AN EYE FOR AN EYE // A FILM REVIEW OF "MEDIEVAL"

BY MATEO MORENO

Based on (or I should say "Inspired by") the true story of Jan Žižka, a famed Czech general who never lost a battle and is now a Czech national hero, MEDIEVAL is a tale of knights and swords, a kidnapping and rescue and everything in between. Žižka (Ben Foster) begins the film, in 1402, with he and his crew hired to save Lord Boresh (Michael Caine) from a political assassination. Boresh then hires Žižka and his men to kidnap the niece of the King of France, Lady Katherine (Sophia Lowe). She is married to Henry of Rosenburg (Til Schweiger), a shady nobleman who is doing some shady scheming with King Sigismund of Hungary (Matthew Goode). The kidnapping of Lady Katherine is a kidnapping for ransom, to help persuade Rosenburg to fund Prague's money troubles.

From that point on, we go between the companies, with Žižka, Lady Katherine and the crew to the behind the scenes dealings of Rosenburg and King Sigismund. Katherine doesn't immediately know what to think of her situation until she learns of her fiancée Rosenburg's dark side. We see common folk often come to the aide of Žižka, helping him escape and even fight, eventually leading to a brutal battle that takes away one of Žižka's eyes (he famously continued to lead with only one eye and even continuing after losing his sight). He continues on, aided by Lady Katherine and his loyal men and locals, leading up to a final showdown between Rosenburg and Žižka himself. 

MEDIEVAL is a rousing, if a bit formulaic, sword and action film with some beautiful cinematography leading the way. Ben Foster is stoic and strong, giving a muted but solid performance as the unstoppable warrior. Michael Caine is a delight as always and the multinational cast is put to good use here. Sophie Lowe has a very strong presence here, showcasing more depth and honesty than perhaps is even on the page. And mugging up the villany is Matthew Goode and Til Schweiger, both having a grand time. It never reaches a fever pitch excitement level of, say Gladiator, but Medieval is a worthy addition to the genre, with a lot of bloody fun action sequences. If you like this kind of film, Žižka's tale is worth your time.

GRADE: B

SCREENPLAY BY Petr Jákl STORY BY Jákl Sr. BASED ON A STORY BY Marek Dobes, Michal Petrus DIRECTED BY Petr Jákl STARRING Ben Foster, Sophie Lowe, Michael Caine, Til Schweiger, Roland Møller, Matthew Goode, William Moseley NOW PLAYING IN SELECT THEATRES