''King Richard and the Crusaders'' is a 1954 American

historical History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

made by

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Di ...

The film stars

Rex Harrison Sir Reginald Carey "Rex" Harrison (5 March 1908 – 2 June 1990) was an English actor. Harrison began his career on the stage in 1924. He made his West End debut in 1936 appearing in the Terence Rattigan play ''French Without Tears'', in what ...

Virginia Mayo Virginia Mayo (born Virginia Clara Jones; November 30, 1920 – January 17, 2005) was an American actress and dancer. She was in a series of comedy films with Danny Kaye and was Warner Brothers' biggest box-office money-maker in the late 1940s. ...

George Sanders George Henry Sanders (3 July 1906 – 25 April 1972) was a British actor and singer whose career spanned over 40 years. His heavy, upper-class English accent and smooth, bass voice often led him to be cast as sophisticated but villainous chara ...

and

Laurence Harvey Laurence Harvey (born Zvi Mosheh Skikne; 1 October 192825 November 1973) was a Lithuanian-born British actor and film director. He was born to Lithuanian Jewish parents and emigrated to South Africa at an early age, before later settling in th ...

, with Robert Douglas,

Michael Pate Michael Pate OAM (born Edward John Pate; 26 February 1920 – 1 September 2008) was an Australian actor, writer, director, and producer, who also worked in Hollywood in the 1950s and 1960s. Biography Early life Pate was born in Drum ...

and

Paula Raymond Paula Raymond (born Paula Ramona Wright; November 23, 1924 – December 31, 2003) was an American model and actress who played the leading lady in numerous movies and television series including ''Crisis'' (1950) with Cary Grant. She was th ...

. It was directed by David Butler and produced by

Henry Blanke Henry Blanke (December 30, 1901 – May 28, 1981) was a German-born film producer who also worked as an assistant director, supervisor, writer, and production manager. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture The Academy Award ...

from a

screenplay ''ScreenPlay'' is a television drama anthology series broadcast on BBC2 between 9 July 1986 and 27 October 1993. Background After single-play anthology series went off the air, the BBC introduced several showcases for made-for-television, fe ...

John Twist John Twist (July 14, 1898 – February 11, 1976) was an American screenwriter whose career spanned four decades. Born in Albany, Missouri, Twist began his career in the silent film era, providing the story for such films as ''Breed of Cour ...

based on

Sir Walter Scott Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet (15 August 1771 – 21 September 1832), was a Scottish novelist, poet, playwright and historian. Many of his works remain classics of European and Scottish literature, notably the novels '' Ivanhoe'', '' Rob Roy' ...

's 1825 novel ''

The Talisman A talisman is an object which is purported to possess certain magical properties. Talisman may also refer to: Art and entertainment Fictional characters * Talisman (comics), a superhero from Marvel Comics who was a member of Alpha Flight * Tali ...

''. The music score was by

Max Steiner Maximilian Raoul Steiner (May 10, 1888 – December 28, 1971) was an Austrian composer and conductor who emigrated to America and went on to become one of Hollywood's greatest musical composers. Steiner was a child prodigy who conducted ...

and the cinematography by

J. Peverell Marley John Peverell Marley (August 14, 1899 – February 2, 1964) was an American cinematographer. He is one of only six cinematographers to have a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Life and career Born in San Jose, California, Marley began his c ...

. This was Warner Bros.' first essay into

CinemaScope CinemaScope is an anamorphic lens series used, from 1953 to 1967, and less often later, for shooting widescreen films that, crucially, could be screened in theatres using existing equipment, albeit with a lens adapter. Its creation in 1953 by ...

. ''King Richard and the Crusaders'' was listed in the 1978 book ''

The Fifty Worst Films of All Time ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

''.

Synopsis

In 1191,

King Richard the Lionheart Richard I (8 September 1157 – 6 April 1199) was King of England from 1189 until his death in 1199. He also ruled as Duke of Normandy, Aquitaine and Gascony, Lord of Cyprus, and Count of Poitiers, Anjou, Maine, and Nantes, and was overl ...

, along with several other European monarchs, is in the Holy Land intent on retaking Jerusalem from the Saracens. There is much infighting and outright treachery in the European encampment however. Two nobles in particular, Sir Giles Amaury and Conrad of Montferrat, want to eliminate the English king and attempt to have him assassinated. Severely wounded and on his deathbed, Richard is brought back to health by a Saracen doctor recruited by one of his loyal knights, Sir Kenneth of Huntingdon. The king recovers from his wounds but when he hears that Sir Kenneth wishes to marry Lady Edith Plantagenet, the knight is banished only to be taken in by the very doctor who treated the king and who has an altogether different identity.

Plot

The film begins with King Richard the Lionheart planning to attack the

Saracens file:Erhard Reuwich Sarazenen 1486.png, upright 1.5, Late 15th-century Germany in the Middle Ages, German woodcut depicting Saracens Saracen ( ) was a term used in the early centuries, both in Greek language, Greek and Latin writings, to refer ...

and defeat their leader, Sultan

Saladin Yusuf ibn Ayyub ibn Shadi () ( – 4 March 1193), commonly known by the epithet Saladin,, ; ku, سه‌لاحه‌دین, ; was the founder of the Ayyubid dynasty. Hailing from an ethnic Kurdish family, he was the first of both Egypt and ...

. Little does Richard know, though, the Castelaine knights who are supposed to follow him have other plans of their own. Giles Amaury, a Castelaine supporter, sets up an assassination attempt of the King using a poisoned Saracen arrow in hopes that the arrow will kill the King, frame the enemy, and allow Giles to promote one of his own to overtake the Saracens and be the victorious ruler of the land. The assassination attempt fails, and King Richard is discovered to still be alive, just before a new leader is about to be named. At this time, Sir Kenneth of Huntington enters King Richard's camp, blaming Giles and the Castelaine knights for the assassination attempt. Kenneth announces his loyalty to the King, but the King dismisses his thought that his own knights would assassinate him. The King then sends Kenneth to lead the Queen's caravan as a scout to prove his loyalty to the kingdom. On his scouting voyage, Kenneth crosses paths with a Saracen, and the two begin to duel. This does not last long though, as the two come to a chivalrous agreement to end the fighting and discuss their intentions of crossing through the desert. At this time, Kenneth learns that this Saracen is a physician named Emir Ilderim, sent by Saladin to heal King Richard. He says Saladin offers a truce until Richard is healed, because he would like to speak with him in person about the affairs of the nation and the war. Kenneth helps Ilderim get to Richard safely, and King Richard accepts the terms of Saladin's truce and the help of his physician to return to full health. Ilderim successfully heals King Richard, but not without stirring up trouble in the King's camp first. After his return, Kenneth is given another chance to prove himself to King Richard by guarding the English flag that flies at the outskirts of the camp. At the same time, Ilderim is speaking with Lady Edith Plantagenet, Richard's relative and Kenneth's love interest, and suggests to her that a marriage between a beautiful Christian woman (Edith) and a Muslim leader could bring peace to the land, without war. Kenneth sees this proposal and gets jealous, leaving his post at the flag to confront Ilderim. At this time, we see the Castelaine knights re-enter the story and knock down the English flag that Kenneth is supposed to be guarding. King Richard enters and sees Kenneth speaking with Edith and the flag on the ground. Richard becomes furious and sentences Kenneth to trial by combat. At the trial, Richard gains the upper hand, knocking Kenneth unconscious, but before he kills him, Ilderim asks the King to spare Kenneth's life, stating that he will take him back to the Saracens and Kenneth will no longer be allowed in the English kingdom. The King, respecting the chivalry of Saladin to send Ilderim, agrees and banishes Kenneth from England. When Kenneth awakes from the battle, he is in the Saracen camp being healed by Ilderim and living like royalty. Despite these gifts and Ilderim's kindness to save his life, Kenneth can only think of Edith and how he is going to return to her. Ilderim then explains to Kenneth that he is banished, but that he needs his help. Ilderim reveals to Kenneth that he is actually Saladin, ruler of the Saracens, and that he has found who is trying to overthrow King Richard, the Castelaine knights. Kenneth returns to King Richard in disguise to warn him about the danger he is in. The Castelaines overhear Kenneth warning Richard of their plan. They then steal away Edith and attempt to return to the Castelaine castle and defend themselves from there. Because of the mutual interests in Edith by Richard, Kenneth, and Saladin, the three unite to defeat the Castelaines. After a successful battle and chase across the country side, the Castelaines are defeated, Kenneth and Edith plan to marry, King Richard forgives Kenneth, and Saladin rides away safely back to his kingdom.

Cast

as Emir Ilderim/ Sultan Saladin *

as Lady Edith Plantagenet *

as Sir Kenneth of Huntington * Robert Douglas as Sir Giles Amaury *

as Conrad, Marquis of Montferrat *

as Queen Berengaria *

Lester Matthews Arthur Lester Matthews (6 June 1900 – 5 June 1975) was an English actor. In his career, the handsome Englishman made more than 180 appearances in film and on television. He was erroneously credited in later years as Les Matthews. Matthews pla ...

as Archbishop of Tyre / Narrator *

Anthony Eustrel Anthony Eustrel (12 October 1902 – 2 July 1979) was an English actor. Eustrel made guest appearances on television programs such as ''Perry Mason'', ''Maverick'', ''Peter Gunn'', ''77 Sunset Strip'', ''My Favorite Martian'', '' Hogan's Heroes' ...

as Baron De Vaux *

Henry Corden Henry Corden (born Henry Cohen; January 6, 1920 – May 19, 2005) was a Canadian-born American actor, best known for taking over the role of Fred Flintstone after Alan Reed's death in 1977. His official debut as Fred's new voice was in the 1 ...

as King Philip of France *

Wilton Graff Wilton Graff (born Wilton Calvert Ratcliffe; August 13, 1903 – January 13, 1969) was an American actor. Early years The son of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph P. Graff, he was born Wilton Calvert Ratcliffe in St. Louis, Missouri, US. He graduated ...

as Duke Leopold of Austria *

Nick Cravat Nicholas Cuccia (pronounced ''coo-cha''; January 10, 1912 – January 29, 1994), better known by his stage name Nick Cravat, was an American actor and stunt performer. Early life Nicholas Cuccia was born in Manhattan, New York City. His real ...

as Nectobanus *

Nejla Ates Nejla ( ar, نجلاء ; ) is an Arabic given name for females, which means 'large-eyed'. People named Nejla include: * Nejla Ateş, Turkish belly dancer * Nejla Moalla, Tunisian engineer and politician * Nejla Y. Yatkin, German-American choreogra ...

as Moorish Dancing Girl * Leslie Bradley as Castelaine Captain * Bruce Lester as Castelaine * Mark Dana as Castelaine * Peter Ortiz as Castelaine * John Holland as Castelaine Man-at-Arms (uncredited)

Production

The box office success of ''Ivanhoe'' saw Hollywood develop a number of films based on Walter Scott novels including ''Rob Roy'', ''Quentin Durward'' and ''The Talisman''. ''The Talisman'' was announced by Warners in August 1953 as a possible vehicle for

Errol Flynn Errol Leslie Thomson Flynn (20 June 1909 – 14 October 1959) was an Australian-American actor who achieved worldwide fame during the Golden Age of Hollywood. He was known for his romantic swashbuckler roles, frequent partnerships with Olivia ...

. John Becjman signed to do the sets, and Henry Blanke would produce. The original title was ''The Talisman''. David Butler was announced as director in October 1953. The following month Rex Harrison's casting was announced. The movie would be one of Warners' first in CinemaScope. Filming started in January 1954. There was two weeks location work in Yuma near Arizona plus filming at Ventura and Warners Ranch. The title was changed to ''King Richard and the Crusaders'' in April 1954. It was the first Hollywood movie for Laurence Harvey. David Butler called it "a good picture" and said when on location in Yuma they would film until 10.30 am then stop because it was too hot and start at three o'clock. The director said "we had great cameraderie on that picture" despite four stars, adding that Harvey "was very ambitious and worked very hard".

Reception

François Truffaut François Roland Truffaut ( , ; ; 6 February 1932 – 21 October 1984) was a French film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and film critic. He is widely regarded as one of the founders of the French New Wave. After a career of more tha ...

later wrote "we know that a bad American film goes over better than a bad French film. ''King Richard and the Crusaders'' confirms this. A childish scenario, simplistic dialogues. Who cares since the rhythm does not falter, since the colour is gay and the scenario is correct? The spectator who watches this movie is "comfortable"." Rex Harrison called it "an absolutely rotten picture" although "it was the first horsy picture I'd played in and I was fascinated."

Historical aspects in production

The Castelaine Knights from the movie are an invented group that plays the villain. They are supposed to be playing the part of the "Knights Templar". There are two theories as to why these characters were changed from Knights Templar to Castelaines. The first is because of Production Code that prevents negative representation of clergy in film. The second is because the producers wanted to avoid upsetting the Masonic Knights Templar, a group that many Hollywood figures were members of. It is unclear which theory, if either, is that actual reason for changing the name. In Lorraine Stock's article, "Now Starring in the Third Crusade: Depictions of Richard I and Saladin in Films and Television Series", she suggests that the casting of George Sanders as Richard was relevant to the time period. By choosing a "grey-haired, avuncular" leader, it appears they were returning to the idea of the mature monarch, mirroring the current leaders of the 1950s in Winston Churchill and Dwight D. Eisenhower. Rex Harrison's character, Saladin, is misrepresented in the film in an "ultimately demeaning way". In addition to the use of brown face paint, the use of disguise and trickery by the Muslim leader is greatly exaggerated in the movie. The leader is feminized throughout the movie as well with his gaudy, light colored robes and gang of belly dancers. Lorraine Stock points out some of the anti-war sentiment in the movie. Three of the main characters, Sir Kenneth, Lady Edith, and Saladin, at some point mention their disapproval of war and discuss how unnecessary it is. Stock suggests this is a reflection of the audience's viewpoint and an anti-war movement of the 1950s with audiences still remembering World War II and the more recent Korean War of 1950–1953.

Comic book adaption

Dell Dell is an American based technology company. It develops, sells, repairs, and supports computers and related products and services. Dell is owned by its parent company, Dell Technologies. Dell sells personal computers (PCs), servers, data ...

Four Color ''Four Color'', also known as ''Four Color Comics'' and ''Dell Four Color'', was an American comic book anthology series published by Dell Comics between 1939 and 1962. The title is a reference to the four basic colors used when printing comic ...

#588 (October 1954) • Drawn by

Matt Baker Matthew James Baker (born 23 December 1977) is a British television presenter. He co-presented the children's television show ''Blue Peter'' from 1999 until 2006, BBC One's ''Countryfile'' since 2009 and ''The One Show'' from 2011 to 2020, wit ...

References

Notes

External links

*
King Richard and the Crusaders
at

TCMDB Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is an American movie-oriented pay-TV network owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Launched in 1994, Turner Classic Movies is headquartered at Turner's Techwood broadcasting campus in the Midtown business district of Atl ...

* *
King Richard and the Crusader
at BFI {{DEFAULTSORT:King Richard And The Crusaders 1954 films 1950s historical adventure films American historical adventure films American adventure drama films Films based on British novels Warner Bros. films Films scored by Max Steiner Films based on works by Walter Scott Films directed by David Butler 1950s adventure drama films Films set in the 12th century Crusades films Cultural depictions of Richard I of England Cultural depictions of Saladin Films produced by Henry Blanke Films shot in Arizona Films adapted into comics 1954 drama films CinemaScope films 1950s English-language films 1950s American films