For such an iconic legendary figure, King Arthur has had a hard time succeeding on film. The mythical monarch is a household name and perhaps the greatest source of inspiration behind some of the biggest modern fantasy franchises, such as The Lord of the Rings and Game of Thrones. Despite this, the once and future king himself has consistently proven nefariously resistant to big-screen adaptation. However, if the latest trailer for The Green Knight is a fair indicator of what David Lowery's upcoming film has in store, that could all be about to change.

The Green Knight looks to indulge in the inherent otherworldly weirdness of a mythology steeped in the rich symbolism of early medieval fantasy. Unlike most recent adaptations of Arthurian legends, The Green Knight appears to eschew high-octane blockbuster action in favor of a more subtly chilling tone and a bleaker exploration of knightly ideals. This could well be the film's key to success.

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Past Arthurian adaptations have included films such as 1981's Excalibur, 1995's First Knight, 2004's King Arthur and 2017's King Arthur: Legend of the Sword. The latter three have failed to impress critics and are all currently rated below 50 percent on Rotten Tomatoes. Excalibur is held in slightly higher regard, with some more favorable reviews and a respectable Rotten Tomatoes score of 80 percent. However, while Excalibur is bolstered by an all-star cast and an impressive dose of spectacle for its time, it is generally regarded as a broadly camp affair that suffers from trying to tell too much story in too little run time.

Even amongst Disney's crowd-pleasing classics, The Sword in the Stone's tale of a young Arthur is rarely held in the same regard as the company's other mythological adaptations, such as Hercules. It seems odd that a dramatic mythology based in a land at war, replete with heroes, monsters and sorcerers has so far failed to land a truly iconic cinema adaptation -- the closest there has been is perhaps the outlandish parody, Monty Python and the Holy Grail.

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The Green Knight is therefore a film faced with a daunting task. Much like its hero, Sir Gawain (Dev Patel), A24's latest film is bound on a course for certain doom, riding towards critics and audiences who have long proven hard to please with tales of the Round Table. But also like Gawain -- in the original poem on which the film is based, at least -- this adaptation might just find salvation at the fateful moment of its release. Early reactions to trailers for the film have been overwhelmingly positive, with viewers stunned by the strikingly dark and unusual visuals on offer. It looks like The Green Knight just might be getting the world of Arthur right, where other adaptations have gone so wrong.

One of the major departures from previous Arthurian adaptations is the choice to focus on a single knight-errant tale, rather than trying to tell the story of King Arthur himself. An aging Arthur does feature in the film, played by Sean Harris, but the focus is squarely on his nephew, Gawain, and his fatalistic quest for the Green Knight (Ralph Ineson). This story is not only new ground for audiences, who have likely seen Arthur pull his sword from the stone more times than they can count, but as a shorter standalone episode in the Arthurian canon, is perhaps better suited to adaptation as a film than the vast and sprawling story of Arthur's rise and fall.

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Also notable is the film's distinctively somber tone. There has been an understandable tendency amongst other filmmakers to reimagine Arthur and his knights as all-out action heroes. Lowery's approach appears more introspective, speaking to the largely allegorical nature of many Arthurian myths, such as that of the Green Knight. Harris' ailing King Arthur draws on the Arthur of many later legends, a far cry from Charlie Hunnam's sharp-tongued, sword-swinging swashbuckler. Gawain sets out on a quest not to fight some great evil, but to face his own demise in fulfilment of the Green Knight's challenge, all in the name of knightly honor. What has been seen so far hints at a film more concerned with the intimacies and ideologies of its legendary subject matter, with a deeper exploration of the legend's spiritual and moral musings offering chills over easy thrills.

The Green Knight is set to give audiences quite a different experience of Arthurian legend than seen in past adaptations. Its latest trailer teases a quieter, creepier, more nuanced take, delving into the depths of medieval symbolism and mythical allegory. For fans of the legend and general audiences alike, The Green Knight has the potential to be one of the more faithful and fulfilling adaptations of the stories of King Arthur and his knights.

Written and directed by David Lowery, The Green Knight stars Dev Patel, Alicia Vikander, Joel Edgerton, Sarita Choudhury, Sean Harris, Kate Dickie, Barry Keoghan and Ralph Ineson. The film arrives in theaters July 30.

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