A Kid in King Arthur's Court (1995)

User Rating:

4.6/10   

Director:

Michael Gottlieb

Writers (WGA):

Michael Part (written by) &
Robert L. Levy (written by)

Release Date:

11 August 1995 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Comedy | Family | Fantasy | Romance

Tagline:

Joust Do It.

Plot:

Young Calvin Fuller is pulled into King Arthur's court by Merlin. His Mission: To save Camelot. To do...

Plot Keywords:

Camelot | Knight | Princess | King Arthur | Teen Angst

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Thomas Ian Nicholas	...	Calvin Fuller
Joss Ackland	...	King Arthur
Art Malik	...	Lord Belasco
Paloma Baeza	...	Princess Katey
Kate Winslet	...	Princess Sarah
Daniel Craig	...	Master Kane
David Tysall	...	Ratan
Ron Moody	...	Merlin
Barry Stanton	...	Blacksmith
Michael Mehlmann	...	Shop owner (as Michael Mehlnan)
Melanie Oettinger	...	Peasant woman
Rebecca Denton	...	Washer woman
Michael Kelly	...	Apprentice
Louise Rosner	...	Lady in Waiting
Paul Rosner	...	Peasant boy

MPAA:

Rated PG for mild adventure action and language.

Runtime:

89 min

Country:

USA | Hungary | UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Australia:G | Australia:PG (TV rating) | USA:PG (certificate #33834) | South Korea:All | Netherlands:6 | Germany:o.Al. (bw) | Spain:T | UK:PG (video premiere) | USA:PG

Filming Locations:

England, UK

Company:

Tapestry Films

Trivia:

Paloma Baeza, who played the younger of Arthur's daughters, Princess Katherine, is actually six months older than Kate Winslet, who played the older sister. That makes a five-year age difference with Thomas Ian Nicholas.

Quotes:

King Arthur: Camelot rots, and I play at being king. I want her great again.

Movie Connections:

Version of A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court (1989) (TV)

Soundtrack:

THIRD EYE

A fairly awkward family adventure film

I remember seeing the trailer for this film back in 1995, when I was just under nine years old, and was interested in seeing it for a while, but never did for some reason. I guess I forgot about it after a while, and didn't think about it for a long time. Well, it's been over a decade now, and I've finally seen it, not that it was really worth it. I probably would have liked it to some degree back when it was released, whether in theatres or in stores, but unfortunately, it's too late for me now.

Calvin Fuller is a fourteen-year-old baseball player who lives in Reseda, California. One day, while up at bat during a game in the park and not doing so well, an earthquake hits! Calvin falls down a chasm in the ground, and after long fall, he finds himself in an unfamiliar place! It turns out he has been pulled back in time to the mythical Camelot! The now elderly King Arthur is losing his power, and the evil Lord Belasco is determined to to take over the throne, so the kingdom is in danger! The 20th Century baseball player doesn't know at first that he is here because Merlin has called for a worthy fighter from another time to save the kingdom, but was Calvin really the one he was looking for?!

Around the beginning of the film, before the earthquake, I already noticed some cheesiness, especially with Calvin's younger sister razzing him by saying if he dies, she will get his room. Secondly, I don't think I have EVER seen a movie rush into the story so quickly! "A Kid in King Arthur's Court" certainly doesn't take much time to introduce the main character and his life at all. After that, more problems definitely follow, including some rather cheesy quotes and/or scenes. Also, this movie is supposed to be a comedy, but nothing made me laugh or even smile! Now, there may be some reasonable moments in the film, and I would be lying if I said I never felt any suspense throughout. It definitely could have been worse. However, it is still a fairly unfocused family movie overall, and I MIGHT be able to give it a 6/10, but no higher.

"A Kid in King Arthur's Court" was aimed at kids, and since I was in my childhood when it came out, I'm obviously not anymore. If it wasn't for my interest in seeing it all those years ago, I highly doubt I would have ever ended up seeing it at all. Watching it in my childhood may have been a missed opportunity for me. Since I see a fairly low IMDb rating for this live action Disney fantasy, but one that doesn't suggest that it's generally considered abysmal, I'm sure many kids would enjoy it, and maybe their parents as well. However, if you don't fall into either of those categories, I suggest you skip this movie and watch a more widely appealing fantasy film (if you're into that kind of thing).