...Tristan. Sadly the plot was very predictable and that is due not so much for pre-knowledge of the text but more the glut of similarly themed films the past 10 years.Rufus Sewell is excellent as 'Mark' as was the villain Marc StrongI will say in an era of 'feminazis' it is good to see strong male roles and their character shown in times of stress which brings me to FrancoJames Franco sadly does not inspire acceptance as anyone who has 'experienced' life. It's not his fault but he looks more like one of the extras for those Ralph Lauren cologne ads shot on Long Island.Isolde was very believable and she acted like a strong but morally corrupted soul. Franco looks like his real skill is soap operas or as a stand in for Joseph Fiennes - a gigolo.

I enjoyed this movie. I have traveled to the same westward regions of Ireland and loved seeing that the drifting camera shots had become my own memory of this place.Today I was driving down my mountain community to the suburbia beneath us and my driving companion and I got into a conversation about this movie (I had given her this netflix offering 2 days before).I figured out why this movie didn't work for me beyond my sensorial appreciation for it, because I sorted it all out (!!) within this car journey. The King was my man, and Tristan and Isolde had messed with him. The writers or the director or the ACTOR'S intentions and/or portrayals had made me adjust my allegiance to the characters that I had made my heretofore movie-loyalty construct for the majority of the film. They had become trifling young people with sexual urges (in this movie account) with a GREAT LOVE. But the king saw both the whole picture and the personal picture. Love the woman, and love your *kingdom*, and at the same time let the *son* you loved more than your blood son, go. Their love (Tristan and Isolde) seemed a bit meager at the end of the movie. I could not garner up Wagner's music to fit the plot, and regardless what you or I might possibly think about Wagner, that music has to be pleased, even if this movie had other ideas.

It was valiant effort to make this movie to acquaint modern audiences with this legendary tale behind the famous opera. Like another famous medieval legend, King Arthur, it's got a frustrating but passionate story or forbidden love. This time it's between an Irish princess and a warrior from England. Yes, they've been fighting since way back then.The main fault is in the casting and acting of the leads. Sophia Myles isn't pretty enough to be the lead. Although not unattractive she is more supporting cast than romantic heroine. She is probably one of the reasons this movie wasn't a big hit. James Franco looks dashing but rather sullen and inexpressive. He doesn't bother to fake an accent much which is good because it might have been a disaster. Supporting cast are better with good performances from Rufus Sewell, Mark Strong and the now rising star Henry Cavill.The battle scenes are confusing with everyone looking alike. Not too violent luckily. Overall worth a watch to see the story brought to life.

Tristan & Isolde is a romantic drama film based on the medieval romantic legend of Tristan and Isolde. It stars James Franco and Sophia Myles in the title role together with Rufus Sewell. The movie was produced by Ridley Scott and Tony Scott, and directed by Kevin Reynolds.After the collapse of the Roman Empire, King Donnchadh of Ireland has become the de facto ruler of England, but one of his underlings, Lord Marke, dreams of uniting British forces with an eye toward self-rule. One of Marke's most valuable allies is Tristan,his protégé, who has become a brave warrior since he was rescued by the lord after his parents were murdered by Irish forces during a battle. While Marke and Tristan dream of banishing Ireland's presence in England, Tristan has a secret he's been hiding from Marke after suffering serious wounds during a hard-fought battle, he was rescued and nursed back to health by Isolde ,King Donnchadh's daughter,and the two fell deeply in love. But the couple were separated after Tristan returned to England, and when Donnchadh attempts to quell the British uprising by staging a tournament among the nation's greatest warriors, an extreme and rather personal surprise is in store for Tristan.The movie was boring.No question about it.Despite of the great visual style and a haunting original music score composed by Anne Dudley,the movie does not achieve the romanticism that it aims for.Also,Franco and Myles does not elevate the drama to a compelling and powerful movie.They manage to make Tristan and Isolde's love story a standard romance found in most dramatic films.But nevertheless,it manages to entertain inspite of the fact that its goal is to be more than just a guilty pleasure film. In other words,it has less to offer especially for movies that features romantic piece periods.