While lacking the brutal impact of Jákl’s film, they tell a coherent story that holds up almost 70 years later. Instead, it’s an inexplicably Hollywoodized mishmash that tells a wholly invented story and leaves the interesting stuff to a two-sentence footnote at the very end.įor the real dish on Jan Žižka, check out Otakar Vávra’s Hussite Revolutionary Trilogy of Jan Hus, Jan Žižka, and Against All, itself the most expensive Czech movie ever made when released in 1956. The 20 best Medieval movies to watch while we wait for the next Game of Thrones Macbeth (2015) Seven Samurai (1954) Braveheart (1995) The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938) Black Death (2010) Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975) The Name of the Rose (1986) Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991) Army of. Kingdom of Heaven follows a blacksmith (Orlando Bloom) who joins his father (Liam Neeson) as a crusader on the road to the Holy City. Following Ridley Scotts Oscar-winning Gladiator, the idea of the filmmaker making another historical epic sounded like a great idea. The most expensive Czech film ever made should have told the story of one of the country’s greatest heroes, a slice of Czech history that is still impactful some 600 years later. Kingdom Of Heaven (2005) Rent On Apple TV. As their plot isn’t even sensible, it’s more like the whim of the filmmakers. He spends much of the film fighting Sigismund’s army led by Møller’s Torak at what feels like the whim of the royals. Promotional material touts Medieval as a “Czech Braveheart”, but where William Wallace fought for freedom, Jan Žižka fights for… reasons unclear, even (it seems) to him. What does all this have to do with Jan Žižka? Well, nothing, really. “We can always go to Rome next year,” he tells Caine’s Boresh as warring forces tear his country apart. Not to be confused with the Good King, Wenceslaus IV was nicknamed “the Idle”, and Roden portrays him with an almost frightening apathy. Sigismund, meanwhile, tells Rosenberg that he’ll re-kidnap Katherine and deliver her back in exchange for his support in Rome (in real life, Sigismund did eventually become the Emperor).ĭo we even care if Wenceslas makes it to Rome? No, and it’s doubtful this guy would have united an empire anyway. To get Rosenberg to honor his pledge, Boresh and Wenceslas hire Žižka and his motley crew to kidnap and ransom his fiancee, Lady Katherine ( Sophie Lowe). The Court Jester (1955) A hapless carnival performer masquerades as the court jester as part of a plot against an evil ruler who has overthrown the rightful King. The fictional Lord Boresh (Caine) secures safe passage for Wenceslas to Rome, but Rosenberg attempts to kill him before he can deliver the good news. Henry III of Rosenberg (Schweiger) has pledged to deliver those funds, but balks when Wenceslaus invites half-brother Sigismund I, King of Hungary (Goode) and his army to Bohemia. The money can be seen on the screen: in an age of CGI-infused action movies, it’s refreshing to see one where the battle scenes are genuinely performed by dozens or even hundreds of extras, and involve the use of carefully-orchestrated stunt work and practical effects. At an estimated budget of 500 million crowns (about $21 million), Medieval is the most expensive Czech movie ever made, and a passion project for its director. The film was directed by Petr Jákl, a former judoka who represented the Czech Republic at the 2000 Olympic games and later became a stuntman and actor (he worked on Bad Company and xXx in Prague) and ultimately director, making the true crime drama Kajínek and found footage horror movie Ghoul. Despite having only one eye for much of his military career, and being completely blind by the end of it, it is said that he never lost a battle. As alliances shift, Žižka finds himself drawn to the courageous, kindhearted princess who's stuck in the middle of a powerful and cruel tug-of-war.Medieval tells the story of the early outlaw years of Jan Žižka, a legendary Czech general who famously defended Prague from about ten thousand invading crusaders with a force of 80 soldiers atop Vítkov Hill during the Hussite Wars. Žižka takes the young and naive Katerina hostage, only to find that his former mentor is now working with Sigismund to brutally force Žižka to give her back. Wenceslas' brother, King Sigismund (Matthew Goode), unexpectedly aligns with Rosenberg, believing his older brother incapable of wearing the emperor's crown. Wenceslas' (fictional) adviser Lord Borš (Michael Caine) hires Jan Žižka (Ben Foster) and his army to kidnap the traitorous Lord Rosenberg's (Til Schweiger) fiancée, Katerina (Sophie Lowe), who happens to be the king of France's sister. The death of Emperor Charles IV left Christians divided into factions supporting either King Wenceslas of Bohemia or the king of France as the next Holy Roman Emperor. MEDIEVAL starts with some on-screen text that briefly explains the 14th century state of the Holy Roman Empire.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |