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After having been unduly assaulted by Jerry Zucker's unacceptable interpretation of British folklore in `First Knight' (1995) (qv) with an overaged Richard Gere doing his best – which is not much – to be a romantic young dashing philanthropic Lancelot, it was a blessing indeed to come across this 1997 version of `Ivanhoe' from the BBC, shown here over Christmas on a regional channel in two hefty parts.Years ago I thrilled reading Sir Walter Scott's excellent adventure stories – Rob Roy, Westward Ho!, Ivanhoe, etc. A few days ago I thrilled seeing the written word converted into a brilliant film for TV. Magnificently photographed mostly in the north of England and the south east of Scotland, the film adheres faithfully to the 44 chapters of Scott's book, such that you could almost follow it on screen page by page. Superb directing by Stuart Orme, specialist in TV films and series, which produces convincing performances from all the actors. Battle scenes on the North York Moors, around the alleyways of Craigmillar and Doune Castles, astounding scenery somewhere up on the Northumberland coast, all added up to a dramatic telling of this legendary novel.Probably one of the very best medieval tales I have ever seen on film: once again the BBC has shown it is capable of really high-class intelligent viewing. If you should doubt this, try the magnificent BBC production of Stendahl's great novel `Scarlet and Black' (1993) (mini) (qv) directed by Ben Bolt. Thoroughly recommendable. Just about the best that can possibly be put on television – or even at the cinema.
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