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Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated) Binding: VHS Tape EAN: 9786302098440 Format: Color, HiFi Sound, NTSC ISBN: 6302098440 Label: 20th Century Fox Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox Number Of Items: 1 Publisher: 20th Century Fox Release Date: January 01, 1998 Running Time: 100 minutes Sales Rank: 23859 Studio: 20th Century Fox Theatrical Release Date: April 05, 1954
Amazon.com: Cartoonist Hal Foster's medieval hero, the Scandinavian Prince Valiant, comes to the screen in all his Dutch-bob-haircut glory in this 1954 film directed by Henry Hathaway (Kiss of Death). Robert Wagner plays the title role and does a bang-up job of it, convincingly portraying the heroic prince as he enters the court of King Arthur (Brian Aherne) in England and becomes (with some tutelage from Sir Gawain, played by Sterling Hayden) a Knight of the Round Table. Determined to restore his dethroned family to their proper seat back home, Valiant takes on the Black Knight (James Mason), who plans to do away with Arthur and then finish his misdeeds back in Scandia. Under such pressure, the prince, quite understandably, falls in love with Princess Aleta (Janet Leigh). Hathaway proves to be the perfect director for this material, as his fluid skill, moderate forcefulness, and adaptability to genre necessities keep the film from teetering too far in the direction of pulp--or self-seriousness. --Tom Keogh
Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
Rating: - Dreamily Perfect
I was fourteen the first I saw this movie when it was broadcast on NBC Monday Night At The Movies. Having fallen in love with the character when I was five [fifty-five years ago] and reading the comic strip in the Sunday paper, I was quite excited when it came on TV and not dissapointed.
Today, I got my copy of the dvd. I don't care what anyone else has to say, the movie is still as dreamily perfect as I remember it. I LOVE the bonus of widesceen. The color and sound are so very good. It is wonderful.
Rating: - Prince Valiant
Robert Wagner's performance in this story is very weak and forced, one could even say "sappy." This could have been a classic movie, but there's a reason you probably didn't know a movie version of this classic story existed--there are very poor elements to this movie. James Mason is strong as usual, but Janet Leigh's performance is also weaker than any film I've ever seen her in. The cinematography is good. I can only guess that it must have been a poor directing job to get such contrived performances from two of the main actors. If you like well acted classic movies, you'll probably be disappointed ... Read More
Rating: - Could have been so much better . . .
The "Prince Valiant" series (taken from the comics section of the newspaper) could be the basis for a great action movie. This version, starring a young Robert Wagner in a "really" bad page boy wig, is not that movie.
The plot is straight forward. Valiant's father lost his kingdom to the evil pagan Vikings. He and his family are in hiding in King Arthur's England. Valiant is sent to court to become a knight. He befriends and becomes the squire of Sir Gawain. Through his own pig headed stupidity he screws-up everything he touches (romance, friendship, being a squire, etc.) until he finds ... Read More
Rating: - High expectations, low talent
I have always been a sucker for a knight-in-shining armour movie, but with this film, even as a child, I had to draw the line. Robert Wagner is a bad actor, always has been, always will be. His Aleta, Janet Leigh is beautiful, graceful, and eager, but even she cannot arouse from our Sir Valiant more than his open-mouthed, handsome, vacant stare. James Mason, the consumate actor, must have wondered what he had done to deserve working with such amateurs. Still, as a child, I was enthralled and thrilled by the sets, costumes, and derring-go. It was just the wooden young man as Valiant that set my teeth on ... Read More
Rating: - Prince Valiant
Such an enjoyable,action-packed movie. I uaed to have this movie on VHS. I jumped at the change to get it on DVD. If you like action packed movies, based on comic book characters you will like this movie. This is the earlier version. It is not the new cable version.
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