Prince Valiant

Rating:
Summary: Yankees in King Arthur's Court !
Review: Released in 1954, "Prince Valiant" is as much fun for the whole family now as it was fifty years ago. This colourful, Cinemascope movie is a feast for the eye, and thoroughly entertaining from start to finish. You have a brave young hero to cheer for--a nasty villain to "hiss"--action--romance--beautiful sets, locations, costumes--and Henry Hathaway's expert direction.

A very young Robert Wagner stars as "Prince Valiant", a Viking who wishes to become a knight in the court of King Arthur--he certainly cuts a dashing figure, once you get used to a rather outlandish, but compulsory, Prince Valiant wig ! Valiant soon finds himself involved in a treacherous plan to oust his own father, King Aguar ( laid-back, avuncular Donald Crisp ), and--zounds !--King Arthur himself ( laid-back, avuncular Brian Aherne ). Of course, our hero still finds time to fall in love with Princess Aleta ( gorgeous Janet Leigh )--not enough romance ?--well, Aleta's handmaiden, Ilene ( sultry Debra Paget ) is "smitten" with Valiant's mentor, Sir Gawain ( a bluff and hearty Sterling Hayden ). Stirring up the whole pot is the ambitious, unscrupulous Sir Brack ( James Mason, stealing scenes with ease ). We have a very lively jousting scene, plenty of battles, narrow escapes and other feats of "derring do". There is, in fact, never a dull moment ! There are more than a few "camp" aspects to this movie, not the least of which are those strong American accents of Mr.Wagner and, especially, Mr.Hayden. Remember "The Black Sheild of Falworth" when Tony Curtis, in heavy Bronx accent, says " take me to da castle of my fadda " ? There are a few smiles like that here.

The DVD is beautiful--you will be hard pressed to find many films more colouful than this lovely Cinemascope gem from Fox. Extras are sparse--a few trailers and a brief promotional clip from the fifties. Some comments from Robert Wagner would have been fun--fifty years later, and he still looks great--I wonder what he eats for breakfast ? !

While it may not be in the same class as "The Adventures of Robin Hood", "Prince Valiant" remains a fine example of Hollywood swashbuckling hokum that will not wear out its welcome with repeated viewings. Recommended.

Rating:
Summary: PRINCE VALIANT
Review: Robert Wagner stars as a young Scandian prince in exile whose quest to win back his father's throne leads him to King Arthur's court and the arms of beautiful Princess Aleta in this extremely well-made and enchanting 1954 adaptation of the famous comic strip character. A delightful mix of adventure, comedy, romance, and royal intrigue, Prince Valiant is brought to life by a marvelous cast (Wagner as the titular young knight; Janet Leigh as his lady Aleta; James Mason as the traitorous Black Knight; and Sterling Hayden as Val's mentor, Sir Gawain) from a heady script by Dudley Nichols and the exhuberant direction of Henry Hathaway. Non-stop fun right up to the amazing trial by combat at the end (one of the best sword fights ever filmed), Prince Valiant is a first class family film that everyone can enjoy.

Rating:
Summary: Inspirational Movie about Knoghthood
Review: Seen this movie several Dozen times. Each time it's a thrill. I am a 3D Animator and it inspired me to build a complete castle in 3D for my demo reel. Complete enjoyment for the whole family. May invoke old world atitudes of yesteryear for the younger crowd. Five stars is not enough for this old favorite.

Rating:
Summary: May be the best performance of Wagner in the screen!
Review: The splendid saga of the young Scandinavian prince is told with efficency and directorial maestry . He enters the court of King Arthur and returns his family to their throne , restoring his birthright.
Henry Hataway in one his best works with ravishing photography and admirable and easy going script.
A family entertainment and a superb cast .


Rating:
Summary: A Viking prince joins the Knights of the Round Table
Review: The Sunday comic strip character gets the CinemaScope treatment and is an entertaining film with plenty of marquee names to attract more than passing interest. The movie holds up quite well 50 years after its release and tells the story of a Viking prince who seeks to overthrow an imposter who has seized the throne of Scandia from his father and return it to King Aguar. Robert Wagner is perfect as the determined and resourceful "Val", as the smitten Aleta [Janet Leigh] calls him, Sterling Hayden is fine as Sir Gawain, the stern but dedicated mentor to the "Viking knave", and the excellent James Mason's suave, polished and calculating Sir Brack has dark, sinister shadings. The film has plenty of action and derring-do, romance, jousting matches at a tournament, palace intrigue, a large-scale battle at the castle in Scandia and an excellent fight with broadswords between Valiant and the Black Knight at the end of the movie. Excellent color photography, realistic sets, beautiful scenery and Franz Waxman's brooding score round out a first-rate film production.

Rating:
Summary: Exuberant Camelot Adventure a Great Family Film!
Review: There is such a sense of childlike wonder and fun in Henry Hathaway's 1954 Camelot tale, PRINCE VALIANT, that it's easy to forgive the obvious incongruities in accents (Robert Wagner's broad American tones...hard to believe he plays Donald Crisp's son...Sterling Hayden, looking and sounding more like Wild Bill Hickok than Sir Gawain...Victor McLaglen as the most Irish Viking you'll ever see!), and concentrate, instead, on the energy, pageantry, and sweep of Hathaway's adaptation of Hal Foster's classic comic strip.

Certainly, one would be hard-pressed to assemble a finer cast; in addition to Wagner, Hayden, McLaglen, and Crisp, you have James Mason as the villain, Sir Brack, dazzling, and far more believable than he had been as Rupert of Hentzau in MGM's remake of THE PRISONER OF ZENDA; Janet Leigh and Debra Paget, both ethereally beautiful as the sisters, Aleta and Ilene; and Brian Aherne, as King Arthur, so perfect in the role that you wish his part had been larger.

In the early 1950s, there was a resurgence of swashbuckling films in Hollywood, and a new sub-category appeared, 'Knights in Training', with Fox's PRINCE VALIANT, and Universal's THE BLACK SHIELD OF FALWORTH (starring Tony Curtis) both devoting ample screen time to the education of squires in the knightly skills of jousting and sword fighting. These scenes are great fun to watch, particularly for children (knights had to go to school, too!), and paint a far more accurate picture of the difficult work involved in mastering the required talents than did the recent film, A KNIGHT's TALE.

As we follow the adventures of the Viking Prince as he restores his kingdom, finds love, and wins a place at the Round Table, special credit must be given to Franz Waxman's spectacular music. One of the most memorable scores ever produced for a film, the theme has become a staple at the Hollywood Bowl, and for the Boston Pops. Once heard, it is not forgotten!

While the magical elements of the story are downplayed (the mystical powers of the 'Singing Sword' are more implied than actually shown), the story itself has such a sense of wonder that it isn't missed. The heroes of Camelot are all present (Arthur, Lancelot, Guinevere, Gawain, and Galahad), and the Round Table scenes are as majestic as any film has ever accomplished.

PRINCE VALIANT may not be in a league with EXCALIBUR, but it certainly holds it's own against KNIGHTS OF THE ROUND TABLE, CAMELOT, and FIRST KNIGHT, and as a family film it can't be beat!


Rating:
Summary: Prince Valiant- An overlooked Gem From the 50's
Review: This film is a pure joy to behold! The sets, costumes and even the cast have been made to resemble Hal Foster's comic strip as much as was humanly possible! Being an enthusiastic Prince Valiant reader I was stunned one Thanksgiving when I was around 10 or so as the special Hallmark Hall of Fame Movie turned out to be Prince Valiant. I watched in utter amazement as the vibrantly colorful,action-filled film presented itself as a visually stunning and faithful rendition of Foster's vision. I had had no idea such a movie existed and have treasured it always. This year I am happy to say my VHS Taped copy of the film has been replaced by a fine Quality DVD purchased from amazon! I Highly recommend this film to all those who love a good, light-hearted adventure Tale!

Rating:
Summary: AWESOME KNIGHTS MOVIE
Review: This is a great movie for kids. We're strict about what we let our kids watch and this is one of the few movies that we did not have to worry about. There is sword fighting and a castle burning (boiling oil and all) but the overall story is excellent and very entertaining. Prince Valiant is a true good guy and true love and good prevail. One of the best movies we have - it has all the right elements: knights, a good plot, a love story that is virtuous, and enormous fun. Great to go along with that Playmobil castle you buy for your kids.

Rating:
Summary: Entertaining
Review: This is one of the funniest films I have seen in...well...it's not really that funny, but it's something good to watch when you have nothing to do one afternoon especially if you're one of those people who are too lazy to change the channel and have no life. Especially if you're a filmmaker, it's good for your self-esteem. It's one of those movies that are good at two in the morning when everything is funny especially the tasteless hair styles and corney acting. Perfect movie for aspiring actors who want to know what not to have on their resume.

Rating:
Summary: sword fight
Review: This movie has the best sword fight ever staged.I saw it years ago on T.V. and I never forgot it.The price of the video is worth it just for the sword fight.