A Knight's Tale (2001)

Director:

Brian Helgeland

Writer (WGA):

Brian Helgeland (written by)

Release Date:

11 May 2001 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Comedy | Romance

Tagline:

From peasant to knight; one man can change his stars

Plot:

After his master dies, a peasant squire, fueled by his desire for food and glory, creates a new identity for himself as a knight.

Plot Keywords:

Knight | Tournament | Chaucer | Jousting | Peasant

Awards:

4 wins & 10 nominations

Cast

Heath Ledger	...	William
Rufus Sewell	...	Count Adhemar
Shannyn Sossamon	...	Jocelyn
Paul Bettany	...	Chaucer
Laura Fraser	...	Kate
Mark Addy	...	Roland
Alan Tudyk	...	Wat
Bérénice Bejo	...	Christiana (as Berenice Bejo)
Scott Handy	...	Germaine
James Purefoy	...	Colville
Leagh Conwell	...	Young William
Christopher Cazenove	...	John Thatcher
Steven O'Donnell	...	Simon the Summoner (as Steve O'Donnell)
Jonathan Slinger	...	Peter the Pardoner
Nick Brimble	...	Sir Ector

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for action violence, some nudity and brief sex-related dialogue.

Runtime:

132 min | 144 min (extended version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS (8 channels)

Certification:

Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PG (Alberta/British Columbia/Manitoba/Ontario) | USA:Unrated (extended version) | Malaysia:U | Iceland:L | USA:PG-13 (certificate #37532) | Argentina:Atp | Australia:M | Brazil:12 | Finland:K-11 | France:U | Germany:12 | Hong Kong:IIA | Hungary:14 | Italy:T | Netherlands:12 | New Zealand:M | Norway:11 | Peru:PT | Philippines:PG-13 | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:PG | South Korea:12 | Spain:T | Sweden:7 | Switzerland:10 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:10 (canton of Vaud) | UK:PG

Filming Locations:

Barrandov Studios, Krizeneckeho namesti, Prague, Czech Republic

Company:

Black and Blu Entertainment

Trivia:

Two of the characters in the film, Peter The Pardoner and Simon The Summoner, are characters from Geoffrey Chaucer's work, "The Canterbury Tales".

Goofs:

Continuity: In the final joust, Geoffrey sees that they need more time while Wat is strapping the lance to William's arm. He jumps up into the stand to make his introduction, which he does from the arm of the prince's chair. But in a reaction shot of John Thatcher, the arms are entirely Chaucer-free.

Quotes:

[first lines]
William: Should we help him?

Movie Connections:

Featured in "HBO First Look: The Making of 'A Knight's Tale'" (2001)

Soundtrack:

Low Rider

Jousting With A Modern Take

A story about jousting but this old knight's tale is anything but old because it mixes in satire of today's modern sports-audience age with some funny bits. Those include the overly dramatic public address announcer (boy, that's even more so since this film came out), rock music blaring out as the contestants do battle, etc.

The main characters are nicely varied with distinct personalities. Shannon Sossamon, however, was not quite up to leading-lady status and hasn't had a choice role like this since, either. I would have rather seen her "assistant" in this film, or the blacksmith woman, be the lead. Anyway, even though it's a bit long at 132 minutes, it's still entertaining most of the way, with some of the funniest bits at the beginning. However, it's just as much a romance (with Heath Ledger as the male lead) than a comedy.

What also is good is the sound and visuals in here: all high-class. The lance hitting an opponent made an interesting sound each time. The surround sound in here was good, too.

It's a film most people would like, and I recommend seeing it.