"Dark fantasy" has become something of a tainted genre. The natural implication is that fantasy lacks a certain edge. Some writers' ideas of patching up the genre's supposed shortcomings boil down to adding more sex, violence and political intrigue, with the fantastical elements as background noise. In short, most dark fantasies aren't interested in the "fantasy" part.
In shambles 'The Green Knight', a contemplative story very much about fantasy, and more broadly, it's about the universal conundrum of what it truly means to be a good man. A revisionist adaptation of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, one of the many classic Arthurian tales that tend to be overlooked in pop culture, the film focuses heavily on themes of honour, duty, and probing the distinctions between goodness and greatness. We follow Gawain, the underachieving nephew of King Arthur. For most of the film, Gawain is the antithesis of a courageous, chivalric knight, and in fact seems to struggle to understand what those terms even mean, yet he nevertheless aspires to sit among the legends at the Round Table. Above all, Gawain is desperate to have a story to tell, but his coveted chance to go on an epic quest instead feels more like a futile death-march into the wilderness with no clear endgame. Indeed, the journey itself is meant to be the Secret Test of Character that decides his worthiness of being a true knight. Unfortunately, he comes up short in just about every category, from tests of generosity, courage, selflessness and so on. The final test that caps everything off is the most difficult and important for Gawain to face, and it firmly solidified the movie as an all-time great in my eyes.
What cannot be emphasised enough is that The Green Knight is not an easy film to grapple with. Contrary to what the poster of Gawain triumphantly holding an axe may insinuate, I don't think there's a single conventional sword-flailing action sequence to be found. Several scenes are so oppressively dark and agonisingly slow-paced that you can barely make out what's going on, which can be somewhat tedious. But IMO, these only enhanced the feelings of isolation and aimlessness. The Green Knight himself is the most crowd-pleasing supernatural element of the story, but for the most part, he is overshadowed by more subtly disorienting instances of unreality seeping through an otherwise realistic medieval setting — undead spirits, strange chimeric beasts, creepy nobles with inexplicably advanced technology, and of course, hairless giants straight out of Attack on Titan. While the film generally eschews sweeping fantasy setpieces that we have come to expect in the digital age, the visuals are nothing short of spectacular. Every location has a unique atmosphere, from the greyscale decadence of Camelot to the warm, parochial serenity of the Green Knight's hidden grotto.
If you enter The Green Knight with a reasonably open mind, it will challenge you in ways few others can, hopefully changing your perspective on some things in the process. Beware that it is a real marmite movie, definitely not for everyone, but in the way that the best art shouldn't really be for everyone. Just know that you may completely hate it, as I know many people do.
Film A slow sizzler that's absolutely worth your time
"Dark fantasy" has become something of a tainted genre. The natural implication is that fantasy lacks a certain edge. Some writers' ideas of patching up the genre's supposed shortcomings boil down to adding more sex, violence and political intrigue, with the fantastical elements as background noise. In short, most dark fantasies aren't interested in the "fantasy" part.
In shambles 'The Green Knight', a contemplative story very much about fantasy, and more broadly, it's about the universal conundrum of what it truly means to be a good man. A revisionist adaptation of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, one of the many classic Arthurian tales that tend to be overlooked in pop culture, the film focuses heavily on themes of honour, duty, and probing the distinctions between goodness and greatness. We follow Gawain, the underachieving nephew of King Arthur. For most of the film, Gawain is the antithesis of a courageous, chivalric knight, and in fact seems to struggle to understand what those terms even mean, yet he nevertheless aspires to sit among the legends at the Round Table. Above all, Gawain is desperate to have a story to tell, but his coveted chance to go on an epic quest instead feels more like a futile death-march into the wilderness with no clear endgame. Indeed, the journey itself is meant to be the Secret Test of Character that decides his worthiness of being a true knight. Unfortunately, he comes up short in just about every category, from tests of generosity, courage, selflessness and so on. The final test that caps everything off is the most difficult and important for Gawain to face, and it firmly solidified the movie as an all-time great in my eyes.
What cannot be emphasised enough is that The Green Knight is not an easy film to grapple with. Contrary to what the poster of Gawain triumphantly holding an axe may insinuate, I don't think there's a single conventional sword-flailing action sequence to be found. Several scenes are so oppressively dark and agonisingly slow-paced that you can barely make out what's going on, which can be somewhat tedious. But IMO, these only enhanced the feelings of isolation and aimlessness. The Green Knight himself is the most crowd-pleasing supernatural element of the story, but for the most part, he is overshadowed by more subtly disorienting instances of unreality seeping through an otherwise realistic medieval setting — undead spirits, strange chimeric beasts, creepy nobles with inexplicably advanced technology, and of course, hairless giants straight out of Attack on Titan. While the film generally eschews sweeping fantasy setpieces that we have come to expect in the digital age, the visuals are nothing short of spectacular. Every location has a unique atmosphere, from the greyscale decadence of Camelot to the warm, parochial serenity of the Green Knight's hidden grotto.
If you enter The Green Knight with a reasonably open mind, it will challenge you in ways few others can, hopefully changing your perspective on some things in the process. Beware that it is a real marmite movie, definitely not for everyone, but in the way that the best art shouldn't really be for everyone. Just know that you may completely hate it, as I know many people do.