Camelot [DVD] [1967]

Remember watching this as a kid on TV. This version is alot longer.

Camelot is one of the most enjoyable musicals - ever. It’s from Alan J Lerner and Fredrick Loewe the team who gave us “My Fair Lady”, Gigi, Brigadoon, “Paint Your Wagon” and many more. Both the story & music will never grow old and each generation will enjoy it. Watch Camelot with your family and friends. People of all ages will love it.

When this movie was first released, I was a very lucky little girl because my parents took me to see it! I remember the splendor of the medieval pageantry; the beautiful countryside and the magical castle, and all those gorgeous costumes and Lerner and Lowe's catchy songs! As Arthur (Richard Harris) shows Guenevere (Vanessa Redgrave) at the beginning of the movie, yes, there is no better place than Camelot! Even then, I realized it was far from a fairy tale - it ends with King Arthur going out to fight in a very sad war, but still, I (and I am sure the grown-ups) found it was a good introduction to the story that is so much a part of my English heritage! Over the many years, I have read and heard many King Arthur stories and have seen many King Arthur movies, but to me, Camelot sparkles as much now as it did all those years ago, like that merry little twinkle in King Arthur's eye at the beginning of the movie. Camelot does not have the intensity of Mallory's book Le Morte d'Arthur, and it certainly lacks the high epic quality of the movie Excalibur or of Marion Zimmer Bradley's Mists of Avalon, but it is still a very good yarn. Richard Harris plays King Arthur with both the royal grace of the legendary king and the struggled human nature of a man who must choose between his wife and his country. As he tells Guenevere - and us in the audience - about his grand plans for justice, we can easily imagine him in the other role for which he is very famous - Principal Dumbledore in the first two Harry Potter movies! Redgrave is a very winsome and lively Guenevere, although maybe it would be even nicer for Julie Andrews, who played Guenevere on Broadway, to have played her, due to Andrews' singing voice that makes the Camelot record album so special! Nevertheless, Redgrave's Guenevere is fun and lively and a complete joy to watch, and we feel her pain in the very end when she sees Arthur for the very last time because, as we learn in the extras section, Arthur dies in battle (right after the movie ends) within hours after. Franco Nero (Redgrave's real-life husband) is a dashing Lancelot, and David Hemmings is a handsome devil of a villainous and treasonous Mordred! Incidentally, if Guenevere looks just a little bit like the Duke of Cornwall in Excalibur, it is because Redgrave's equally talented brother Colin Redgrave plays him! As an adult, I found I enjoy Camelot as much as I did when I was a child, but there are two things that I appreciate even more about the movie. The first is Harris' acting, having seen him as the beloved principal Dumbledore in the first two Harry Potter movies, and the second is all sorts of funny satire that is written into the characters' lines! I believe fans of the Harry Potter movies would, as I did, particularly enjoy Harris as Arthur. Best of all was the way Lerner & Lowe's songs carry the movie along, although they do not detract from the underlying horror of the war. When I was a child, I found this movie was a very good place to start my appreciation of King Arthur. As an adult who considers Mallory's version to be the best, I can say only one thing. It sure is great to be back at Camelot!

This is one of my wife's favorite musicals. She sang along to the songs; I enjoyed the medieval setting and the story of Lancelot. Great movie!

I've love this movie from the first time I saw it i n 1968. Never ceases to thrill me.

My all time favorite musical! Absolutely love RH!!

A DVD to help escape to a time honored fairy tale. Music is beautiful. The story is a wonderful tale. Who wouldn't want to run away to Camelot.

This is a great dvd. We are replacing our old movies that are on VCR. It is wonderful and better quality