Review of Outlaw King (2018) by Sean M — 01 Dec 2018
A much more more accurate -- and thus not quite as neat or inspiring -- story of the Scottish wars for independence than Braveheart. The acting is superb for the most part IMO, and the attention to detail is impressive. (I don't get reviewer complaints about the Elizabeth de Berg role for that reason. Yes, it was pretty limited because "being limited" often summed up women's influence in these events in the 13th century. To portray things otherwise would be fantasy, not historical filmmaking.).
My one real beef is with the portrayal of Edward II. For all its faults, Braveheart seemed to get a more accurate portrayal of him than Outlaw King did. From what we can tell, he really WAS a fairly incompetent ruler whose effeminacy, blatant favoring of his lovers, and lack of skill at ruling led his advisors to kill him eventually. He's on a short list of England's Worst Kings (along with John, Henry III, and Henry VI).
Other than that, though, this was a really good film. I highly recommend it.
This review of Outlaw King (2018) was written by Sean M on 01 Dec 2018.
Outlaw King has generally received positive reviews.
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