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Antoine Fuqua?s new film version of the Arthurian legend hits the screen, starring Keira Knightley and Clive Owen.

King Arthur

From producer Jerry Bruckheimer (Pirates Of The Caribbean) and director Antoine Fuqua (Training Day) comes Touchstone Pictures' King Arthur, a spectacular, epic tale of one man's destiny to become a king.

The story of King Arthur - a character popularised by the romances of Thomas Malory and later T.H White, J.R.R Tolkien and countless others - has captured the popular imagination and grown with each new telling. But it may be that the legend was based on a real person - some historians now believe that historical 'Arthur' might be traced back to Ambrosius Aurelianus, or one of his retainers - who defeated a Saxon army in a major confrontation that has come to be known as the battle of 'Mount Badon' - what is thought by some to be modern South Cadbury, in Somerset.

Conflicting claims, folk-memory, romantic notions, Pre-Raphaelite art and wishful thinking all combines to muddy the waters when it comes to Arthurian studies. In the end, Arthur may have been Welsh, a Celt, or a Breton, he may have been real in some form, or he may have been imaginary all along ? a fantasy ruler representing unity, grace, learning, strength and a collective romantic notion of kingship.

That a historical figure who might be the beginnings of the legend fought the Saxons in the north, in the south, or in Wales may be the case, but there is little real proof either way. Nor is the figure of the legendary King fixed in time, with various accounts - and serious historians - placing him from 450 to 525, to way beyond that time period, in both directions. All of this uncertainty helps fuel the myth, but the magic of the ?Arthur? figure remains, despite ? indeed, perhaps because of ? this ambiguity. Whatever the reality, the fantasy is certainly alluring, as the continued interest in the legend testifies to.

Romano-British

The new film certainly takes the view of Arthur as an heroic figure, a man of destiny, a ruler torn between private ambitions and his own public sense of duty. This film version portrays a reluctant leader, Arthur - played by Clive Owen (Children of Men, Sin City, Shoot 'Em Up) wishes only to leave Britain and return to the peace and stability of Rome. Before he can, one final mission leads him and his Knights of the Round Table: Lancelot, Galahad, Bors, Tristan, and Gawain - to the conclusion that when Rome is gone, the country will need a leader to fill the power vacuum.

Britain needs a king - someone not only to defend against the current threat of invading Saxons, but to lead the isle into a new age. Under the guidance of Merlin, a former enemy, and the beautiful, courageous Guinevere ? played in the film by Keira Knightley (Pirates Of The Caribbean, Bend It Like Beckham, Pride & Prejudice, Love Actually) by his side, Arthur will have to find the strength within himself to change the course of history. Thrilling adventure, vast battles, edge-of-your-seat action, historical grandeur (and of course, a great score!) all come together in this unique look at the origins of one of the greatest legends ever told.

Interestingly, the look of the film takes more of a historically accurate Romano-British bent, rather than the traditional, fantasy of Camelot as a late medieval notion, recently popularised in films such as Camelot, John Boormans' flashy chrome-steel fieldplate fantasy Excalibur and even Monty Python and The Holy Grail!

Antoine Fuqua?s new film version of the Arthurian legend is a accompanied by a suitably epic soundtrack album ? from acclaimed film composer Hans Zimmer. Vaguely reminiscent at times of the score for David Lynch?s epic version of Frank Herbert?s Dune (from Brian Eno and Toto) the soundtrack to the film is here presented as an uninterrupted collection, free from the current vogue for dialogue sound-bites or ? worse still - ?songs inspired by the film' fillers that plague many OST releases.

Composer Hans Zimmer is the same man who won an Oscar back in 1994 for ?Best Score? for his work on the animated feature The Lion King. He has also been responsible for the cores of many blockbuster features, and has been nominated a further six times for films as diverse as Gladiator, Rain Man and The Thin Red Line.

King Arthur is out now as a DVD. A soundtrack album is also available - from Hollywood Records/WEA.