memorability. Ladyhawke (not exactly historical, but good, none the less) Also has (IMO) the best choreographed bastard sword fight in film. Blood and ??? (another Rutger Hauer film, he play Martin the Landsknect) Some fairly realistic combat scenes early on, good look at the grittier side of the Renaissance. Pleasant watching! Mikjal Annarbjorn -- Michael A. Chance St. Louis, Missouri, USA "At play in the fields Work: mc307a at sw1stc.sbc.com of St. Vidicon" Play: mchance at crl.com mchance at nyx.cs.du.edu From: goddess at access3.digex.net (Louise K. Rogow) Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Subject: Re: movies Date: 4 Aug 1994 04:33:07 -0400 Organization: Express Access Online Communications, Greenbelt, MD USA In article <31pmt4$fle at crl4.crl.com>, Michael A. Chance <mchance at crl.com> wrote: >Blood and ??? (another Rutger Hauer film, he play Martin the Landsknect) > Some fairly realistic combat scenes early on, good look at the > grittier side of the Renaissance. Flesh and Blood. I first saw that movie at a party where almost all the viewers started commenting on the garb. Keep the Faith, Louise From: Valdez at polisci.sscnet.ucla.EDU (Valdez, Jonathan POLI SCI) Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Subject: movies Date: 3 Aug 1994 21:30:16 -0400 Organization: the internet One movie which I haven't seen mentioned so far is _The Vikings,_ from 1957/8 with Kirk Douglas. Great movie, even if Tony Curtis really had no business being in any movie set before about 1900 . . . And _El Cid_ (along with a timely Ren Faire) was what really inspired me to get back into the SCA. A related note -- I distinctly remember seeing a movie set in pre-Norman England (I think) which had great battle scenes between Vikings and Saxons. My most vivid recollection is of the Vikings in a shield wall on a hill, standing in the rain, pounding on their shields before the battle. Anyone have an idea what movie this might be? Jonathan (Iban) From: ESRLJHD at MVS.OAC.UCLA.EDU (Siohn Ap Govannan) Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Subject: Re: movies Date: Thu, 04 Aug 1994 07:08 Organization: UCLA Microcomputer Support Office In article <2E403FD7 at courier.sscnet.ucla.edu>, Valdez at polisci.sscnet.ucla.EDU (Valdez, Jonathan POLI SCI) writes: >One movie which I haven't seen mentioned so far is _The Vikings,_ from >1957/8 with Kirk Douglas. Great movie, even if Tony Curtis really had no >business being in any movie set before about 1900 . . . And _El Cid_ (along >with a timely Ren Faire) was what really inspired me to get back into the >SCA. > >A related note -- I distinctly remember seeing a movie set in pre-Norman >England (I think) which had great battle scenes between Vikings and Saxons. >My most vivid recollection is of the Vikings in a shield wall on a hill, >standing in the rain, pounding on their shields before the battle. Anyone >have an idea what movie this might be? > >Jonathan (Iban) > Sounds like Alfred the Great, David Hemmings as Alfred and Michael York as the king of the Danes, directed by Richard Donner I believe, but am not sure, made in the 60's. I taped it off of the TV late one night and have never seen it in any video catalog or at any video store. Siohn ap Govannan Caid Newsgroups: rec.org.sca From: delint at meena.cc.uregina.ca Subject: RE: movies Date: Thu, 4 Aug 1994 12:36:14 GMT Organization: University of Regina, Regina, Sask., Canada In a previous article, Valdez at polisci.sscnet.ucla.EDU (Valdez, Jonathan POLI SCI) wrote: >One movie which I haven't seen mentioned so far is _The Vikings,_ from >1957/8 with Kirk Douglas. Great movie, even if Tony Curtis really had no >business being in any movie set before about 1900 . . . And _El Cid_ (along >with a timely Ren Faire) was what really inspired me to get back into the >SCA. > >A related note -- I distinctly remember seeing a movie set in pre-Norman >England (I think) which had great battle scenes between Vikings and Saxons. >My most vivid recollection is of the Vikings in a shield wall on a hill, >standing in the rain, pounding on their shields before the battle. Anyone >have an idea what movie this might be? > >Jonathan (Iban) That's probably _Alfred the Great_, silly show of the '60's. The battle scenes are GREAT (to give the viewers an idea of the horror of war, and thus protest Viet Nam, no doubt), but the plot development rushes past like a politburo funeral. Well suited for video, since you can compress some of the tedium (although it's generally historically accurate). Cedric van Kiesterzijl (Real life? Never use the stuff...) From: sclark at epas.utoronto.ca (Susan Carroll-Clark) Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Subject: Re: movies Date: 5 Aug 1994 00:12:09 GMT Organization: University of Toronto -- EPAS I'm feeling late period today. How's about: A Man for All Seasons (about Thomas More) Elizabeth R. (the six part series w/ Glenda Jackson) And of course, Blackadders I and II (no, they're not movies, but...) For those of you heading towards the 17the century, there's The Last Valley (30 years War, loads of famous people) and Cromwell (he looks WAY too good, but the costumes are nice) What's that movie about Michaelangelo and Pope Julius II? Cheers! Nicolaa/Susan Canton of Eoforwic sclark at epas.utoronto.ca From: sco at mchr.nteltec.com (Stephanie) Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Subject: Movie Review - Rob Roy Date: 29 Mar 1995 05:20:12 GMT My lord and I just returned from a preview of the new film "Rob Roy". Although this film is about 100 years OOP, it was absolutly stunning. The story of one Scotsmans fight against the system, it is a brutal, passionate, and visually stunning portrayal of rural life in the 1700s. Liam Neeson stars as Robert Roy MaGregor, a Scottish land holder who risks everything for his honour. Jessica Lange stars as his wife who must live with the consequences. The film is filled with wonderful dueling scenes, highland panoramas, castles where I would love to hold an event or two, and some costumes that I thought were lovely (but I am no expert in that field). If you have the oppertunity, I would recommend that you see this film and if you have an easily stirred heart, make sure you pocket some kleenex before you go. Rob Roy is currently set to open on April 12th. Lady Isabel d'Estella Baronial Scribe Barony of Twin Moons, Atenveldt -- Stephanie Valencia NTT sco at mchr.nteltec.com From: errickii at aol.com (Errick II) Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Subject: Braveheart,a review... Date: 27 May 1995 08:57:51 -0400 Braveheart the Movie! >" Has anyone seen this movie yet?" I've started seeing that question and already I've read the answers with the usual picky responses. Well today I saw it...and it's time for my review. ( Drum roll please...) (Soapbox mode on...tongue in cheek ;-) ) On a 4 star scale...... I rated this MOVIE ****** A 6 ?? U betcha!!! Best $1.25 an hour I've spent in a long time. Let me repeat, this MOVIE was excellent. Running time is 3 hours, you really get your moneys worth. I thought the acting, scenics, battle scenes, weapons, armor, in fact just about everything about the MOVIE was..., was..., spine tingling!??!. (words just fail me, gasp...). When you buy your ticket enter" SCA event mode" and ignore the minor things. Things like 1100AD personas interacting with 1500AD personas or an exposed plastic cooler laying next to a shield reenforced with mans greatest tool "Duct Tape" at a local event. In the MOVIE..., things like a hand and a half claymore in half sheath, blue painted men with kilts, unusual armor combinations, you know the usual things EVERYBODY bitches about. This is entertainment, not a historical thesis, sit back, relax, enjoy the leisurely pace of the first hour. Be prepared to cringe, cheer, laugh, and possiby shead a tear or two in the last couple of hours. Graphic violence is very much in evidence, and the battle scenes are awesome. This is a movie for stick jocks and stick jock wannaabees. I feel Mel Gibsons "persona" in this film could easily fit into the SCA, in fact it could be used as a guide to what it takes to makes a knight. Ok... have fun ripping on this one! As always, reprint rights are granted free. Donations of mead, etc. gladly accepted. (Soapbox mode off ). Errick errickii at aol.com From: salley at niktow.canisius.edu (David Salley) Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Subject: Re: Anyone seen Braveheart yet? Date: 27 May 95 15:42:47 GMT Organization: Canisius College, Buffalo NY. 14208 Better still, did anyone catch Mel Gibson on _The Tonight Show_ Thursday? Jay announces Mel, waits by wings, nothing happens for about twenty seconds, and then suddenly dozens of bagpipers start marching into the studio from stage left, stage right and the back of the audience all playing _Scotland the Brave_. Suddenly the camera zooms in and Mel is in the middle of the bagpipers wearing a tux from the waist up and a kilt from the waist down! The screaming of the women drowned out the bagpipes! It was wonderful. Mel brought canned hagis with him and Jay couldn't eat it while Mel was munching and eating. Jay was trying to find out what Mel had *under* the kilt. "Jay, why are you trying to look up my kilt?" "I want to know what's worn underneath." "Nothing's worn, the parts are in perfect working order!" The audience went wild! Mel brought out a live-steel claymore. My wife told me to stop drooling on the couch! "You're not even looking at me, how did you know I was drooling?" "I married you, now stop drooling!" - Dagonell SCA Persona : Lord Dagonell Collingwood of Emerald Lake, CSC, CK, CTr Habitat : East Kingdom, AEthelmearc Principality, Rhydderich Hael Barony Internet : salley at cs.canisius.edu (Please use this, reply may not work.) USnail-net : David P. Salley, 136 Shepard Street, Buffalo, New York 14212-2029 From: ESRLJHD at MVS.OAC.UCLA.EDU (John Doing) Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Subject: OK another Braveheart review Date: Tue, 30 May 1995 15:04 Organization: University of California, Los Angeles Ok I saw Braveheart last weekend. This is not a work of historical fiction but of historical romance (and I don't mean the torn bodice school). In my humble opinion the film owes more to its Hollywood anticedents then