Screen/Society--"Excalibur" (John Boorman, 1981)

Film Screening:

"Excalibur" (John Boorman, 1981, 140 min, UK/USA, Color, DCP)

Behold, the Sword of Power! Excalibur! Forged when the world was young, and bird and beast and flower were one with man and death was but a dream. Given by Merlin to Uther Pendragon to unite the land in peace but wasted on lust. Driven into stone by Uther's dying hand, there to await the coming of a true King. A journey into the wonders and horrors of the imagination, this is the story of Arthur, the knights of the round table, the golden age of Camelot, the quest for the Holy Grail and of course, the wizard, Merlin.

"Of all the film adaptations that have wrestled with the Arthurian legend, the one that comes closest to capturing its grandeur is John Boorman's EXCALIBUR (1981), a mad, magnificent movie that belongs on any responsible list of modern cult classics." -- Adam Nayman

John Boorman's adaptation of the legend of King Arthur and his quest to find the Holy Grail is a visual feast made for the big screen, with an extraordinary cast that includes Helen Mirren, Gabriel Byrne, Nicol Williamson, Liam Neeson, and Patrick Stewart, Oscar-nominated cinematography by Alex Thomson, and a thundering score by Trevor Jones.

"Exquisite, a near-perfect blend of action, romance, fantasy and philosophy, finely acted and beautifully filmed by director John Boorman and cinematographer Alex Thomson." -- Variety

"Boorman found contemporary relevance in the eternal struggle between nature and law, violence and order, and eros and reason, with man's very existence poised anxiously between a primeval, Edenic past and a soulless, alienated present." -- MoMA

"The legend of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table receives its most impressive screen treatment in EXCALIBUR, from visionary director John Boorman (DELIVERANCE, HOPE AND GLORY). All the elements of Sir Thomas Malory's classic Le Morte Darthur are here: Arthur (Nigel Terry) removing the sword Excalibur from the stone; the Round Table's noble birth and tragic decline; the heroic attempts to recover the Holy Grail; and the shifting balance of power between wily wizard Merlin (Nicol Williamson) and evil sorceress Morgana (Helen Mirren)." -- IFC Center

"Boorman's whole movie career might be seen as leading to this point-the ig­niting of the mythical spark in a story which has long been his most cherished movie project." -- Harlan Kennedy, American Film