Excalibur

Excalibur (1981)

10 audio problems - chronological order

(4 votes)

Audio problem: Merlin appears and says to Uther, "The child is mine" but his lips actually say, "Your child is mine, Uther". (00:18:10)

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Audio problem: Uther takes the child from Igrayne to give to Merlin as she screams. In the next shot we still hear her screaming but her mouth is closed. (00:19:30)

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Audio problem: As he chases Merlin into the wilderness, Uther takes Excalibur and trusts it into the stone. The battle didn't take place there, but if you look at the mud around the stone there are many footprints from the crew members' feet. (00:22:15)

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Audio problem: When they speak for the first time, Morgana says to Merlin, "The essence of it can prolong the act of love" but her lips do not match what she is saying. (01:01:40)

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Audio problem: At the feast Morgana says to Gawain, "Watch Guinevere, remember what I told you about them," but her lips are not moving when she begins this sentence. (01:08:35)

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Audio problem: King Arthur meets Merlin atop Camelot and he says, "It's a time for men" but his lips say something different. (01:25:10)

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Audio problem: Merlin comes to her bedchamber and tricks Morgana into using "The Charm of Making". As she recites the charm smoke comes out of her mouth and if you look closely at her lips, they're not moving in sync with the over-dub. (02:05:00)

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Audio problem: When Uther takes the baby from Igrayne and gives it to Merlin, Igrayne's screaming and whimpering is not consistent with her mouth movements.

Audio problem: In the scene where Arthur meets Lancelot for the first time on the bridge, a car can be heard just after he crosses to Lancelot's side of the bridge.

Visible crew/equipment: After Arthur drinks from the Grail and goes to visit Gwinevere at the convent and she gives him the sword back, he paces around her chamber- you can clearly see the film crew reflected in his armor.

More mistakes in Excalibur

Arthur: Any man who would be a knight and follow a king... follow me.

More quotes from Excalibur

Trivia: Producer/screenwriter/director John Boorman deliberately chose renowned stage actors Nicol Williamson and Helen Mirren to play the sorcerer Merlin and the sorceress Morgana, knowing very well that Williamson and Mirren hated each other in real life (because of a disastrous stage production of Macbeth they worked on, years earlier). Boorman anticipated real friction, tension and anger between the two actors, which was the effect he wanted onscreen. On the contrary, the experience of working together in "Excalibur" completely changed Nicol Williamson and Helen Mirren into the best of friends.

Charles Austin Miller

More trivia for Excalibur

Question: At the very end, Arthur's body is being carried away on a barge, with three women standing above him. Are those three women the fates?

Answer: They were the Goddesses of Avalon. A group of women who each have a specific magical power. They were the makers of Excalibur, healed King Arthur's wounds from his first battle and took him to his final resting place, readying him for the day he would be needed again.

Most Arthurian myths attribute elves as making "Excalibur", and also "Clarent," King Arthur's other magical sword.

raywest

Answer: Or possibly they were attendants of Arthur, who would set the ship on fire, then have the option to die with their king, or to try to swim to shore. The Vikings did stuff like that. Why not imagine that the Brits did too?

Answer: Not the fates, but enchantress fairies. The Lady of Lake, who took back Excalibur at the end, was such a fairy.

raywest

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