''Sword of the Valiant: The Legend of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight'' (often shortened to ''Sword of the Valiant'') is a 1984 dramatic

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy literature and d ...

film directed by Stephen Weeks and starring Miles O'Keeffe,

Trevor Howard Trevor Wallace Howard-Smith (29 September 1913 – 7 January 1988) was an English stage, film, and television actor. After varied work in the theatre, he achieved star status with his role in the film ''Brief Encounter'' (1945), followed by ''T ...

Lila Kedrova Yelizaveta Nikolaevna Kedrova (Russian: Елизавета Николаевна Кедрова; 9 October 1909 – 16 February 2000), known as Lila Kedrova, was a Russian-born French actress. She won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actre ...

Cyrielle Clair Cyrielle Clair (born 1 December 1955) is a French actress. She has appeared in 55 films and television shows since 1978. Clair starred in the 1983 film '' La Belle captive'', which was entered into the 33rd Berlin International Film Festival. S ...

Leigh Lawson Allan Leigh Lawson (born 21 July 1945) is an English actor, director and writer. Life and career Lawson was born in Atherstone, Warwickshire. He initially studied at Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts before training further at the Royal Aca ...

Peter Cushing Peter Wilton Cushing (26 May 1913 – 11 August 1994) was an English actor. His acting career spanned over six decades and included appearances in more than 100 films, as well as many television, stage, and radio roles. He achieved recognition ...

, and Sean Connery. The film is loosely based on the poem ''

Sir Gawain and the Green Knight ''Sir Gawain and the Green Knight'' is a late 14th-century chivalric romance in Middle English. The author is unknown; the title was given centuries later. It is one of the best-known Arthurian stories, with its plot combining two types of ...

'', written in the late 14th century, but the narrative differs substantially. It was the second time Weeks had adapted the traditional tale into a film. His first effort was ''

Gawain and the Green Knight ''Sir Gawain and the Green Knight'' is a late 14th-century chivalric romance in Middle English. The author is unknown; the title was given centuries later. It is one of the best-known Arthurian stories, with its plot combining two types of f ...

'' (1973)."The Sword of the Valiant – The Legend of Gawain and the Green Knight"
''Time Out'' Magazine. Retrieved 17 June 2019.

Plot

In a castle's great hall during

Yuletide Yule, actually Yuletide ("Yule time") is a festival observed by the historical Germanic peoples, later undergoing Christianised reformulation resulting in the now better-known Christmastide. The earliest references to Yule are by way of indig ...

, King Arthur halts a feast as he feels ashamed of how lax he and his knights have become during times of peace, questioning the bravery of all knights present. Suddenly, an ax-wielding knight in green armor arrives at the castle, challenging the knights to a game - he challenges them to decapitate him in one swing of his ax, with the caveat that he can return the blow. None of the knights volunteer, leading the king to shame them for their lack of courage, and accept the challenge himself. Finally,

Gawain Gawain (), also known in many other forms and spellings, is a character in Arthurian legend, in which he is King Arthur's nephew and a Knight of the Round Table. The prototype of Gawain is mentioned under the name Gwalchmei in the earliest ...

, a young

squire In the Middle Ages, a squire was the shield- or armour-bearer of a knight. Use of the term evolved over time. Initially, a squire served as a knight's apprentice. Later, a village leader or a lord of the manor might come to be known as a ...

, accepts the challenge in lieu of the king, and is swiftly knighted. Gawain beheads the knight, but the body of the decapitated knight picks up his head and returns it to his neck. Gawain kneels for the knight to strike him, but the Green Knight refuses due to his youth. Promising to return in one year to claim his side of the bargain, the Green Knight gives Gawain a chance to solve a riddle to save his life, which consists of four lines: :'' Where life is emptiness, gladness.'' :'' Where life is darkness, fire.'' :'' Where life is golden, sorrow.'' :'' Where life is lost, wisdom.'' With King Arthur's blessing, Gawain leaves with Humphrey, a squire, in search of the answer to the Green Knight's riddle.

Morgan le Fay Morgan le Fay (, meaning 'Morgan the Fairy'), alternatively known as Morgan ''n''a, Morgain ''a/e Morg ''a''ne, Morgant ''e Morge ''i''n, and Morgue ''inamong other names and spellings ( cy, Morgên y Dylwythen Deg, kw, Morgen an Spyrys), is a ...

instructs Gawain to blow a horn near the seashore, and to go to the lost city of

Lyonesse Lyonesse is a kingdom which, according to legend, consisted of a long strand of land stretching from Land's End at the southwestern tip of Cornwall, England, to what is now the Isles of Scilly in the Celtic Sea portion of the Atlantic Ocean. I ...

. Upon blowing the horn, a knight in black armor reveals himself to be the guardian of Lyonesse, and challenges Gawain to a duel. Despite the guardian knight's dishonorable conduct in the duel, Gawain wins, and the guardian, dying, asks to be brought home to Lyonesse. Gawain rides to Lyonesse with the guardian, and Humphrey gets separated from Gawain. Upon entering Lyonesse, the guardian knight, on his deathbed, accuses Gawain of murdering him. Pursued by the city guard, Gawain escapes with the help of Linet, a beautiful maiden who gives him her ring, which makes him invisible. Gawain falls in love with Linet, and attempts to escape the city with her, but he manages to leave the city while she is captured. While held by the guards, Linet quickly gives her ring to Gawain. Abruptly appearing in an empty field, he is told by the Green Knight that the game he accepted as a challenge has rules, rules of which have been broken by meeting Linet at the wrong time, and taking her ring. Encountering a group of monks, Gawain asks Vosper, a friar and former thief, for help with the green knight's riddle; Vosper tells Gawain to see the sage at the rock of wisdom. Gawain agrees to follow the rules of the game, and is transported to Lyonesse by the sage, only to find the city decrepit, the denizens old and covered in cobwebs, frozen in time. Gawain carries the frozen Linet to a small house outside of the city, and revives her and restores her youth using her ring. Gawain encounters Humphrey, but while away from the house, Linet is kidnapped by the lustful prince Oswald and the army of his father, the warmongering Baron Fortinbras. Seeking to save Linet, Gawain and Humphrey sneak into the Baron's castle by blending in with a group of prisoners being transported to the castle. Gawain rallies the prisoners to help escape the castle and rescue Linet, but while the rescue mission is underway, Sir Bertilak, a rival of Baron Fortinbras, arrives and threatens Fortinbras with war if certain demands are not met. While the prisoners escape, the rescue fails when a fire breaks out in Linet's prison, leading Gawain to believe she's dead. Mournful, Gawain leaves Humphrey and the escaped prisoners, wandering aimlessly until he stumbles across the castle of Sir Bertilak. Sir Bertilak allows Gawain to rest and recover in his castle. Linet is alive, having been accepted by Bertilak as a tribute from Baron Fortinbras to prevent war. Linet gives Gawain a green sash, and tells him that no harm will befall him while he wears it. The year given by the Green Knight comes to an end, and Gawain, meeting with Humphrey and the former prisoners, goes out seeking the knight. Gawain is attacked by Oswald and Baron Fortinbras's army, and Oswald challenges Gawain to a duel with his champion. After defeating several of Oswald's champions, Oswald himself fights Gawain while the former prisoners fight his army. Gawain wins the duel, and the army retreats. Following his fight with the prince, Gawain is approached by the Green Knight. Gawain has failed to solve the final line of the riddle within the time limit, and must allow the Green Knight one swing at his neck with an ax. The Green Knight strikes Gawain, but he is unharmed due to the sash given to him by Linet. The Green Knight and Sir Gawain duel, and as the Green Knight suffers a mortal wound, he asks Sir Gawain to stop the battle, realizing that he has already lost. Sir Gawain returns to Linet, who tells him that she must return to Lyonesse alone. As he touches her cheek, she transforms into a dove, and flies away.

Cast

* Miles O'Keeffe as Sir Gawain *

as Linet *

as Humphrey * Sean Connery as The Green Knight *

as King Arthur *

as Seneschal - Gaspar *

Ronald Lacey Ronald William Lacey (28 September 1935 – 15 May 1991) was an English actor. He made numerous television and film appearances over a 30-year period. His roles included Harris in ''Porridge'' (1977), Frankie in the Bud Spencer comedy '' Ch ...

as Oswald *

as Lady of Lyonesse *

John Rhys-Davies John Rhys-Davies (born 5 May 1944) is a Welsh actor best known for portraying Sallah in the ''Indiana Jones'' franchise and Gimli in ''The Lord of the Rings'' trilogy. His other roles include Michael Malone in the 1993 series ''The Untouch ...

as Baron Fortinbras *

Wilfrid Brambell Henry Wilfrid Brambell (22 March 1912 – 18 January 1985) was an Irish television and film actor, best remembered for playing the grubby rag-and-bone man Albert Steptoe alongside Harry H. Corbett in the long-running BBC television sitcom '' ...

as Porter * Bruce Lidington as Sir Bertilak *

Douglas Wilmer Douglas Wilmer (8 January 1920 – 31 March 2016) was an English actor, best known for playing Sherlock Holmes in the 1965 TV series ''Sherlock Holmes''. Early life Wilmer was born in Brentford, Middlesex, and received his education at Kin ...

as The Black Knight * Brian Coburn as Friar Vosper *

David Rappaport David Stephen Rappaport (23 November 1951 – 2 May 1990) was an English actor with achondroplasia. He appeared in the films '' Time Bandits'' and '' The Bride'', and television series '' L.A. Law'', '' The Wizard'' and ''Captain Planet and the ...

as Sage * Emma Sutton as

Morgan Le Fay Morgan le Fay (, meaning 'Morgan the Fairy'), alternatively known as Morgan ''n''a, Morgain ''a/e Morg ''a''ne, Morgant ''e Morge ''i''n, and Morgue ''inamong other names and spellings ( cy, Morgên y Dylwythen Deg, kw, Morgen an Spyrys), is a ...

Production

The film was copyrighted in 1983 and released the following year. Filming took place in

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

and

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

, as well as the Château de Pierrefonds and the

Palais des Papes The Palais des Papes (English: Palace of the Popes; ''lo Palais dei Papas'' in Occitan) is a historical palace located in Avignon, Southern France. It is one of the largest and most important medieval Gothic buildings in Europe. Once a fortress ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

. The period wardrobe was culled from the collections of stock rooms of the Royal National Theatre and the

Bristol Old Vic Bristol Old Vic is a British theatre company based at the Theatre Royal, Bristol. The present company was established in 1946 as an offshoot of the Old Vic in London. It is associated with the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, which became a f ...

as well as Berman's and Nathan's, the French Aristide Boyer and the Spanish Cornejo. Director Stephen Weeks hoped to cast Mark Hamill as Gawain, but producers Menahem Golan and

Yoram Globus Yoram Globus ( he, יורם גלובוס; born 7 September 1943) is an Israeli–American film producer, cinema owner, and distributor. He has been involved in over 300 full-length motion pictures and he is most known for his association with T ...

insisted on Miles O'Keeffe for the role. The film also stars Emma Sutton who would later appear in another film about the Arthurian legends, ''

Merlin of the Crystal Cave Merlin ( cy, Myrddin, kw, Marzhin, br, Merzhin) is a mythical figure prominently featured in the legend of King Arthur and best known as a mage, with several other main roles. His usual depiction, based on an amalgamation of historic and leg ...

''. ''Steptoe and Son'' actor

made a guest appearance. This was his last performance. The current USA DVD release has received negative reviews as it is mastered in a 4:3 pan and scan picture. However, the Polish release has the film in the original 2.35:1 Cinemascope ratio which has proved more popular. This film is currently unreleased in the United Kingdom. The film received a Blu-ray release in the United States on October 14, 2020 by Scorpion Releasing.

Reception

Reviewing the film, ''

Time Out London ''Time Out'' is a global magazine published by Time Out Group. ''Time Out'' started as a London-only publication in 1968 and has expanded its editorial recommendations to 328 cities in 58 countries worldwide. In 2012, the London edition becam ...

'' magazine gave it a negative review. It described ''Sword of the Valiant'' as "underwhelming" and added "Dreary jousting, production values that make '' Monty Python and the Holy Grail'' look lavish, and an excruciating synthesizer score make this a real trial." On

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...

the film has a weighted average score of 12 out of 100, based on 4 critics, indicating "Overwhelming dislike".

References

External links