King Richard & Crusaders
by David Butler
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Product details
Actor: George Sanders, Laurence Harvey, Rex Harrison, Robert Douglas, Virginia MayoDirector: David Butler
Edition: VHS Tape
Audio: English (Original Language), Analog
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, NTSC
Running Time: 114 minutes
Release Date: 1994-07-07
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Publisher: Warner Home Video
Studio: Warner Home Video
VHS Movie Reviews of King Richard & Crusaders
Movie Review: Panto season in Hollywood
Summary: 2 Stars
David Butler may have directed Calamity Jane and a slew of successful Doris Day pictures, but in 1954 he also directed one of the great on screen calamities, King Richard and the Crusaders, a well deserved entry in the original 50 worst movies of all time that pretty much killed off his career in features. For decades the epic genre got no critical respect, being regarded as spectacularly stupid fare for the less discerning masses, and it's scripts like this one that are the reason - the cast should have been paid danger money for uttering lines like "Go squat on your alps!" or the immortal "War, war! That's all you ever think about, Dick Plantagenet! You burner, you pillager!" (yes, Virginia Mayo really does say that). But far worse than being stupid is the fact that, once the shock of the atrocious dialogue wears off, it's also very dull: brief skirmishes and a tedious chase finale aside the Crusaders spend more time bickering among themselves than fighting Saracens in a Holy Land that looks just like Bronson Canyon and Chico, California.
Very loosely based on Sir Walter Scott's The Talisman to cash in on the success of Ivanhoe, at times it looks like it was designed as an Errol Flynn vehicle, although Laurence Harvey, with a quiff like a tsunami and a Scottish accent so bad you'll thank whatever god you worship when he drops it after the first scene, makes a poor a replacement for the ageing and ailing star (though fair dos, he does a neat line in leaping off a horse). George Sanders plays most of his scenes as Richard from his bed, and he probably wished he'd stayed there. Rex Harrison plays the 'Persian popinjay' Saladin like a cross between the King of Siam and the genie of the lamp in a very bad panto, which is pretty all you can do when you're saddled with lines like "These strange pale-eyed Goths, they show their hearts like the bumps on a pomegranate." Over in the villains' corner a grinning rabbit-like Michael Pate impersonates Michael Rennie for all he's worth while Robert Douglas reprises his Adventures of Don Juan shtick to decent effect. Yea, verily, it's enough to make you miss Henry Wilcoxen and Cecil B. De Mille. Still, it wouldn't be Christmas without a turkey...
Currently the film is only available on DVD in Germany as 'Der Talisman', and like many of Warners' German division's 50s titles, the transfer is poor - but it's the only way to see it in its original Scope ratio at the moment (although it does have a German title sequence, the film is English language with removable subtitles).
Movie Review: Ineptly written, poor in colorful characters and chivalry...
Summary: 3 Stars
The fifties was Hollywood's decade of change... With television's continuing stronghold on the public, the film industry had to rethink itself into competing against the monster box and, in so doing, underwent a radical personality change...
Clearly, the only way to lure audiences back into the cinema was to provide them with something that was unavailable on television. The alternatives soon became apparent: new projection ratios that could in no way be matched by the small screen, epics whose production costs were beyond the reach of TV...
"King Richard and the Crusaders" begins with Richard the Lionhearted (George Sanders) and his allies having hardly set foot in the Holy Land on the Third Crusade when a group of treacherous nobles plans to kill Richard and take command of the whole operation...
Sir Kenneth (Lawrence Harvey) makes his appearance as a noble Scotsman, the only knight who is truly loyal to Richard... He warns the king about the traitors in his midst, and rides off to find evidence against them...
Virginia Mayo is Richard's cousin, Lady Edith, who is hopelessly in love with Sir Kenneth, but she can't marry him until he proves himself...
Rex Harrison plays the role of the Saracen ruler Saladin, who falls in love with Lady Edith... The motion picture makes it clear that it is Saladin, not Richard, who is the nobler and wiser chieftain through a series of intrigues which show the great Sultan playing physician, matchmaker and spy all the while Richard is being cheated by traitors and self-interested allies around him... In fact, the tricked king is moved to condemn to death his bravest knight and supporter...
Robert Douglas is Sir Giles Amaury, the treacherous knight who sneaks up to Richard's tent one night with a hired bowman... "Strike deep!" he urged, "this is no ordinary man!"
Very loosely based on Sir Walter Scott's The Talisman, David Butler's "King Richard and the Crusaders" is a fun film, full of adventure and exotic locales, but absolutely far from Richard Thorpe's "Ivanhoe," poor in colorful characters and chivalry...
Movie Review: Though not a masterpiece, a movie worth watching!
Summary: 3 Stars
A pretty good movie considering the fact that it was made in 1954, years before Ben Hur, Spartacus, The 300 Spartans, Cleopatra, the Fall of the Roman Empire, El Cid and other classics. The story unfolds during the Third Crusade a.k.a. the Kings' Crusade (1189-1192), in the Holy Land with the combined armies of the English, French and Germans preparing for a showdown with Saladin's Saracens. The hero is a Scottish knight, who is an enemy of England, but loyal to King Richard (no explanation given/do not ask why or how). On the positive side: a) some very nice desert shots and a beautiful looking castle, b) excellent costumes of Crusaders and Saracens, and c) a wonderful feel of History and the Crusades (accurate description of conditions found within the two camps i.e. Complete loyalty in Saladin's encampment and severe disunity in the Crusaders').
On the negative side: a) it is an old movie by modern standards with the battle scenes/tactics very much outdated, b) the acting is not as much "natural" as it is staged, one could say it is way too "theatrical" (the poses and all...), c) the Lady's accent is 100% American, definitely not the way the English King's cousin should sound like (do I hear Kevin Costner in Robin Hood?), while the Scott sounds nothing of the Highlands (King Richard at times does give off a little of Sean Connery though).
Strongly recommended to those who love History and the Crusades in particular. One should seriously start thinking about re-doing the movie or a similar Crusade-related one with today's technology...
Movie Review: The Talisman - 50's Hollywood style
Summary: 2 Stars
Well, the film didn't follow the book but that's not surprising. This was an obvious B- movie for the masses. I did enjoy watching Rex Harrison ham it up as Saladin, he obbviously had a good time with the part. Virginia Mayo was gorgeous, Laurence Harvey was stiff/predictable, and George Sanders was a disappointing King Richard. Although acting like the real King Richard would be tough for most hollywood actors in the 50's. The close-up horse-riding scenes were silly (moving background - static horse) and the battle scenes were lame. The jousts were OK and the desert dune scene was fun. All-in-all it was what I expected from a low budget 50's flick.djb
Movie Review: Dumb, Dumb, DUMB
Summary: 2 Stars
They couldn't have miscast this film even worse if they'd tried.I nearly collapsed from laughter. Don't watch it for history,
great acting, costumes, or sets. And lose the popcorn. You
don't want to choke between giggles!
Summary of King Richard & Crusaders
Historical epic of the Middle Ages chronicling King Richard the Lionheart's exploits during the crusades.Costume Adventures Video
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