Mab(Miranda Richardson, who pwns hard as a witch(when doesn't she? She was the only thing that made that Kristin Kreuk Snow White flick watchable)... if one does continually feel like offering her something for that strep throat; she also does well portraying her sister, The Lady of the Lake, who accepts their approaching fate), Queen of The Old Ways(paganism), finds her existence(and that of all of magic) threatened by the invading force of Christianity(which is sadly presented/hinted at as somehow inherently superior... it's actually the one thing where this takes sides, as it otherwise does an excellent job of highlighting grey areas, with no distinctly and purely good or bad guys), and she creates the titular wizard(Sam Neill, who brings to life the hopeful and determined half-human) to win. It backfires, however, as he vows to defeat her, and a decades long battle between two practitioners of the dark arts ensues. This is a retelling of the legend of King Arthur, told through the perspective of Merlin(with his own love, Isabella Rossellini, who you, yourself fall for), and it fits in much more(people, locations, events) of the original story(and I understand this is pretty accurate to it), and a lot of the elements really come together. The all-star cast are all well-chosen(if Lena Headey, in her one role where she isn't a strong, independent female, is given relatively little to do), with Helena Bonham Carter(looking very Goth, even pre-Burtoning) as the dangerous Morgan Le Fey(who wants to take the throne), a vicious Rutger Hauer as a tyrannical king, a not only obnoxious(...it's the best he can do?) Martin Short as Frik the gnome(who you genuinely do find yourself becoming sympathetic to, as with a solid chunk of the fictional people in this), and of course, the booming voice of James Earl Jones as an ancient living mountain. They tend to deliver marvelous performances. While this is three hours long, it keeps you watching, with great pacing. This is driven by its character studies, the interpersonal relationships, the drama stemming, for example, from tradition(lineage deciding who reigns, etc.). If one removed all the supernatural aspects(that are enhanced by the meaning behind them) or replaced them with manipulation and technology, there would still be a wealth of plot and well-earned moments. The battles aren't bad. And unfortunately, we are thusly out of the realm of positives for this production. Filming can get really strange(I swear, at one point, the cameraman goes completely off the reservation, opting to follow around a flower petal caught in the wind... for a few minutes straight), and frankly never goes above the level of average. It's where you can really tell that this *was* made for television. Another aspect is the weak conclusion(where they really shoehorn in what they wanted(it shouldn't have been a happy one, I guess that's Hallmark's contribution), following its anticlimactic ending(which, frankly, could easily have come much earlier, nothing really happened late in this that enabled it to reach this point). The dialog ranges, and it certainly has its moments... the worst parts are without a doubt when they break the illusion by using modern sayings and pop culture references. Why do such a thing in this, as it otherwise entirely plants itself in the realm of fantasy and the days of yore. And what in the world was up with that brief offensive Chinese stereotype? Was that even a joke? This has that glorious early CGI that we now, at most, smile overbearingly at. Did they just not realize that, just because it's computer-driven, it still behooves you to mask effects that do not hold up to scrutiny? Note that I'm not accusing only this of such, it ran rampant after full, 3D animation became possible. But hey, you can't write "questionable FX" without the word "quest". There is a moderate amount of disturbing, bloody and violent content in this, as well as a little sexuality(not graphic). The DVD comes with the interesting, informational and amusing 19 minute behind-the-scenes featurette The Magical Making of Merlin and a small Photo Gallery. I recommend this to fans of the myth. 7/10
Review of Merlin
