Camelot (2011)

Directed by: Mikael Salomon, Stefan Schwartz, Ciaran Donnelly, Jeremy Podeswa | 494 minutes | drama, fantasy, history | Actors: Joseph Fiennes, Jamie Campbell Bower, Tamsin Egerton, Peter Mooney, Philip Winchester, Eva Green, Claire Forlani, Diarmaid Murtagh, Chipo Chung, Clive Standen, Jamie Downey, Sinéad Cusack, Lara Jean Chorostecki

In an interview, Camelot creator Chris Chibnall claimed that his series is the first to highlight King Arthur’s early years. Nonsense of course, know the fans of ‘Merlin’, the BBC’s family-friendly fantasy series that will start its fourth season in 2011. ‘Camelot’ was aimed at a more mature audience, but disappeared after one season after mixed reviews and disappointing ratings. Too bad, because despite a weak start, this beautifully designed, modern retelling of the Arthurian legend leaves you wanting more.

In ‘Camelot’ we are introduced to Arthur (Jamie Campbell Bower), who thinks he is a mere mortal until the wizard Merlin (Joseph Fiennes) tells him that he is the legal heir to the throne of the late King Uther. As Arthur adjusts to his newfound status and the responsibilities that come with it, his older half-sister Morgan (Eva Green) makes a bid for the throne. It failed, but the battle is not over yet. While Morgan publicly supports her brother’s rule, she secretly works out a plan to seize power. She does not shy away from using dark forces.

‘Camelot’ would have come out better if the casting had been right. Campbell Bower is initially a size too small for the part of Arthur and Tamsin Egerton is a complete miss as Guinevere, the betrothed of Arthur’s best warrior. She turns the young king’s head on, but the actors have no chemistry and what should have been an epic love story comes across as an ordinary slip in the broom closet. Fortunately, Green is in excellent shape as Morgan. The actress portrays a beautifully layered character: merciless, cunning and balancing on the edge of madness, but also vulnerable and compulsive in search of recognition. Green’s charisma makes Morgan appear much more regal than Arthur, and that couldn’t have been the intention.

There is more wrong with ‘Camelot’. The pilot episode in particular suffers from poor build-up and direction and also contains a number of wooden dialogues, one of which takes place during an unintentionally laughable lovemaking between Morgan and Arthur’s most formidable enemy. The sex scenes that should have given ‘Camelot’ a spicy touch are often tame in the first place and not always as functional, as if the writers occasionally open a can of breasts to meet their naked quota. Furthermore, the scenario plays with logic at crucial moments. For example, we know that Merlin can look into people’s souls by touching them, but he is still terribly tricked by Morgan.

These shortcomings are countered by the fact that ‘Camelot’ is set up on a grand scale, with beautiful costumes, sets and landscape images shot in Ireland. As the series progresses, the characters come into their own and the storylines gain in strength. Familiar elements from the Arthurian legend are given a new meaning. Merlin turns out to be a fascinating mix of light and dark, a tormented soul who wants to keep Arthur in power by any means necessary and makes up a myth about Excalibur to disguise that he obtained the sword in a rather unsavory way. The unstable Morgan turns out to be a skilled demagogue who goes far – very far – to gain power. And yes, even Arthur seems increasingly convincing as a young king. When he stands his ground in the very strong final against a large force majeure, you realize that the blond lad has something to offer. But alas, the ax has fallen, and not even the once and future king can do anything about that.