King Arthur

While so much film criticism seems to be little more than loud-mouthed prejudice-indulgence, The New York Times regularly carries interesting reviews and features.

An analysis of the new King Arthur by Charles McGrath (free registration required) is a case in point. Witty and smart, it includes an exhaustive study of Camelot's movie history. He even mentions the screenwriter (David Franzoni), although he's not much impressed by his screenplay or Antoine Fuqua's direction.

It's a sort of Dark Ages Seven Samurai story - with the addition of a Xena the Warrior Princess figure: Guinevere, who is not only an excellent archer but is also apparently impervious to the elements. In the dead of winter she fights in a kind of sleeveless nightgown, and for the climactic battle she wears a revealing Thierry Mugler-style S & M outfit.