Sit down, friend. Let me tell you about a film I watched last night that caught me completely off guard. Excalibur. I'd heard the name thrown around, sure, but I wasn't prepared for what John Boorman delivered. This might just be my favorite take on the Arthurian legend, and coming from a Caledonian who grew up hearing these stories around fires and in halls, that's saying something.
What struck me first were the darker, almost horror-tinged moments. The film doesn't shy away from the brutality, the madness, the haunting aspects of the mythos. When Merlin works his magic, it feels dangerous, ancient, otherworldly. There's a sequence involving Morgana that genuinely unsettled me, and I've seen things in the mists of Caledon that would make most folk pale. This is fantasy with teeth, fantasy that remembers the old stories weren't always safe.
But Boorman balances that darkness with genuine mysticism and the classic Arthurian essence. The quest for the Grail, the Round Table, the sword in the stone, Excalibur itself gleaming with that unearthly light... it's all here, treated with reverence but also reimagined with a bold, operatic vision. The film swings between intimate character moments and grand, mythic spectacle, and somehow it works.
The cast? By the gods, what a lineup. Gabriel Byrne as Uther Pendragon brings raw intensity. Liam Neeson shows up as Gawain, and you can see the presence he'd become. Helen Mirren as Morgana is magnetic and terrifying. Nigel Terry carries the weight of Arthur's journey from naive boy to broken king to redeemed legend. And Patrick Stewart as Leodegrance, young and fierce before he captained starships.
But the real achievement here is John Boorman. Director, producer, co-writer. The man had a vision and he committed to it fully. Every frame drips with symbolism, every scene feels intentional. Some might say it's too much, too operatic, too grand. I say it's exactly what the Arthurian legend deserves. These aren't small stories. They're myths that have echoed through centuries.
The film is unapologetically earnest about honor, duty, betrayal, and redemption. In an age where everything is ironic and detached, Excalibur believes in its own story. And because it believes, so do you.
Look, I pour ale and listen to tales for a living. I know good storytelling when I see it. Excalibur is the real thing. It's messy in places, sometimes excessive, occasionally confusing, but it's alive. It pulses with the same energy as the old songs we sing in Caledon about Arthur, Merlin, and Camelot.
Highly recommended. Pour yourself something strong, settle in, and prepare to see the Once and Future King like you've never seen him before.