Merlin and the Book of Beasts (2009)

Undescribable Perfection

Memorable, crazy movie

Good concept, poorly executed.

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

This is definitely not the best "Merlin" movie ever made. Low budget it certainly is, but the movie is not terrible! James Callis is an English actor trying to replicate a Welsh accent and not very successfully. (I am Welsh so I am reasonably well qualified IMHO) Merlin would have probably been a Celtic Druid, and as the Celtic tribes occupied most of Britain and Europe until the Romans conquest, it is highly likely that most of the mythology which the Romans absorbed from the Greeks would have been incorporated into Celtic religion. They certainly absorbed several Roman gods into their daily religious practices. This would explain references to Medusa etc. I hope this explains some of the apparent plot anomalies. Getting back to the movie, I gave it 5 stars because it is watchable. It is what it is..... The sort of movie to watch if you don't want a complicated plot. I can understand US viewers having problems with the welsh accent!

I was expecting little from Merlin and the Book of Beasts in the first place, but you always do get that hope that it is at least watchable. Apart from some lovely locations, and a rousing and sometimes sparkling soundtrack, Merlin and the Book of Beasts is a disaster on all levels. The acting feels very stilted, nobody looks properly comfortable and a fair number overact. James Callis especially is so bad that you actually wonder why he was cast in the first place. The characters are underwritten and never likable too, while the effects are amateurish and the camera work is often haphazard. The sword and sorcery elements are clumsily choreographed and the story is constantly dull and the Greek mythology elements with the Gorgons are ridiculously out of place in a film about the Arthurian legend, further proof that the Sci-Fi channel don't do their research properly before producing their films. In conclusion, not worth bothering with. 2/10 Bethany Cox

There are few movies that I have enjoyed as much as this one. This is an absolute masterpiece. The directing of this movie was wonderful, great script, incredible acting and a beautiful musical score. The movie is full of music from beginning to end. The kind of music that gets stuck in your head all day long. I especially liked the scene where Avlynn battles herself in the lake and I hope I am not the only one who got a Dark Link reference from the Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time out of that. The ending of the movie was very satisfying and left me a sense of comfort. I am officially putting this movie as one of my favorites

i'm a sucker these costume rehashes of Merlin and the knights of the Round Table. not much in the way of character development in this film - i guess you're required to know the general story well enough to understand who/what the characters reference. Merlin, who i guess is supposed to be one of the leads, plays the character like a homeless person who's inhaled too many dangerous chemicals and is permanently deranged. 'daisy,' from Dead Like Me, tries to provide a moral center for the film, without success. the rest of the cast stays in the background. even the 'bad guy' has minimal screen time and doesn't make much of an impact.made it too the end only by using the 'fast forward' function of our DVR.