Legendary wizard Merlin tells his story of his war against Queen Mab of the Sidhe and his creation of Camelot.
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In the Dark Ages, Merlin the magician finds himself in opposition to Queen Mab and her cohorts.
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In the Dark Ages, Merlin the magician finds himself in opposition to Queen Mab and her cohorts.
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Legendary wizard Merlin (Sam Neill, "Jurassic Park") recounts his many adventures, including his young love for Nimue (Isabella Rossellini, "Suspiria"), the heroic tragedy of Arthur and Guinevere (...
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Title: Merlin (1998)
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Storyline
The legend of King Arthur ( Paul Curran ), this time, from the perspective of the King's Wizard, Merlin ( Sam Neill ). Merlin is a creature born of pagan magic, living in a world converting to Christianity. Merlin is beside Arthur as he gains Excalibur, builds Camelot, and is betrayed by his wife, Guinevere (Lena Headey). Merlin and Arthur are menaced by the plots of Morgan Le Fey (Helena Bonham Carter), her son by Arthur, Mordred (Jason Done), and their cohorts. Through it all, Merlin tries to keep Arthur from the destructive path set by fate. Written by Michael "Rabbit" Hutchison <rabhutch@spacestar.net>
Plot Keywords:
sir lancelot du lac character | sir mordred character | merlin character | sir gawain character | queen guinevere character |Taglines:
The most magical adventure of all time. See more »Certificate:
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Morgan: Oh, you would think of the future, Merlin. Because the past is too painful.
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Trivia
Rachel Colover (Lady Igraine) is better known as British gardener and television presenter, Rachel De Thame. See more »Goofs
Every actor playing Merlin at different life stages has a different eye color. Baby Merlin has dark brown eyes; teen Merlin has unnaturally bright blue ones; adult Merlin has normal blue; and elderly Merlin has brown again. See more »Quotes
Merlin: I'm thinking of the future here Morgan.Morgan: Oh, you would think of the future, Merlin. Because the past is too painful.
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Alternate Versions
The televised version has scenes that are not on the video version and viceversa. See more »Frequently Asked Questions
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Language:
EnglishRelease Date:
26 April 1998 (Canada) See more »Also Known As:
Merlin See more »Edit
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Budget:
$30,000,000 (estimated)Company Credits
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MERLIN finally makes some sense of the Arthurian Legend. Certainly the liberties taken here answer many of the questions wrought by other tellings of the tale (EXCALIBUR, in particular). Effects, cinematography and sound are outstanding for a TV production. However, key casting weaknesses seriously undercut the effectiveness of the tale. Sam Neil is simply dull as Merlin. It is hard to believe this is the same actor who did such a memorable job in THE HUNT FOR RED OCTOBER. Equally weak (in a small but pivotal role) is Jeffrey Sheffield as Lancelot. Where is the charm and inspiring goodness of other Lancelots? Those qualities are necessary to lend tragedy to the events of Camelot.
There ARE indeed outstanding performances on display. Miranda Richardson is simply fantastic in a dual role (Queen Mab, The Lady of the Lake). Her Mab suffers less from evil than arrested adolescence. Her powers allow her to DO evil rather than BE evil. On the other hand, the actor that plays the adult Modred is deliciously evil. Even when his ethical arguements are reasoned, his evil intent slides through, enabling us to root for Arthur. Billie Whitelaw as Auntie Ambrosia is touching and powerful. Best, perhaps of all is Martin Short, as Frick. His wonderful scenes with the equally capable Helen Bonham Carter (as Morgan Le Fay) are the best of the film. Despite the logical development of the story, I do have one small quibble. From the time of the birth of Merlin to the time of the birth of Arthur is at least 21 years. From the time of the Birth of Arthur to the time of the birth of Modred is at least 17 years. Although Modred is reputed to grow astonishingly quickly, he must have been at least 16 years to challenge Arthur. So Merlin and Nimue must have been at least 54 by the time of the battle between Arthur and Modred. Nevertheless, neither Merlin nor his love Nimue have aged since Neil and Isabella Rosselini took over the parts. Hmmm...