Directed by:Kevin Reynolds
Written by:Dean Georgaris
Cast: James Franco, Sophia Myles, Rufus Sewell
Tristan and Isolde is a surprisingly good retelling of a classic tale. It bolsters a solid, if not a spectacular screenplay from Dean Georgaris that succinctly adapts the original Celtic legend, while removing the more fantastic elements. Just as the gods were removed from Troy, so the dragon and the love potion are gone from Tristan and Isolde
.With this strong of a story, it would take a true moron in the director’s chair to ruin the film. Originally, Ridley Scott was set to direct, but he stepped back in favor of Kingdom of Heaven. Kevin Reynolds, whose previous works include The Count of Monte Cristo, took over as director, while Scott took the role of producer. Reynolds did a decent job with the film—he’s clearly no moron—but it’s hard not to wonder how much better Tristan and Isolde would have been had Ridley Scott brought his unique visual richness to the film.
If you already know the legend of Tristan and Isolde, then watching this movie is like going through some familiar, if enjoyable, steps. If you don’t, then this may serve as a decent introduction to a great tale. Tristan is a boy raised in an England before the island was united under one king. During an attack by the Irish, Tristan’s family are killed. He is rescued by Lord Marke, who raises him with the ideal of a united England. When he is grown, Tristan is mortally wounded in a battle with a great Irish champion. He is given a warrior’s funeral, pushed into the sea on a boat. He washes up on the shores of Ireland, where he is healed by Isolde, the Irish princess. They fall in love, even though their love is taboo.
This spoils the first act of the movie, which is really just set up, if cleverly told setup for an intricate storyline centered around characters. This, perhaps, is the most enjoyable thing about this film. Where most action movies tend to serve as excuses for impossibly long fight sequences, Tristan and Isolde is based around its characters, their motivations, and how they act as a result of them. Tristan in particular is torn at many points between his love for Isolde and his loyalty to King Marke.
As a result, the action, while plentiful, is entirely the result of the story elements around it. There are no random sword fights or pointless battles. Everything that happens is entirely the result of characters’ actions and decisions. The fight sequences are entertaining, occasionally intense, and surprisingly bloody considering the PG-13 rating. Had Ridley Scott stayed aboard, you can be sure that the action would have been a great deal more intense, and the violence bloody enough to merit an R rating.
The actors do a decent job of telling their characters’ story. Certainly Sophia Myles deserves recognition for the wide array of emotion she displays as Isolde. Rufus Sewell mixes love and despair as Marke. James Franco is arguably the weakest of the leads, possibly due to the fact that most of his acting consisted of pained close-ups. Again, maybe Ridley Scott would have done a better job. Overall, though, the acting was solid.
On the whole, Tristan and Isolde is a surprisingly good film. It works sufficiently to tell a great story. It’s just hard, from the point of view of a film geek, not to think of how much better it could have been had it been helmed by the director originally involved.
Casey Cosker lives, reads, writes, and occasionally studies at Pratt Institute in New York City. He spends his free time and money buying comic books and novels he can’t afford. He has been a self-proclaimed geek for several months now, and has no intention of changing his ways. He also has a hat.