Merlin and the Book of Beasts (2009) Reviews

• Don't Bother

  randallrayusa2009-06-08

  SCI-FI Channel continues to go down hill. They take good actors and make stuff I can't make it all the way through without changing the channel. They kill decent shows like "Dresden Files" and deluge you with reality shows like "Ghost Hunters". Maybe they should change their name to Reality-FI :). Don't waste your time with this movie. The movie is slow paced with poor special effects. The story line is mediocre at best. None of the characters full develop. The move is a real bore with no substance or any real entertainment value. SCI-FI really need to rethink there approach to entertaining sci-fi fans. They have fallen off the mark and don't seem to be able to get on track.

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• Funny...but unintentionally

  pontram2011-04-25

  Despite this is a TV movie, I thought, it should have some quality, as James Callis, who was great as Gaius Balthar in Battlestar Galactica re-imagined, plays here the said Merlin. It's the story of an old magician/warrior who turned his back on the world, but has to fight a last time against a young, but well-known enemy, together with the daughter and sons of his former comrades of the Artus-saga. So far so bad, because it turns out that the plot, which has some potential for an entertaining fantasy movie (remember 'The Raven' with Vincent Price), is executed in a very cheap and unpleasant way, the directing has no feeling for unintentionally ridiculous moments, which are happening astonishing often. James Callis as Merlin is completely out of place, he overacts far too much, maybe he tried to save the movie, but he hasn't yet the caliber to save a lost production, regardless how wide he opens his eyes, how heavy with meanings he dons his hood. The rest of the crew is trying hard, but also fails against ridiculous dialogs, pathetic scenes and a script apparently from a children's book author or even his/her teen progeny - no pun intended. From a children's view the movie may be entertaining, but I don't think it was intended for this audience, which should not be older than, say, 10 to 12 years. And if it did, I wouldn't welcome to see my children watching a movie made that sloppy...

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• Wasn't good enough

  britmike-12009-07-18

  The Arthur legend has led to some great movies and stories. This retelling of the story doesn't work. Not good mythology or good narrative. The script could have been pared down considerably. If Arthur is Celtic make the girl a red-head, not a Swedish blond. If Merlin is Welsh, he would have come from Noth Wales, not Swansea. What an accent. Merlin would have been more believable if he had used his beautiful spoken English. What are the Greek Gorgons doing in England, they belong in Greece. How did the sword get away from the Lady of the Lake? Try T.H. White's Once and Future King or try Geoffrey of Monmouth for better versions of this story. There is enough material in the Arthur legend without the Greek improvements. The Disney cartoon based on White was a much better story than this version.

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• another variation on merlin and the round table

  tom-rusch2009-07-20

  i'm a sucker these costume rehashes of Merlin and the knights of the Round Table. not much in the way of character development in this film - i guess you're required to know the general story well enough to understand who/what the characters reference. Merlin, who i guess is supposed to be one of the leads, plays the character like a homeless person who's inhaled too many dangerous chemicals and is permanently deranged. 'daisy,' from Dead Like Me, tries to provide a moral center for the film, without success. the rest of the cast stays in the background. even the 'bad guy' has minimal screen time and doesn't make much of an impact. made it too the end only by using the 'fast forward' function of our DVR.

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• Wow why does SciFi Channel put stuff out like this?

  meldaviszoo2009-05-31

  Next question, why do I keep tuning in thinking they might actually do a good job with one of these movies? James Callis is cast into this role of Merlin and was made to use his voice in such a way that you want to smack the director. This is terrible... acting, the story could have been slightly interesting. But the acting, the direction, the music.. all of it horrendously reaching, indulgent crap. I feel terrible for the actors that signed on for this piece of network nightmare. It will now be reran on SciFi channel for the next few years, and now I know that when this is up on the TV's guide, I now how bad of a waste of time this is. This is as shallow as a drop of spit on a hot day in the desert. SciFi needs to get someone to look at Eureka to see quality and try to scrape up a portion of it to get any future productions into any form of good film-making decency. The music... uggh I've heard video games with better soundtracks!

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