Genre: Action, Adventure, Romance, Drama
Tagline: Before Romeo & Juliet, there was...
Plot: After the fall of Rome, the warlords of England are brutally kept in line by the forces of Irish King Donnchadh. One of these leaders, Lord Marke (Rufus Sewell) seeks to unite the English tribes to form one strong nation to rule itself. His greatest knight is Tristan (James Franco), whom Marke raised since he was orphaned in an Irish attack that also took Marke's family. With Tristan by his side, Marke believes he can unify his people and rid England of Irish rule. But Tristan harbors a terrible secret…Wounded and left for dead after battle, he is nursed back to health by Isolde (Sophia Myles), a mysterious Irish beauty who hides him from her father, King Donnchadh's, forces and brings him back to life. But their passionate affair is cut short when Tristan must return to England, not knowing if he will see Isolde again. Still seeking to throw the English tribes back into chaos, King Donnchadh gives away his daughter as the prize in a tournament between all the champions of England. Tristan wins the princess' hand for Lord Marke, whose vision of a united England may finally be realized. Tristan is horrified to see that the woman he has won for his Lord, the woman whom Marke will marry, is his Irish savior Isolde. Worse, Marke is a good and worthy future king, whose belief in
More Plot Descriptions
 Discussion forum for this movie
|
| |
 I can wholeheartedly recommend Tristan & Isolde, even to those who don't have a penchant for period piece romances. The movie has a lot to offer, and hope those who like this kind of movie discover it either now or when it reaches the DVD store.  --James Berardinelli (ReelViews)
"Tristan and Isolde" is not all love; in fact, it features large chunks of professionally done action, including fierce attacks, clandestine ambushes and copious amounts of smiting enemies with mighty swords.--Kenneth Turan
Tristan & Isolde is an exhausting film even though nothing much happens in it.
Tristan & Isolde gets more yawns from critics than a Wagnerian opera.  -- (ShowBizData.com)
Tristan & Isolde is one of those rare cinematic experiences that feels whole, that feels authentic. Well acted and expertly crafted, it is an elegant example of work by a mainstream filmmaker at the top of his game.  --Keith Breese (FilmCritic.com)
Unlike the opera, this version of the tale features no mystical elements and comes off as horribly contrived. What's more, director Kevin Reynolds' sluggish pacing makes the film feels twice as long as it really is.
Filled with forbidden romance and plenty of swordplay — the battle kind, not the R-rated kind — Tristan&Isolde proves itself a passable teen date movie with something to satisfy everyone.  --Linda Barnard
Much of the film is earnestly authentic, with elaborate combat choreography and rugged stone sets that look like they could give you rheumatism from 10 paces out. 
However, when it comes to the sequences that don’t involve axes being sunk into spines, he sadly shows himself to be all thumbs. --Peter Sobczynski (eFilmCritic.com)
Even when the film asks us to believe that an entire army of men would turn against their evil king after listening to an inspirational speech from an enemy soldier holding a traitor's severed head, the film gives off the feeling of being incredibly bored with itself. The feeling is contagious. -- (SlantMagazine.com)
Everything you expect from a mainstream adaptation of an ancient legend is here: grand vistas, grand passions, mist and blood, brooding romantic score, PG-rated nude lovemaking, soap-opera plot and dialogue, ripoffs of everything from The Adventures of Robin Hood to Titanic and Shakespeare in Love...
|
| Directed by |
Kevin Reynolds
Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, Waterworld, The Count of Monte Cristo |
 |
|
| Cast |
|
 | |
 | Henry Cavill
The Count of Monte Cristo, I Capture the Castle, Hellraiser: Hellworld |
 | Dexter Fletcher
Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Doom, The Elephant Man |
 | Sophia Myles
Underworld, Underworld: Evolution, Art School Confidential | | | |
[more] |
|
| Music By |
Anne Dudley
American History X, The Full Monty, Say Anything... |
|
''Tristan & Isolde" has the duty of telling an ancient, less famous feel-bad love story, the one Shakespeare didn't write and that Baz Luhrmann didn't direct.  -- (Boston Globe)
The film also lacks a good, old-fashioned centerpiece battle. Several skirmishes and a climactic fight scene are chaotic and haphazard, with no memorable acts of heroism or creative directing.--Hanh Nguyen
If you care nothing at all for myth, medieval literature, or historical veracity, you might actually enjoy the little that’s left of one of the world’s greatest romantic tragedies: a technically competent, minor costume drama.--Mark Harris
|
|
Movie Database
In Theaters
