Why Greatness? Why is Goodness Not Enough?
The Green Knight (2021) dir. David Lowery, A24, Ley Line Entertainment.
This article was first published on November 17, 2021 on Falwriting.com It was originally edited by Conrad Gardner. Minor changes have been made.
In a dark, empty chapel, a hoarse voice tells the story of King Arthur of Camelot, the brave man who pulled the sword from the stone. Centre stage sits Gawain (Dev Patel), a sceptre and an orb in hand, as a crown descends on his head. ‘But this is not that king,’ says the voice, ‘nor is this his song.’ The head of King Gawain catches fire.
This is the opening scene of The Green Knight (2021, dir. David Lowery), a retelling of the Arthurian legend of ‘Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.’ It is one of the best opening scenes I have ever seen. It both shows the theatricality of the movie and foreshadows Gawain’s fate. It also clashes spectacularly with the next scene, the actual introduction of Gawain, who wakes up with a bucketload of water to the face in a brothel on Christmas Day. This is the story of Gawain before he ever was a knight, when he was just King Arthur’s nephew, who was neither very brave, nor very smart.
This movie has been making waves in the English degree graduate community for its unfaithful ending and major changes to the original story. Arthuriana enthusiasts either absolutely love it or hate it. As someone who had no prior knowledge of Sir Gawain’s legend but an understanding of the general medieval setting, I think this is a really good movie! It was exactly what I expected of A24, and Andrew Droz Palermo’s cinematography was enough to weigh the balance against the artistic liberties taken by David Lowery.
The movie is separated into chapters, as was the original epic poem. It starts with the Christmas Game, a test of mettle the Green Knight (think man-tree on a horse) offers to the Round Table: that if a man were to land a blow on him, in a year, the Green Knight would return that blow. Gawain volunteers and, brandishing Excalibur, beheads the Green Knight. The Green Knight merely picks up his head and tells Gawain the foreboding words: ‘One year hence.’
Thus starts Gawain’s journey to become the great man everyone believes him destined to be and face death head-on (or well, in his case, off). But this man is just a loser ; he fails pretty much every test in his path, gets robbed, almost dies multiple times, gets seduced into joining a polycule, and, when facing the Green Knight, cowardly runs away.
Yet, his journey is portrayed with such beauty that you feel compelled to watch till the end. Every shot is magical, from the soundtrack to the costume design to the cinematography. A24’s indie touch turns this movie from a Game Of Thrones-wannabe prestige act into a full blown queer Arthuriana. Loud colours pop in your face along theatrical shots and amazing visual effects. With talking foxes, valleys of giants, headless ghosts and quizzical side quests, this movie is basically a mushroom trip, an unfaithful adaptation of a story about courage, with no purpose but to leave you with the question: is braveness a testament to greatness in the face of inevitable death? Is greatness the ultimate goal to reach?
A must-watch, if not for its absolutely nonsensical energy, then for the tender cradling of Dev Patel’s face by the entire cast.