Movie · 2017 · Action, Drama, Fantasy · 2h 6m · PG-13 · English
Curator score: 1.3/10 (432.7K ratings)
From nothing comes a King
Overview
When the child Arthur’s father is murdered, Vortigern, Arthur’s uncle, seizes the crown. Robbed of his birthright and with no idea who he truly is, Arthur comes up the hard way in the back alleys of the city. But once he pulls the sword Excalibur from the stone, his life is turned upside down and he is forced to acknowledge his true legacy... whether he likes it or not.
Ratings
Curator score: 1.3/10
IMDb: 6.7/10
Letterboxd: 2.87/5
Rotten Tomatoes: 31%
Metacritic: 41
TMDB: 6.6/10
Director
Guy Ritchie
Production
Village Roadshow Pictures, Weed Road Pictures, Wigram Productions, Safehouse Pictures, Warner Bros. Pictures
Cast
Charlie Hunnam, Jude Law, Àstrid Bergès-Frisbey, Djimon Hounsou, Eric Bana, Aidan Gillen, Freddie Fox, Craig McGinlay, Tom Wu, Kingsley Ben-Adir, Neil Maskell, Annabelle Wallis, Zac Barker, Oliver Barker, Geoff Bell, Poppy Delevingne, Millie Brady, Nicola Wren, Wil Coban, Bleu Landau
Curator Review
Verdict
A loud, swaggering fantasy blockbuster that’s more interesting as a Guy Ritchie experiment than as a clean Arthurian epic. It has bursts of style, momentum, and spectacle, but the tonal mash-up and overloaded plotting make it a divisive watch.
Best for
Viewers who like stylized, hyperactive genre remixes
Fans of mythic action with a modern, streetwise edge
People who enjoy big-budget misfires with personality
Audiences open to campy, overcooked fantasy spectacle
Skip if
You want a reverent, classical King Arthur adaptation
You dislike frantic editing and tonal whiplash
You prefer elegant worldbuilding over noisy set-piece storytelling
You’re not in the mood for a blockbuster that feels messy but ambitious
Overview
King Arthur: Legend of the Sword is the kind of studio fantasy that feels like it was built to either become a cult favorite or a cautionary tale. Guy Ritchie pushes the material into a brash, kinetic mode, mixing underworld grit, mythic destiny, and comic-book pacing in a way that is often more memorable than coherent.
Worth noting
The result is uneven, but rarely dull. Charlie Hunnam plays Arthur with a wary, street-level toughness, while Jude Law leans into full villainous excess. The movie’s best stretches are the ones that embrace its absurdity and visual swagger; its weakest are the ones where the story has to explain itself.
Bottom line
If you’re in the right mood, it plays like a fantasy blockbuster with a punk attitude and a few genuinely fun ideas. If you want a polished, emotionally resonant Arthurian tale, this is probably too chaotic to satisfy.
Top Letterboxd reviews
cinéfila... 🕯️ (3★) · 2383 likes
i read a negative review of this that described it as "a movie for people who love charlie hunnam and leather pants" and i was like woah buddy quit pitching you've already made the sale
Jacob Martin (formally known as The Movie King) (5★) · 1271 likes
I will never understand the mentality of modern filmgoers. They'll say they want something original and different, but when an original and different film comes out, they'll complain that it is weird, silly, and bonkers, even though the sequel or remake they just watched has the same elements and the love the living crap out of it (like Guardians 2, for instance).
That's why I'm bummed that films like King Arthur: Legend of the Sword flopped, because in my eyes,… more
1975 · Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy · 1h 31m · PG · Curator 9.1/10 (1.2M ratings) · Where to watch: Amazon Prime Video, fuboTV, Peacock Premium, BritBox, Amazon Prime Video with Ads, Peacock Premium Plus
For viewers who enjoy Arthurian material when it’s irreverent, absurd, and knowingly off-kilter.
2000 · Action, Drama, Adventure · 2h 35m · R · Curator 8.4/10 (3.8M ratings) · Where to watch: Hulu, Paramount Plus Premium, Paramount Plus Essential, Kanopy, AMC, Philo
Shares the fallen-king, revenge, and destiny energy, but with cleaner emotional momentum and stronger payoff.