The Green Knight – Film Review

King Arthur’s headstrong nephew Sir Gawain (Dev Patel) embarks on a daring quest to confront the Green Knight (Ralph Ineson), a mysterious giant who appears at Camelot. Risking his head, he sets off on an epic adventure to prove himself before his family and court.

Am I the only person who has never read the story of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight? When I was growing up, I didn’t really read a lot of fairy tales, and the ones that I did were read to me by my mother and were relatively simple ones such as “Humpty Dumpty” and “Jack in the Beanstalk”.

Medieval stuff never interested me as a child and so that may be the reason why I never read any Arthurian material years ago. But let me tell you – David Lowery‘s The Green Knight is the furthest thing possible from being a children’s fairy tale story. This is an intense, riveting, and arresting movie that will seriously knock you on your behind and make you feel exhausted yet in love at the same time.

I couldn’t even tell you the last time a movie made me feel this way. If I really think about it, the answer might be Ari Aster‘s Midsommar – not only is that my favorite movie of all time, but its also a movie that commands your attention for every frame and is so beautifully haunting that it makes you feel like you’ve seen things you shouldn’t have. The Green Knight evokes similar feelings within me.

This is the definition of an arthouse movie. If you go into this movie expecting a brand new Lord of the Rings for the next generation or a live-action adaptation of Bethesda’s Skyrim, then you’re going to be let down immensely. This film has virtually no action scenes whatsoever but that doesn’t mean the film doesn’t take you on an enthralling journey.

Mainstream audiences are more than likely going to loathe every second of this movie – in fact, I’m already seeing the negative reviews pour in on review aggregate websites. It’s an extremely bizarre and unconventional film and that’s why it’s not getting too hot of a score from users. It doesn’t hold your hand. It never tells you concrete answers to questions that may be racing through your mind, and it doesn’t let you simply sit back and relax. But those are some of the biggest reasons why I love The Green Knight.

From the moment it begins to the moment it ends, it captivates your attention and takes you on a wild journey that will make you think “What the hell is happening?” in all the best ways. Don’t expect to see any dragons or mythical creatures roaming the world that the film takes place in. Sometimes, the darkest and most dangerous things are what you’d least expect.

And who better to tell this story than David Lowery? Ever since he started directing films in the early 2010s, it was made clear that he is one of the most unconventional filmmakers out there and that was best displayed with A Ghost Story. Just by hearing that title, you may think it’s some jumpscare-heavy horror flick where a family gets haunted by spirits but it’s the furthest thing from that. It asks powerful questions – some we may not want to answer because it’s a little too close to home – such as our meaning on this planet and what it really means to be alive.

The Green Knight not only adapts Lowery’s unique style of filmmaking that I’ve been a fan of for years now, but similar to A Ghost Story, it asks thought-provoking questions about life, legacy, and death, that will be stuck in your head for quite a while. It’s not often that a movie seriously makes me think about the world and life in general, but Lowery’s filmography tends to have that effect on me.

This is the definition of an acid-trippy movie – sometimes things will happen on-screen that will make your eyes bug out of your head and you’ll feel like you’re dreaming because it’s the only logical explanation. But, alas, you’re not dreaming. You’re simply watching the work of a genius writer/director at work and one that’s lightyears ahead of his craft.

It’s all further propelled by an absolutely masterful performance by Dev Patel in the role of Sir Gawain who not only delivers the best performance of his career here but also one of the best performances I have seen in years. Sadly I can’t see the Academy nominating him for Best Actor since this is a genre film, but I genuinely hope that his hard work does not go unnoticed here because it’s a thing of beauty.

Speaking of things of beauty – the cinematography. I am not exaggerating when I say that The Green Knight is without question one of the most beautiful-looking movies I have ever seen in my life. Just when I thought that I’ve seen it all when it comes to cinematography, DOP Andrew Droz Palermo comes along to shake things up, making this world feel so lively and haunting that it gives me goosebumps just thinking about it right now.

The musical score by Daniel Hart also helps to create the overall mood and tone of this world. It’s full of haunting synths that will make the hair of the back of your neck stand up. This world feels so lived in and yet so wonderous. It’s the rare kind of world that makes me go “I wish I lived there” but also “I’m glad I don’t live there”.

The Green Knight is nothing short of a masterpiece. It’s easily one of the most bizarre and unrelentingly tense movies I’ve seen in years and, simply put, a movie I will never, ever forget. David Lowery proves yet again he is one of the best filmmakers working today, crafting a film that asks so much from its viewers – something I love.

Overall Grade: A+

MPAA Rating: R for violence, some sexuality, and graphic nudity

Cast: Dev Patel, Alicia Vikander, Joel Edgerton, Sarita Choudhury, Sean Harris, Ralph Ineson, Kate Dickie, Barry Keoghan, Erin Kellyman, Megan Tiernan

Directed by: David Lowery

Written by: David Lowery

Distributed by: A24

Release Date: July 30, 2021

Running Time: 130 minutes