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Excalibur (film)
''Excalibur'' is a 1981 epic medieval fantasy film directed, co-written and produced by John Boorman, that retells the legend of King Arthur and the knights of the Round Table, based loosely on the 15th-century Arthurian romance '' Le Morte d'Arthur'' by Thomas Malory. It stars Nigel Terry as Arthur, Nicol Williamson as Merlin, Nicholas Clay as Lancelot, Cherie Lunghi as Guenevere, Helen Mirren as Morgana, Liam Neeson as Gawain, Gabriel Byrne as Uther and Patrick Stewart as Leondegrance. The film is named after the legendary sword of King Arthur that features prominently in Arthurian literature. The film's soundtrack features the music of Richard Wagner and Carl Orff, along with an original score by Trevor Jones. Boorman’s ''Excalibur'' began development as an unproduced adaptation of ''The Lord of the Rings''. The film was shot entirely on location in Ireland and at Ardmore Studios, employing Irish actors and crew. It has been acknowledged for its importance to the ...
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Bob Peak
Robert M. Peak (May 30, 1927 – August 1, 1992) was an American commercial illustrator. He is best known for his developments in the design of the modern film poster. His artwork has been on the cover of ''Time'' magazine, ''TV Guide'', and ''Sports Illustrated''. He also illustrated advertisements and U.S. postage stamps. Early life Bob Peak was born in Denver, Colorado and grew up in Wichita, Kansas. He knew from an early age that he wanted to be a commercial illustrator. He majored in geology at the University of Wichita (nka Wichita State University) and got a part-time job in the art department of McCormick-Armstrong. After serving in the military during the Korean War, Peak transferred to the Art Center College of Design in Los Angeles, California, graduating in 1951. In 1953, Peak moved to New York City and landed an Old Hickory Whiskey advertising campaign. His work went on to appear in major advertising and national magazines. He was the father of Matthew Peak, w ...
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Trevor Jones (composer)
Trevor Alfred Charles Jones (born 23 March 1949) is a South African composer of film and television scores. Having spent much of his career in the United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ..., Jones has worked on numerous well-known and acclaimed films including ''Excalibur (film), Excalibur, Runaway Train (film), Runaway Train, The Dark Crystal, Labyrinth (1986 film), Labyrinth, Mississippi Burning, The Last of the Mohicans (1992 film), The Last of the Mohicans,'' and In the Name of the Father (film), ''In the Name of the Father''; collaborating with Filmmaker, filmmakers like John Boorman, Andrei Konchalovsky, Jim Henson, and Michael Mann. He has composed for numerous films and his music has been critically acclaimed for both its depth and emotion, and he ha ...
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Lancelot
Lancelot du Lac (French for Lancelot of the Lake), also written as Launcelot and other variants (such as early German ''Lanzelet'', early French ''Lanselos'', early Welsh ''Lanslod Lak'', Italian ''Lancillotto'', Spanish ''Lanzarote del Lago'', and Welsh ''Lawnslot y Llyn''), is a character in some versions of Arthurian legend, where he is typically depicted as King Arthur's close companion and one of the greatest Knights of the Round Table. In the French-inspired Arthurian chivalric romance tradition, Lancelot is an orphaned son of King Ban of the lost Kingdom of Benoic, raised in the fairy realm by the Lady of the Lake. A hero of many battles, quests and tournaments, and famed as a nearly unrivalled swordsman and jouster, Lancelot becomes the lord of the castle Joyous Gard and personal champion of Arthur's wife, Queen Guinevere, despite suffering from frequent and sometimes prolonged fits of madness. But when his adulterous affair with Guinevere is discovered, it causes a ci ...
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Merlin
Merlin ( cy, Myrddin, kw, Marzhin, br, Merzhin) is a mythical figure prominently featured in the legend of King Arthur and best known as a mage, with several other main roles. His usual depiction, based on an amalgamation of historic and legendary figures, was introduced by the 12th-century British author Geoffrey of Monmouth. It is believed that Geoffrey combined earlier tales of Myrddin and Ambrosius, two legendary Briton prophets with no connection to Arthur, to form the composite figure called Merlinus Ambrosius ( cy, Myrddin Emrys, br, Merzhin Ambroaz). Geoffrey's rendering of the character became immediately popular, especially in Wales. Later writers in France and elsewhere expanded the account to produce a fuller image, creating one of the most important figures in the imagination and literature of the Middle Ages. Merlin's traditional biography casts him as an often-mad being born of a mortal woman, sired by an incubus, from whom he inherits his supernatural powe ...
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Romance (heroic Literature)
As a literary genre, the chivalric romance is a type of prose and verse narrative that was popular in the noble courts of High Medieval and Early Modern Europe. They were fantastic stories about marvel-filled adventures, often of a chivalric knight-errant portrayed as having heroic qualities, who goes on a quest. It developed further from the epics as time went on; in particular, "the emphasis on love and courtly manners distinguishes it from the ''chanson de geste'' and other kinds of epic, in which masculine military heroism predominates." Popular literature also drew on themes of romance, but with ironic, satiric, or burlesque intent. Romances reworked legends, fairy tales, and history to suit the readers' and hearers' tastes, but by c. 1600 they were out of fashion, and Miguel de Cervantes famously burlesqued them in his novel ''Don Quixote''. Still, the modern image of "medieval" is more influenced by the romance than by any other medieval genre, and the word ''medieva ...
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Round Table
The Round Table ( cy, y Ford Gron; kw, an Moos Krenn; br, an Daol Grenn; la, Mensa Rotunda) is King Arthur's famed table in the Arthurian legend, around which he and his knights congregate. As its name suggests, it has no head, implying that everyone who sits there has equal status, unlike conventional rectangular tables where participants order themselves according to rank. The table was first described in 1155 by Wace, who relied on previous depictions of Arthur's fabulous retinue. The symbolism of the Round Table developed over time; by the close of the 12th century it had come to represent the chivalric order associated with Arthur's court, the Knights of the Round Table. Origins Though the Round Table is not mentioned in the earliest accounts, tales of King Arthur having a marvellous court made up of many prominent warriors are ancient. Geoffrey of Monmouth, in his ''Historia Regum Britanniae'' (composed c. 1136) says that, after establishing peace throughout Britain, Arth ...
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King Arthur
King Arthur ( cy, Brenin Arthur, kw, Arthur Gernow, br, Roue Arzhur) is a legendary king of Britain, and a central figure in the medieval literary tradition known as the Matter of Britain. In the earliest traditions, Arthur appears as a leader of the post-Roman Britons in battles against Saxon invaders of Britain in the late 5th and early 6th centuries. He appears in two early medieval historical sources, the ''Annales Cambriae'' and the ''Historia Brittonum'', but these date to 300 years after he is supposed to have lived, and most historians who study the period do not consider him a historical figure.Tom Shippey, "So Much Smoke", ''review'' of , ''London Review of Books'', 40:24:23 (20 December 2018) His name also occurs in early Welsh poetic sources such as ''Y Gododdin''. The character developed through Welsh mythology, appearing either as a great warrior defending Britain from human and supernatural enemies or as a magical figure of folklore, sometimes associated wi ...
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Medieval Fantasy
Historical fantasy is a category of fantasy and genre of historical fiction that incorporates fantastic elements (such as magic (fantasy), magic) into a more "realistic" narrative. There is much crossover with other subgenres of fantasy; those classed as Arthurian, Celtic, or Dark Ages (historiography), Dark Ages could just as easily be placed in historical fantasy. Stories fitting this classification generally take place prior to the 20th century. Films of this genre may have plots set in biblical times or classical antiquity. They often have plots based very loosely on mythology or legends of Greek-Roman history, or the surrounding cultures of the same era. Overview Historical fantasy usually takes one of four common approaches: # Magic in fiction, Magic, mythical creatures such as dragons or other supernatural elements, such as magic rings co-exist invisibly with the mundane world, with the majority of people being unaware of it. In this, it has a close similarity to conte ...
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Epic Film
Epic films are a style of filmmaking with large-scale, sweeping scope, and spectacle. The usage of the term has shifted over time, sometimes designating a film genre and at other times simply synonymous with big-budget filmmaking. Like epics in the classical literary sense it is often focused on a heroic character. An epic's ambitious nature helps to set it apart from other types of film such as the period piece or adventure film. Epic historical films would usually take a historical or a mythical event and add an extravagant setting and lavish costumes, accompanied by an expansive musical score with an ensemble cast, which would make them among the most expensive of films to produce. The most common subjects of epic films are royalty, and important figures from various periods in world history. Characteristics The term "epic" originally came from the poetic genre exemplified by such works as the ''Epic of Gilgamesh'' and the works of the Trojan War Cycle. In classical litera ...
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British Film Institute
The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, distribution, and education. It is sponsored by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, and partially funded under the British Film Institute Act 1949. Purpose It was established in 1933 to encourage the development of the arts of film, television and the moving image throughout the United Kingdom, to promote their use as a record of contemporary life and manners, to promote education about film, television and the moving image generally, and their impact on society, to promote access to and appreciation of the widest possible range of British and world cinema and to establish, care for and develop collections reflecting the moving image history and heritage of the United Kingdom. BFI activities Archive The BFI maint ...
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Swedish Film Database
The Swedish Film Database ( sv, Svensk filmdatabas) is an Internet database about Swedish films, published by the Swedish Film Institute The Swedish Film Institute ( sv, Svenska Filminstitutet) was founded in 1963 to support and develop the Swedish film industry. The institute is housed in the ''Filmhuset'' building located in Gärdet, Östermalm in Stockholm. The building, comp .... It contains information about all Swedish films from 1897 onwards and foreign films that had cinema premiere in Sweden. It also provides many biographies of actors, directors, producers etc. who participated in Swedish films over the years. It is created with the support of the Bank of Sweden Tercentenary Foundation. The database comprises about 62,000 films (17,000 Swedish films) and 265,000 people. References External linksSwedish Film Database Swedish film websites Online film databases Databases in Sweden {{website-stub ...
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Lumiere (database)
The European Audiovisual Observatory (french: italic=no, Observatoire européen de l’audiovisuel, german: italic=no, Europäische Audiovisuelle Informationsstelle) is a public service organisation, part of the Council of Europe set up in 1992. The observatory collects and analyses data about the audiovisual industry in Europe, such as cinema, television, radio, video, Video On Demand and Catch-up TV. The observatory's headquarters are located in the Villa Schutzenberger in Strasbourg. Lumiere (database) Lumiere (stylized as LUMIERE) is an online database of ticket sales for films released in 27 European territories, created in cooperation with national information sources and the MEDIA Programme of the European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des .... Refe ...
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