A Better Medieval Movie than "Flesh+Blood"(1985)?

[Cuir Mustache]

Can you name a movie with a Medieval theme better suited to get into the mood to play Mount & Blade than Flesh+Blood? No 'fantasy' or 'sandal-flicks', please!

From the director of Total Recall, Basic Instinct and Starship Troopers Paul Verhoeven's inexplicably underrated portrayal of the dark ages. A spectacle gripping in all the right ways - from a time before computer generated imagery sullied movies forever.

Yes, it is not a perfect match to Mount & Blade, it's late middle ages with a bit of black powder and the black death. I dare you to find a better one!

movie databases: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0089153/
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1007538-flesh_and_blood/

fan trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=veB1do0VJYM&NR=1

Movies suggested to blow Flesh+Blood (out of the water):

6. Arn, The Knight Templar [2007]
5. A Knight's Tale [2003]
4. Army of Darkness [1992]
3. The Warlord [1965]
2. Black Death [2010]
1. Braveheart [1992]

 

[Dahobo24]

Topic like these should be posted here http://forums.taleworlds.com/index.php/board,39.0.html

 

[Radalan]

Braveheart.

Because all accuracy put to the side it's a great movie. With great battle scenes.

As far as I know there isn't actually that many decent non-fantasy (no idea what "sandal-flick" means) medieval movies.

 

[Mage246]

I hear "Black Death" with Sean Bean is supposed to be a good medieval flick, though I have not seen it myself.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1181791/

 

[Sound Chaser]

Can you name a movie with a Medieval theme better suited to get into the mood to play Mount & Blade than Flesh+Blood? No 'fantasy' or 'sandal-flicks', please!

the hairstyles pretty much killed the mood for me as I watched some clips of it

 

[ConanTheAnarchist]

The Warlord, with Charlsten Heston

 

[Devercia]

Can you name a movie with a Medieval theme better suited to get into the mood to play Mount & Blade than Flesh+Blood? No 'fantasy' or 'sandal-flicks', please!

From the director of Total Recall, Basic Instinct and Starship Troopers Paul Verhoeven's inexplicably underrated portrayal of the dark ages. A spectacle gripping in all the right ways - from a time before computer generated imagery sullied movies forever.

Yes, it is not a perfect match to Mount & Blade, it's high middle ages with a bit of black powder and the black death. I dare you to find a better one!

movie databases: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0089153/
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1007538-flesh_and_blood/

fan trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=veB1do0VJYM&NR=1

Implying the Renaissance was part of the dark ages, or even the middle ages.

 

[Merlkir]

I hear "Black Death" with Sean Bean is supposed to be a good medieval flick, though I have not seen it myself.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1181791/

I think I posted my impression in the Historical Documentaries thread. It's horrible. Almost as bad as Valhalla Rising.

edit: yup.

Watching the Black Death. Stop shaking that bloody camera, I just want to watch Sean Bean kick some ass! :/

- Eddie Redmayne was born to play whiny weaklings. He's ugly, he can't act and most of the time I can't understand a word he says.

- I imagine someone from the film crew saying "So...this is like...medieval. So we'll need lots of brown, black and DIRTY clothes. And mud. And leather. Everyone needs to wear leather, preferably black. Cause it's dark ages you see."
- the gear is obviously ALL wrong, NOTHING looks 14th century.
- the costumes were designed by someone after lobotomy, or maybe a theatre costume maker. "See, this character is a peaceful peasant, he shalt wear a simple shirt and that nonsensical sleeveless coat thing that's soooooo peasanty and stereotypical."
- the **** - his name is Hobb. OK, stereotype away, movie.
- the camera is horrible, but it kinda makes the fight scenes look passable.
- it's a bit pretentious like Valhalla Rising was.
- ok, it's quite a bit pretentious.
- people almost don't take their armour off. I wonder if it's because it's made of wool and spraypainted silver.

It's a predictable shallow film and Sean Bean is wasted on this pos.

 

[Cuir Mustache]

Implying the Renaissance was part of the dark ages, or even the middle ages.

Good point: black powder, plague, the heroine's red striped dress, the hero's desire to become a scholar and inventor clearly identify the cultural period as the Renaissance.
Renaissance was the end of the middle ages and it can be argued that as the end it is also a part of it.

 

[Devercia]

Especially in Italy. However, black powder and plague were around well before the Renaissance.

As for other movies, none come to mind.

 

[Cuir Mustache]

Now the contestants:

The Warlord, with Charlton Heston

And Braveheart: both movies hinge on the insane premise of "the right of the first night", a shocker to a puritanical audience. In general a lot of medieval/classical stories are about revenge of a great injustice, which is predictable and formulaic, to say the least. I've yet to watch "the Warlord", but frankly I have no desire watching 60's Charlton Heston.

The second one "Braveheart" is a known quantity, however today it isn't possible to ignore what happened. Like you can't ignore that Star Wars prequels happened. Now, that we know that glimmer of insanity in Mel Gibson's eyes ("Mad Max", "Lethal Weapon", "Conspiracy Theory", "The Passion of the Christ") wasn't just acting, he is or has in fact become a (religious) nut job.

I guess there aren't that many middle ages Hollywood movies, possibly due to a lack of close by medieval castles, ruins, exposure or interest. European cinema may have more to offer.

 

[Taimat396]

Implying the Renaissance was part of the dark ages, or even the middle ages.

Good point: black powder, plague, the heroine's red striped dress, the hero's desire to become a scholar and inventor clearly identify the cultural period as the Renaissance.
Renaissance was the end of the middle ages and it can be argued that as the end it is also a part of it.

Except you weren't talking medieval, it's supposed to be the dark ages. Drop back a few centuries.

 

[Eino]

Army of darkness.

 

[Radalan]

Watched Flesh And Blood yesterday.
Props for the costume design and actors, everything else was ****ing awful.

Army of darkness.

No 'fantasy' or 'sandal-flicks', please!

 

[Jock]

Braveheart.

Because all accuracy put to the side it's a great movie. With great battle scenes.

As far as I know there isn't actually that many decent non-fantasy (no idea what "sandal-flick" means) medieval movies.

Aye!

And also, Game of Thrones series don't really focus on fighting or castles, but they seem quite realistic to me and are quite well done.

 

[Cuir Mustache]

Watched Flesh And Blood yesterday.
Props for the costume design and actors, everything else was ******** awful.

Verhoeven films are very deliberately set up, so there is a lot to discover and think about. There are visceral, emotional, even smart layers. For one thing this films manages to hold your attention unlike half of those old-timey films striving to be "epic".

Despite the costumes, the campy phoniness etc. people still act like realistic stereotypes, not dumb romanticized movie archetypes, i.e. in a thousand other movies a damsel wants to be rescued, whereas this one wants to get it on. Bandits and mercenaries are real scumbags, rather than honorable rebels. People like in real life are led by servility, opportunism and superstition NOT bull**** motives like (noble) revenge, faith or (evil) greed, hate.

The same brand of satire was used by "Shreq" movies: a mockery of fairy tales which happens to be a pretty good fairy tale in itself.

 

[Radalan]

The same brand of satire was used by "Shreq" movies: a mockery of fairy tales which happens to be a pretty good fairy tale in itself.

I wouldn't really compare Shrek and Flesh And Blood.
And I had no idea it was a satire, all I saw was akward writing at parts.

 

[havoc]

I like a Knights Tale.

 

[Kazzan]

I like the film about Jean de Arc, really got me pumped to play M&B, and one film I don't remember the name of... 

 

[Deserath]

Is he dieing of something?