Light-hearted fun in anachronistic 'A Knight's Tale'

By Joko E.H. Anwar

A Knight's Tale, *** out of four stars; Comedy/Adventure, 123 minutes; Starring: Heath Ledger, Rufus Sewell, Paul Bettany, Shannyn Sossamon, Mark Addy, Alan Tudyk, Laura Fraser; Directed by Brian Helgeland; A Columbia Pictures Presentation

JAKARTA (JP): Remember when you could watch a film about a dance or sport competition that you liked? You knew the hero would always win in the end, even though there sometimes was a twist to it.

A Knight's Tale recaptures the spirit of one of those likable sports/dance competition films and somehow it enables you to go along with the cliches. Despite its ready-to-use formula, this movie beats the odds and triumphantly emerges as an entertaining film.

William (Ledger) and his two friends (Mark Addy and Alan Tudyk), who work for Sir Ulrich, learn the aristocrat has died after jousting in a tournament.

It is somewhere in the 14th century and the three men are facing a serious problem since they no longer have a master.

William then decides to don Sir Ulrich's armor and pose as their master to take part in a tournament.

Since William proves to be a natural born knight, he persuades his two friends to invest their share of the small silverware he won earlier to transform him into a real knight. They are reluctant at first, but William is just too convincing to be turned down.

They do not have to worry about how to keep William's true identity a secret after they meet naked Geoff Chaucer, who teaches William how to behave like a noble.

In case you are wondering, the film does not have much to do with Chaucer's The Knight's Tale. But we learn something important from the movie. Rock band Queen copied from the movie their hit song We Will Rock You, which is played during the tournament with spectators clapping their hands and stomping their feet to welcome their favorite knights. And Nike also got its logo from a flag from this period. Not.

Since there are several intended anachronisms in this film (although not as many and as amusing as in Baz Luhrmann's Moulin Rouge), do not get excited to start criticizing just yet if you find something which seems out-of-date.

One of many amusing moments in the film is when William attends a ball and the period music suddenly turns into David Bowie's hit song Golden Years.

Since the arguable king of anachronism, Sam Raimi, created the cheeky, pure fun TV series Xena: The Warrior Princess, which set a new standard for period adventure, it has not been easy to make a movie that surpasses the amount of entertainment the series offers audiences.

Fortunately, A Knight's Tale pulls it off.

William gains fame and attracts the attention of a beautiful aristocratic lady, Jocelyn (Shannyn Sossaman), but quickly finds his match in the smug black knight Count Adhemar.

While Adhemar acknowledges William's skill in the field, he has doubts about William's family tree.

Since Adhemar also has his eyes on Jocelyn, he is willing to do anything to prove that William is not worth a mention in the world of aristocratic championship.

Plus, if William's true identity is revealed, not only will he be banned from taking part in the competition again, but he will have committed an act of treachery.

Writer/director Brian Helgeland does not have to go on tiptoe to avoid so many overused elements since he is not trying to pretend he is making a monumentally inventive work.

He keeps the film light-hearted, sincere and relies on good timing to entertain audiences.

Despite being a less ambitious project, A Knight's Tale is nothing for Helgeland to be ashamed of putting on the same resume with his Academy Award winning screenplay L.A. Confidential.

He even succeeds in making the joust scenes as exciting as the events in many films about sports or dance.

Expect a lot of big laughs in this film, which mainly come from Paul Bettany who plays Chaucer and who becomes William's agent while dealing with his addiction to gambling.

Chaucer also poses as William's announcer before the knight makes his entrance.

Everyone else in the cast is also delightful to watch and the characters are capable of warming many hearts. We cheer for those who are behind William's success, including the female blacksmith who proves her devotion to William is nothing romantic (or else it would have been an annoying distraction).

Ledger is fun to watch but somehow manages not to be on top of everyone else. The actor, who we remember as Mel Gibson's son in the mediocre The Patriot, is a perfect choice for this ensemble.

However, the film almost slips near the end when it decides to go sentimental. But since you never expect a film to be more than just entertaining, you are likely to forgive its wrong turn. Consider this film for real light-hearted fun this weekend.