Lionheart

This is a cool little independent film on the Crusades, rated PG, that manages to offer a fresh take on this topic without all the sensationalized sex-and-violence and angry anti-European ideology that one finds in most films on this genre. Its style is more reminiscent of Stephen Spielberg or George Lucas (think "Willow") than Ridley Scott's "Kingdom of Heaven."Financed independently, filmed in Hungary, directed by the great Franklin J. Schaffner ("Planet of the Apes"), and scored by Jerry Goldsmith with heroic musical motifs, "Lionheart" feels a bit like "The Cowboys" (the one with John Wayne taking kids on a cattle drive) meets the Crusades. That's because this forgotten gem from 1988 looks at the Crusades of the Middle Ages through the eyes of children affected by war. More specifically, it is a dramatization of the much-disputed "Children's Crusade," a 13th century disaster that occurred when large groups of orphaned European children attempting to join the Crusades (looking for their dads?) were sold into slavery.Despite the historical setting, this movie has a weird 1980s pop culture sensibility that sometimes makes it feel like "Dragonslayer" or "Excalibur" without all the magical elements, but the technical quality of the film is so high that it somehow works. Eric Stoltz makes a likable lead as an idealistic teenage knight who becomes a natural leader among the rabble of children, but the other young actors are also pretty likable. An intense Gabriel Byrne ("Stigmata," "In Treatment") in full method performance is the Black Knight here, a jaded veteran of the Crusades who has lost his faith in God and is now working with Muslim slave traders to make a profit off the war orphans. His showdowns with Stoltz and the children are memorable since Byrne's nihilism lends gravitas to the story and makes the character truly scary. If you are a junkie for the Crusades, but lament the shortage of good films on them, then check this one out. If you like stuff on the Crusades but dislike the commercialized Hollywood garbage like Ridley Scott's "Kingdom of Heaven," you'll probably love this film for its positive depiction of Europeans fighting what was essentially a belated counter-attack after centuries of Muslim military expansion. Despite the fortune seekers and mercenaries who give the Crusades a bad name, there were also noble souls who took their religious obligations to "defend the widow and the orphan" seriously, and this movie is perhaps the most balanced at showing both sides of any feature film on the Crusades that I have seen. It's family friendly without being childish and mature without being explicit. It's the real "Hunger Games" and "Ender's Game," a realistic tale of children being forced to grow up too fast. Like many releases in the new Warner Archives collection, this DVD is a simple "play film" affair without any special features, but the picture and sound are great for a film you are unlikely to find anywhere else. It's worth the price.

This is strange. I bought this DVD by mistake. I thought it was the movie by the same name starring Jean Claude Van Damme.. and I was going to return this one... but then I started reading the reviews... and I was intrigued... not by the movie, but by the reviews themselves. They're probably more interesting than the movie will be. Anyway, I'll just put the DVD on my shelf for future viewing. By the way, that movie that I mentioned with Van Damme...If you get a chance to see it, I think you'll agree it's one of his best.(If this review was helpful in any way, please click on the ‘helpful’ key below, or write a comment. Thanks).

I am a sucker for costume dramas, whether togas or tiaras, sweeping epics or twee chamber pieces, but this clunker failed on every level. I could have forgiven the improbable plot but not the poor acting, careless costuming, awful dialogue, leaden pacing and overall lack of effort by whoever cobbled this together. Not a few reviewers singled out Jerry Goldsmith's score as something special but they must have seen a different movie than I did. Don't waste your time.

I enjoy going back and viewing the movies that got actors to where they are now to see how they've improved. It just creates the impression that kids are not as helpless or lost for a direction as they think they are.

Just as I remembered it!Good movie!!!

A classic movie from my childhood, with a remastered picture

Great

Dissapointing, Director must have been ill

Some great acting, some worthy of Grange Hill ;-)It wasn't gripping (and I can understand why it was considered a "straight to DVD" film)What I did find striking was how it all seemed to be more of a "stage" for the music rather than a normal "film with incidental music".It was more like a pop video for Jerry Goldsmith; or maybe more like using a professional score for a home video.If you like the music of Goldsmith, it is worth getting (hence the 4 stars)

Arrived promptly, and packaged thriftly .Watched movie on our 4K TV and looked and sounded great. Now this movie is so special, the words to describe it totally escape me. I can say though this movie has a soul with profound depth.There is another thing this movie fills the heart with the dreams of youth that I hope some day another generation will discover...

Franklin J. Schaffners LIONHEART schaffte es nicht einmal in die Kinos, nachdem die Testvorführungen negativ bewertet wurden. Dabei ist der Film ordentlich, setzt weniger auf Spektakel als auf Charaktere und hat eine großartige Musik von Schaffners Hauskomponisten Jerry Goldsmith. Die Ausstattung der DVD ist eher dürftig, keine Kapitel, nur Intervalle von 10 min, aber was soll's?