Tristan & Isolde: Critic Reviews

A serious, old-fashioned, history-heavy romance.

There is something undeniably pleasant about an entertainment like Tristan & Isolde that delivers exactly what it promises, no less, no more.

The two leads, James Franco and Sophia Myles, generate a modicum of chemistry, despite being penned in by a clunky script.

This relationship lacks a critical ingredient: passion.

Well, I just had this weird feeling that things weren't going to work out for them. But even though you can see it coming, this director Kevin Reynolds just makes the whole thing drag on and on and on and on.

The fate of two nations hinges on the nondisclosure of the stolen kisses and secret trysts. But, boy, could I have not cared less.

I dub thee tolerable.

It's that rare movie that had me wishing I was at the opera.

There's far more smiting than smooching -- more hewing of limbs than heaving of bosoms.

Tristan & Isolde is gorgeous to watch. The film's cinematography shines as a stunning example of setting, costumes, choreography and visual mood. And the story is entertaining, epic in scope but without an interminable length.

Franco looks appropriately troubled as Tristan. Myles is pretty and sweet enough to win hearts as Isolde.

The knights and ladies don't look like escapees from a Prince Valiant comic strip, but like physical, vulnerable, survivors of the conflicts left behind by the Romans.

Mindless, predictable and mildly entertaining.

Strikes a good balance between action and romance in this version of the medieval legend.

Though Reynolds' film tops two hours (which in a season of epics seems almost trim), he keeps the action brisk.

Over-the-top romance notwithstanding, Tristan and Isolde is a watchable hoot, with skirmishes and swordplay erupting whenever the story drags.

In the end, Tristan & Isolde is never painful. It's just a bit of a dull blade.

Franco's curly locks may make the target audience swoon, but his presence never allows the rest of us to completely sink into Tristan & Isolde.

A handsomely produced and sporadically rousing re-retelling of the ancient Celtic legend about star-crossed lovers.

Trying to underplay things, the actors practically sleepwalk. When someone finally gets the chance to shout, 'Seize him!' he does so with as much gusto as the guy who says, 'WINS news time: 8:45.'

The movie plods around, appears to pick up speed, but then falters. Worse, we never feel true sympathy for the lovers who are forced to risk all to meet in secret when fate and politics keep them apart.

Sorry, no magic here.

I can wholeheartedly recommend Tristan & Isolde, even to those who don't have a penchant for period piece romances. The movie has a lot to offer.

At its core is a pair of lovers no contemporary audience could possibly care for, and at the periphery are characters that threaten to become interesting but never quite do.