The Green Knight: Amazon Prime Video Film Review

Cast: Dev Patel, Sean Harris, Alicia Vikander, Ralph Ineson

Director: David Lowery

A Ghost Story director David Lowery's take on the Arthurian legend is effused with an aroma of confronting one's mortality and seeking solace away from one's legacy - all suffused in a wondrous coating of atmospheric execution.

A folk tale writ large via a fantasy-level quest, The Green Knight concerns itself with the elements of an anonymous 14th-century Arthurian poem and Dev Patel's Sir Gawain.

Gawain is under pressure with family asking him if he's a knight ("not yet, got plenty of time" his guarded response) and is summoned by King Arthur (Harris, rugged, venerable and regal) to his court.

When asked to tell a story at court "so that they may know him," Gawain realises he has "none to tell.. yet" and his resolve begins to crumble in the face of his feeble legacy. Enter Ralph Ineson's Green Knight with a challenge to smite him so that he may return the blow one year hence...Suffice to say Gawain sees the chance to seize on his own future and standing, reckless or otherwise.

To say more about The Green Knight's story is to rob an audience of its deliberately paced joys, and its elegaic edges. 

It won't be for everyone, with some feeling the episodic nature of what transpires and the 2hr 10 minutes run time could be less ponderous. But in truth, Lowery's following a similar path to one he trod with A Ghost Story where it was a rumination on one's life and what comes after for those left behind.

But central to The Green Knight is Dev Patel. Seizing on the whipsmart dialogue with gusto but never overselling, Patel's Gawain is perfect leading him. With his facial work matching his "I fear I am not for greatness" ethos, Patel's enigmatic and engaging throughout. Equal parts confused, equal parts confounded, he makes for a sensitive lead whose journey is one of many folk lore tales - and even appears to have roots in Homeric yarns.

Vikander impresses in a dual role, and Barry Keoghan proves to be an impish addition to proceedings.

Lowery deserves acclaim too. 

The Pete's Dragon director makes great fist of mist-soaked vistas and strikingly evocative imagery as the quest goes on. There's an intensity which builds given the lyrical way the story is assembled, and while Lowery is in no rush to get to his denouement, his assembling of the pieces proves to be a compelling addition to the pantheon of fantasy films.

The Green Knight is a film of patience, and a film that rewards patience in its viewers. Highly recommended.

The Green Knight is streaming now on Amazon Prime Video