THE GREEN KNIGHT (2021)
Updated: Dec 12, 2022
An Unconventional Fantasy About Finding True Courage
Grade: A
Don’t walk into The Green Knight expecting an epic sword-and-sorcery saga filled with monsters and duels. Expect instead a quiet yet immersive story about a young man who embarks on a quest to fulfill an obligation and ultimately gains the true courage of a knight. The considerable lack of elements that make fantasy movies so popular may turn off some viewers, but for those who love to watch an epic about a hero who goes through a journey of self-discovery, The Green Knight can be a rewarding experience.
Set in Arthurian England, The Green Knight tells the tale of Sir Gawain (Dev Patel), the son of King Arthur’s sister Morgana Le Fay (Sarita Choudhury). Despite being the nephew of the king, he is in really no hurry to become a knight, saying at one point that he has “plenty of time.” On Christmas Day, a strange and menacing human-plant hybrid known as the Green Knight (Ralph Ineson) unexpectedly appears in Camelot and challenges a “Christmas Game” to Arthur’s boldest knight to face him and land a blow. Gawain immediately-and almost impulsively-accepts and lops off the Knight’s head with no resistance. The Knight then takes his head and gallops away. But one year later, Gawain must fulfill his part in the game by traveling to the Knight’s chapel up north and allowing the Knight to strike him, whether it be fatal or not. En route, he is accosted by bandits, helps a ghostly woman find her head in a spring, and is sheltered by a hunter and his Lady in a castle.
On paper, The Green Knight looks like a typical hero’s journey. It follows an up-and-coming hero who ventures forth from his home to find his destiny and learns some things about himself along the way. But as previously mentioned, the film is not your typical fantasy. There is hardly any on-screen action, there are stretches of time that are quiet and ponderous, and conventional fantasy elements are largely done away with. Yet at the same time, the film upholds and explores one its biggest central values: that a knight must be courageous and unafraid to die. This is a lesson that is a long time coming for Gawain. Despite his eagerness to face the Green Knight and his willingness to travel up north, he is ultimately a coward whose true colors shine through several times in the film. For example, he leaves Camelot proudly upon a horse while sporting armor and a sword, like a typical knight, but he quickly loses them to the bandits, to whom he begs for his life. In this way, the film greatly humanizes its protagonist while at the same time deconstructing the myth of the knight.
The talents involved in the making of the film are magnificent. Writer/Director David Lowery has created a world that is both fantastical and down-to-earth, filled with strange creatures and occurrences while at the same time focusing on its more realistic elements. The cast is also terrific, with all the actors completely believable in their respective roles. Patel effectively portrays Gawain as a man who is unsure of what he really wants and is unwilling to accept his cowardice.
Filmed on location in Ireland, the cinematography showcases the drab, gray landscapes of Britain in winter, lending an appearance to the film that is breathtaking while at the same time almost (but not entirely) oppressive. The cloudy skies and washed-out colors create a dreamlike atmosphere to some parts of Gawain’s journey, especially in a scene where he encounters a group of mountain-sized giants. The production design also sports some memorable locations, including the dark, abandoned home of St. Winifred (Erin Kellyman) and the inviting castle of the Lord and Lady who shelter Gawain.
Where the movie truly shines is in the final act, where Gawain finally makes it to the Green Chapel. It is here that Dev Patel’s performance reaches its peak. He expresses genuine terror as the Knight prepares to strike his blow, and what happens afterward is too good to be spoiled. Suffice it to say it shows Gawain that the price he must pay for cowardice far exceeds the price of giving up his life.
At its core, The Green Knight is a character study. While there have been many movies before about finding courage, few have done it like this. Here the all-consuming fear of the hero is displayed in full, which makes the ultimate act of bravery all the greater. It may not be for everyone, but it is still an impressive fantasy and a great story about what it truly means to be a knight.
Director: David Lowery
Producers: Toby Halbrooks, James M. Johnston, David Lowery, Tim Headington, Theresa Steele Page
Screenplay: David Lowery (Based on the poem Sir Gawain and the Green Knight by Anonymous)
Cast: Dev Patel (Sir Gawain), Alicia Vikander (Essel, The Lady), Joel Edgerton (Lord), Sarita Choudhury (Morgana), Sean Harris (King Arthur), Kate Dickie (Queen Guinivere), Ralph Ineson (Green Knight), Barry Keoghan (Scavenger), Erin Kellyman (Winifred), Megan Tiernan (Gawain's Queen), Emmet O'Brien (Merlin)
Rated: R (for violence, some sexuality and graphic nudity)
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