Merlin - The Return

Starring: Patrick Bergin, Rik Mayall Director: Paul Matthews Original UK Premiere: 1999 Dvd Release: 11th February, 2002 Number Of Discs: 1 Format: PAL, Widescreen, Region 2 Encoding

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Merlin is a 3 hour made-for-television movie released in 1998 that retells the famous legend of King Arthur from the perspective of the wizard Merlin. Sam Neill stars in the title role in a story that covers not only the rise & fall of Camelot but also the phase, supposedly in the history of the British Isles, that had preceded it. According to this version of the famous Arthurian tale, the power of the pagan sorceress Mab, played by Miranda Richardson, is waning due to the coming of Christianity to Great Britain & she creates Merlin in hope of keeping the Old Ways alive. Merlin, however, accepts the imminent demise of pagan magic & superstitution & focuses instead on trying to bring peace & order to the land by counselling promising warlords such as Uther Pendragon against Vortigern & Uthers famous son King Arthur. Mab frustrates Merlins efforts by weakening the hearts of those very persons whom the benevolent wizard wishes to help. It was produced by Dyson Lovell & directed by Steve Barron. The story is by Edward Khmara with the teleplay written by David Stevens & Peter Barnes.

This film works its own kind of magic. It is one that both adults & children can enjoy & I suspect that those elements that got it a PG rating, are precisely the ones that children will enjoy the most.

Rik Mayall steals every scene that he is in, his slightly anarchic Merlin, who fusses about which gown to wear, transforms into the mighty magician with consummate ease.

This film was shot in Africa, but the viewer would never know this, every scene seems to have been shot somewhere in rural England, & the sets, especially that of Stonehenge are superb.

The film is well shot, well acted & a joy to watch. It has no bad language, no unnecessary, gratuitous violence, it even manages to provide a happy ending that is belevable. It is not twee nor does it insult the viewers intelligence & the ultimate test, it is worth watching again & again.

Patrick Bergin was born on February 4, 1951, in Dublin, Ireland & christened Patrick Connolly Bergin. He later took the name James at confirmation. He is a very tall Irish actor, formerly a Maths teacher, who may be best known for menacing Julia Roberts in the melodrama Sleeping with the Enemy. He also appeared as Robin Hood in a 1991 TV-movie. He has been married to a British woman of Afro-Caribbean descent, Paula Frazier, since 1992. They were married in Carapichaima, Trinidad & Tobago. Sleeping With the Enemy as Martin Burney. Map of the Human Heart as Walter Russell. Patrick Bergin entry at the Internet Movie Database. Posters Of The Return

Editors Choice: Escape Velocity, Dracula, Amazons And Gladiators, Berserker Hells Warrior, Evil Beneath Loch Ness, Cause Of Death, Merlin, The Return, View DVDology

Rik Mayall is a British comedian & actor. He is well known for his comedy partnership with Adrian Edmondson & was one of members of the alternative comedy scene in the early 1980s. When he was three, Mayall & his parents moved to Redditch, Worcestershire, where he spent the rest of his childhood. He studied drama at Manchester University & gained fame by appearing at The Comedy Store in the Eighties along with Edmondson. They starred as The Dangerous Brothers, supposedly a couple of naive but anarchic daredevils & would perform comedy stunts on stage, often involving the likes of setting each other on fire. They effectively brought slapstick to the alternative comedy scene, albeit in a typically extreme fashion. A role as Rik in The Young Ones sitcom, also in the Eighties, ensured wide public acclaim. The series was written by Mayall with long-standing friend Ben Elton & Lise Mayer. Additional material was provided by anarchist comedian & actor Alexei Sayle. Posters Of Believe Nothing

Editors Choice: Believe Nothing, Day Of The Sirens, Guest House Paradiso, Merlin, The Return, Bottom, Live, Drop Dead Fred, View DVDology

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