Lancelot: Guardian of Time
2000; Scriptoriun Press; Volume: 10; Issue: 2 Linguagem: Inglês
10.1353/art.2000.0032
ISSN1934-1539
Autores Tópico(s)Medieval Literature and History
ResumoREVIEWS105 who might be king. He proposes the exchange ofblows which Gawain accepts, and the Green Knight's singing severed head reminds Gawain of his pact and tells him to journey to the Green Chapel in a year and a day to fulfill his part ofthe exchange. Then follows the turning ofthe seasons. A nude Gawain is washed and armed as the invisible Morgan taunts and ushers him on his way. In the production's most striking theatrical moment, the raised circular platform that previously served as the Round Table becomes Gawain's shield as the knight finds himselfpinned spread eagle to it as a human pentangle. In the second act, that same platform becomes the bed in which Lady de Hautdesert tempts Gawain. In that second act, Morgan narrates Gawain's journey in song as the knight increasingly appears to be in a trance. Gawain is extravagantly welcomed at Bertilak's castle, where his host suggests the three-fold set of exchanges that those familiar with the medieval romance will readily recognize. Gawain acts honorably in the first two exchanges, but is false in the third. He then, still guided by Morgan who suggests he turn back, sets out for the Green Chapel. Gawain perseveres, only to flinch at the moment of the intended blow. Forgiven by the Green Knight, who reveals himselfas Bertilak, a chastened Gawain returns to Arthur's court. Everyone at the court, with the exception ofthe Fool, expects Gawain to come home bearing tales ofbravery. But when the truth is revealed, the members of the court turn from him; only Guinevere defends him. In the end, Gawain finds himself a changed man, and a permanent outsider. Arthur and his court are too smug to admit that they could ever share in Gawain's fault. The opera ends as it begins with Morgan promising another journey for rhe court, presumably one that will end with the eventual failure of the court as a whole. While several newspaper accounts complained ofserious flaws in the production, the staging the night I attended was flawless in every detail, and bodes well for what the newly-reopened Royal Opera House might offer in the future. KEVIN J. HARTY La Salle University rubian cruz, dir. Lancelot: Guardian ofTime. Alpine Pictures, Inc., 1999. 85 minutes. ASIN BOOOOJLWP. $37.99. In almost 100 years of film and 50 years of television history, as a title or a main character, Lancelot has not received an overabundance of attention. Beside the present video, there are only seven other full film or television productions about him. These include Vitagraph's 1909 Lancelot andElaine, the British 1951 television series TAi? Adventures ofSir Lancelot, the 1959 Mel-O-Toons cartoon Sir Lancelot, Cornel Wilde's 1963 The SwordofLancelot (also known as Lancelot and Guinevere), Bresson's 1974 Lancelot du lac, The New Twilight Zone's 1986 adaptation of Roger Zelazny's science fiction short story The Last Defender ofCamelot, and the recent Zucker production First Knight (1995). Unfortunately, Lancelot: Guardian ofTimewili prove no competition forWilde's or Bresson's work. Except for a few details, forget Chrétien, Ulrich or the Prose 1?6arthuriana version, this film is strictly science fiction for children. Merlin (Leonard Auclair) first sends Lancelot back fifteen years in time to try to stop the evil wizard Wolvencroft (John Saxon) from kidnapping the squire Arthur. Then Lancelot is propelled into our present to prevent Arthur from pulling Excalibur from the stone in the wrong era, thus giving Wolvencroft ultimate power over time. Among the all-too-few nods to traditional legend is Lancelot's receipt ofa magic ring (though certainly not precisely in the manner described by Chrétien in Le Chevalier de ¿a charrete). Another is Wolvencroft's warning to the hero that, should he succeed in foiling the wizard's plans, Lancelot will ultimately destroy Camelot himself. Marc Singer (of Beastmaster and V fame) stars as Lancelot. Singer is a likable actor, but his agonizingly studied speech inflections and gentle pirouetting with his sword—to say nothing of his incredibly bad hairpiece—are remarkable to behold. BERT OLTON Palmyra, New York c. Stephen jaeger, Ennobling Love: In Search ofa Lost Sensibility. (The...
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