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The Mists of Avalon

The Mists of Avalon

List Price: $14.97
Your Price: $11.23
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 1 stars
Summary: C'mon, people, this movie stunk!
Review: Just a big disappointment. The actresses are all very fine, but the script was horrible and the directing even worse. This movie jumps from scene to scene with hardly anthing to hold it all together. It barely even makes sense, much less draws in the viewer. Of course you should read the book, but that's not the point. This movie is plain horrible, and not because it doesn't compare to the book. It's horrible because it's a mess.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: BEST BOOK EVER!
Review: I read this book and was in awe! The movie is just as good as the book! cannot believe that someone has that type of nimagination! I LOVE THIS BOOK!!!!

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: worth a watch if you liked the book...
Review: ...but the movie isn't quite as good. The most moving scene comes right before the final battle between King Arthur's men and the Saxon invaders. The battle scene itself is a bit too gory to watch, but immediately before it, Arthur and Lancelet stand at the head of their troops and, without saying a word to each other, manage to express their hard-won realization of the pointlessness of war. This movie skims away the depth of most of the characters, eliminating Lancelet's homosexuality, Gwenhwyfar's hatred for Morgaine, and Morgaine's attempt to get Arthur killed, among other interesting plot twists. Granted, it's difficult to do justice to a 1000-page book in a TV-miniseries, but why attempt a project half-heartedly? The makers of this movie would have done much better to make a longer movie or to not have attempted to cover the entirety of the book in three hours -- doing so simply made this a plot-based store with little character development despite very good acting jobs from the cast.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Good but not good enough for Marion
Review: As another reviewer said, the Viviane they cast is marvelous as are many of the other actors in portraying their roles. But it is not good enough for the Mists of Avalon written by Marion Zimmer Bradely.
The fact they changed the ending is what bothered me most, in the book Igraine dies mid way, she doesn't reunit with her daughter. I also did not like the way they cut out characters like Nimue, who was probably the only strong blonde in the book, and also something quite tragic.
Hehe, I also have to say that Viviane is to tall (not that it makes much difference though..)

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: If you love the book, you need to get the movie
Review: I loved the actresses in this - they fit the characters from the book EXACTLY! The only drawback to the movie is as another reviewer stated - the movie does not quite do justice to the book. It is a good movie, and an enjoyable addition to my "Mists of Avalon" library, but was just too short to include so many important details and twists of plot. I would, however, recommend it to anyone that has enjoyed the book. You will enjoy it.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Nothing compared to the book
Review: The movie the Mists of Avalon was not what I expected. I fell in love with the book The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley and it was sad to see that a movie made based on her masterpiece could be so different. The characters, the ending and so many other things were not the same and so many key events were left out. So if you are a true fan of the book this movie is not for you.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Beautiful!
Review: This is a beautiful retelling of the Arthurian legend, with a welcome twist of change which makes Morgan le Fay (Morgaine) the heroine instead of the villainess we're accustomed to seeing in "Excalibur." The movie begins with three sisters: Viviane (the Lady of the Lake and High Priestess of Avalon), Igraine (mother of Morgaine and Arthur) and Morgause. Upon learning of her destiny with the future High King, Uther Pendragon, Igraine is reluctant to accept but very quickly falls in love with Uther, and he with her. Their secret tryst on the night of her husband Gorlois's death at war, results in the conception of Arthur. When Morgaine and Arthur are both old enough, they are taken from Uther and Igraine and to their separate futures. Morgaine is groomed by Viviane to become the next high priestess of Avalon, a magical land which is fading away as people stop believing in it and in the Goddess. One of the other priestesses is Raven, a kind soul who has taken a vow of silence. Morgaine grows into a beautiful woman in the form of Julianna Marguilies, and is chosen to take part in the Great Marriage at Beltane. She doesn't realize until after she realizes she is pregnant with the Beltane child and after her reunion with Arthur that he was the man she slept with in the Great Marriage. Yuk! Anyway, lots of twists and turns in the saga of Arthur, Lancelot and Guinevere, the coming of age of Mordred by his evil aunt Morgause, and the slow fading of Avalon of the years passing by and the deaths of Merlin and Viviane. We all know how it ends. I screamed right along with Raven when Viviane died.

While this is a great film which I would gladly recommend to anyone with an interest in the legend of Avalon, there are a few roles which I believe was miscast. Even though they did a great job anyway, I think that Michael Vartan, Edward Atterton, and Hans Matheson were all miscast for their roles as Lancelot, Arthur, and Mordred. I really believe that they could have found better actors for those roles, but the final selections are well enough. Joan Allen really sinks her teeth into her role of Morgause- wonderfully wicked!

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: A new Myth
Review: This movie has a lot to say about the Christian influence in pagan England around the 6th Centery. It was when the old religion (worshiping the Earth Godess, Wicca is a modern off shoot of this ancient worship) were being replaced by the new and intolerent Christian one. It is also a new kind of retelling of the King Arthur legend, and is quiet different from traditional myth. It is mostly told from the point of view of the women. Morgana is a little changed; she's the hero, in fact (HUH!?). The Lady in the Lake is actually personified as Angelica Huston, an interesting choice, to say the least. My man Merlyin has very little to do here, and is seen seldomly. It is also a very sick story of masked incest. The fertility rites are a little disturbing, to say the least. Arthur, Lancealot, and Mordred are played by reletive nobodys, as their roles were probably intended. Huston is ok, but isn't there much. Julianna Margulies is pretty good, if a little cold and frozen (but her role is so different from traditional portrail of Morganna that it is a huge distraction). Joan Allen is probably the best of the bunch as the evil, always scheming aunt, also a Avalon priestess. Excaliber and magick takes a back seat to soap opera style palace intrigue and plots which are goofy. Avalon is an interesting theory; it exists between this world and the next, and it takes an enormaous amount of disiplin to access. The fights and battles are ok, good for TV, but not anywhere close to "Braveheart".

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Great...BUT
Review: I am a faithful reader of Marion Zimmer Bradleys Avalon series. The Mists Of Avalon was by far the best book I've ever read and I absoloutly loved the fact that someone decided to make a movie out of it. Unfortunately though I loved the movie it was filled with inacuracies (I'm sorry if that is misspelled) that I just could not overlook. I can't name them all because if anyone is reading this that hasn't read and watched T.M.O.A I'll ruin things for them. But please at least read the book and lose yourself in the wonderful world that Marion has recreated for us and used to help open up the doorway for the Goddess to enter back into this world.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: not as good as the book, but still good.
Review: Okay, the movie is not as good as the book, but I still enjoyed it. Granted, it did stray (quite a bit) from the book, and there were changes to the story that weren't needed. Having said that though, there was a lot to be said. The costumes were great, and the acting was belivable, the imagery was also beautiful! My only question, is why they didn't have Kevin in the movie! I would have givin this movie 3.5 stars, but that wasn't an option...so I gave it four stars!


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