Studio: Samuel Goldwyn Films
Release Date: 5/27/2025
Rating: R
Film Grade: C-
The Story: The year is 1307 and tensions are high between Austria and Switzerland as King Albert’s ruthless tax collector demands payment from the neighboring Swiss citizens. One such collection attempt sets off a series of events that will lead to more than just the fabled launch of a crossbow bolt, as the future of two countries hang in a delicate balance.
My Take: Like King Aurthur, historians dispute whether or not William Tell ever existed. In this retelling of the legend, writer/director Nick Hamm adapted the 19th century play by Friedrich Schiller into something crafted for a modern audience. That means much has been added to the bare-bones historical basis and Schiller’s work has been changed to both pad out the story and craft heroic roles for the female leads at the price of historical fidelity. For me, it came across as silly pandering, but others may feel differently.
The movie expands considerably from the play and legend. That works in some ways, giving at a broader scope, but most of it is handled on such a superficial level that it doesn’t have any sense of gravitas. It also has the odd feeling of a TV series edited down to movie length, with lots of scene jumping and sequences that just stop, with the aftermath relayed verbally or with short flashbacks. This creates an overall disjointed feel to what comes across as a B-level version of a Swiss twist on Braveheart.
The overall acting is adequate, with the biggest obstacle being the older version of English that was used throughout. Some actors have a better grasp of this, such as veterans Ben Kingsley and Jonathan Pryce, who appear in little more than cameo roles. But younger actors struggle getting the cadence and delivery right, resulting in unconvincingly stilted exchanges that feel more like caricatures than living breathing people from the era.
The standout aspect of the movie is the cinematography and location shooting, featuring beautiful Swiss/Italian alps and surrounding countrysides. It does a wonderful job of taking the viewer back to the place and time, almost making up for the uneven script.
Visuals: Digitally captured, the picture looks fantastic on Blu-ray. Contrast is good in dark scenes and daylight shots a well rendered. There is nothing to criticize with this disc. The extra wide 2.59:1 aspect ratio really helps showcase the vast vistas of Switzerland.
Audio: The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 is pedestrian. The orchestral score works but doesn’t do anything to raise the quality of the overall movie. Dialog is clear and understandable throughout. And no, Rossini’s overture is not used in the movie.
Special Features: Just some trailers. It’s a shame that a historical drama like this doesn’t come with at least a rudimentary overview of the factual basis for the movie.
Final Verdict: I’m always in the mood for a sweeping historical epic and the use of bows and arrows has always held a kind of magical thrill for me, so I had high hopes for this one. While the cinematography was outstanding, the story was put together in a haphazard way and marred by the addition of unlikely events and alterations to characters that are out of line with the period. (Why do so many writers think the best way to fashion a strong female character is to make them act masculine while simultaneously robbing the male characters of their own agency?)
It doesn’t help that the movie is so confident in itself that the ending sets things up for a completely unnecessary sequel.
If you’re looking for something that captures the look and place of that time period, this might be worth checking out on streaming or as a cheap rental, but there’s really not much here that you haven’t seen before.
Generic Dialog: “And now, it begins.”
My Review System:JVC DLA-RS3100 4K Ultra High-Definition Front Projector
Elite Screens Sable Frame B2 117” Width with Infinitely Variable Height
Monolith by Monoprice HTP-1 16 Channel Processor with Dirac Live
Monolith by Monoprice 7x200 Watts Amp
Monolith by Monoprice 3x200 Watts + 6x100 Watts Amp
JBL Studio 590 for Left, Center, Right, Wides, and Rears
JBL Studio 580 for Side Surrounds
JBL Studio SCS 8 for Tops
JTR Captivator 1400 Subwoofer X 4
Panasonic DP-UB420 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Player
Oppo BDP-93
NVIDIA Shield Android TV - 4K
Xbox One X
HTPC Running madVR (work in progress)
Remote: URC MX-780
Mini DSP 2X4 HD controlling all subwoofers
APC S15 Power Conditioner with Battery Backup
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