While this is complete ahistorical fiction, since there's almost zero definitive proof of who Arthur the man that'd inspire all the legends was, it's still ***good*** ahistorical fiction, especially the director's cut. Unlike First Knight, which was just a rushed attempt to beat Braveheart to theaters (it didn't), this movie takes its time to build up the character and his future round tablers while still sticking to *some* grounded history, and ignoring all the fantastical aspects of the Arthurian legends. All the usual players are here, including Merlin, but only as the leader of a band of native Britons resisting Roman occupation.

And, of course, it wouldn't be a tale about *the* Arthurian legend without Lancelot and Guinevere. Rounding out the rest of his future round table is Hugh Dancy and Mads Mikkelsen in the roles that made them such close friends, including the funnily coincidental exchange about Hugh's character not liking killing for fun and Mads' character responding with "you should try it, might get a taste for it". Both would go on to portray Will Graham and Hannibal Lecter, respectively, in about nine years in one of *the* shockingly best American network TV adaptations of Thomas Harris' books/characters.

Also, this is one of the few historical war movies where both sides seem evenly matched in terms of skill on the battlefield. The Saxons definitely outnumbered the Britons, but the Britons had their tricks up their sleeves and a legendary contingent of Roman-trained knights. And despite Stellan Skarsgård always being a geek in my mind, because of Good Will Hunting and his parts in the MCU, he makes for an imposing and believable villainous leader of the invading Saxons.