Hammerman Ikon

Hammerman Ikon Film Guide

A Knight's Tale
2001
***
Director: Brian Helgeland
Cast: Heath Ledger, Rufus Sewell, Shannyn Sossamon, Mark Addy, Paul Bettany, Alan Tudyk, Laura Fraser, Bérénice Bejo, James Purefoy

A boisterous, anachronistic romp about a thatcher's son who pretends to be a knight in order to become a jousting champion. Brian Helgeland puts an original twist on the story by mixing writer Geoffrey Chaucer into the proceedings and by filling the soundtrack with contemporary rock music. The movie is light-hearted and entertaining, but repetitive and roughly 30 minutes too long. The main characters are well-drawn and well-played, but the antagonist is a stereotypically arrogant one-dimensional Frenchman and the love interest lacks personality. She is played by Shannyn Sossamon, whose performance is all smiles.