The Crown and the Dragon

Add Dungeon & Dragons with Harlan Romance seasoning and stir in a bit of Game of Thrones, the end result is The Crown and the Dragon. Yes, the CGI-effects could been better and derivative factor is high but the Irish-Scots cast never treated the material with contempt - displaying admirable professionalism with director Anne Black keeping things tight as humanely as possible in this tightly-budgeted concoction.

Young and naive Ellen Barethon (Amy De Bhrún) accompanies her aunt to a secret enthronement of the rightful king in a land taken over by foreign empire to deliver an ancient artifact to the royal majesty. Ellen soon become the sole guardian of the relic after tragic circumstances and had to rely on one Aedin (David Haydn). Aedin saves her from certain death and later cuts a deal to be her 'protector' as Ellen vows to finish what her aunt started.

The artifact is merely a MacGuffin. The heart of the story lies in the burgeoning relationship between Ellen and Aedin from guarded suspicion into the inevitable you-know-what. Kudos to both Amy and Haydn for making the romantic entanglement authentic and grounded in reality with immeasurable help from no-frills script. The 'string' dance by the pair is beautifully choreographed and for me - one of the few highlights in the flick.

It's eye-catching performance of Amy De Bhrún that keeps the proceedings lively. Her spunky character is someone you can hold on to during dreary parts and the anchor holding together the movie as it head towards obligatorily revelations and proper intro of traitorous Corvus (Tim Treloar) coveting both the relic and bewitching Amy.

If you are looking for guts-ripping sword fights and battling mystical creatures, this is not the movie for you. The elements are there but purely on perfunctory level.

Have you ever started reading a book, only to find that you simply can't put it down?

As a film, The Crown and the Dragon is no such animal. I started and stopped this thing over a three day period.

It's not a bad movie. But it's not a great one, either. The acting is decent. The scenery is lovely and this is reasonably well directed. This is a fantasy film and the genre is populated with both very good and very bad efforts. This one leans good but it won't win any awards.

This is the kind of project where the producers and director know that they're on a tight budget, they have to take a few shortcuts, and still get a working product out within those constraints. I give them credit.

But again, this is not the kind of film that is over before you know it. At times the pace drags and tempts you to take a break (I obliged). At other times it's compelling enough to make you want to see what's gonna happen next. If you're a fantasy fan, you're more likely than not to enjoy it.

I gave a 6 out of 10. Worth a box rental or a view on your Amazon or Netflix account. But must see? Meh...

Fantasy films with a female lead (particularly one as beautiful as Amy De Bhrún) are rare, hence I was keen to view this offering about a young noblewoman fulfilling her destiny, which involves a potty-mouthed Aragorn hero, some bad soldiers and a dragon.

On the plus side, there is a plot, there are some fight scenes which are not bad, the acting is above average, Noblelady and Aragorn are likable characters and the dragon is rather well done.

However, ultimately, the film is brought down by what appears to be simple directorial disinterest. It lacks pace, continuity (the condition of her dress and the whereabouts of his sword), wholesale copying of scenes from Ivanhoe but on a much cheaper scale, and a rather abrupt ending.

To tell the truth, I had to re-watch this three times, because I kept falling asleep and it wasn't because I had had tiring days at the office.

Don't expect much and you won' be disappointed.

Yes, the CG work is lame. Yes, the acting is far from Oscar worthy. Yes, there are incredibly gross moments when the continuity goes out the window (Hero dumps heroine in creek. Dress gets muddy. Next scene or two, dress looks great. Next scene after that, dress looks muddy. Next scene after that... well, you get the idea.). Yes, the payoff is pretty WTF, and it ended feeling like there should have been one more scene added (the much ballyhooed coronation).

Despite all that, it has a certain goofy charm that I wont try to explain. The hero is cute — although he needs a bit more time at the gym — the heroine is cute — although her acting is as dense as a page from a small town phone book. And somehow they sorta/kinda make it all work. Don't ask me to explain how. They just do. Yes, yes, I know: great big huge monstrous gaps in the plot, characters that make zero sense because no one bothers to give them sufficient backstory (Does anyone know what the "glittering" was supposed to be?), and of course those magical self-cleaning costumes. But I watched it through to the end and felt like I got every penny of the five bucks I paid for it.

I have to say, I'm a huge fan of the genre. This is not a great film. It's not horrible by any means, but it isn't good either. I have enjoyed films like, "Curse of the Dragon Slayer", "In the Name of the King", and "Dragon Heart 3", all of which are usually rated around the 5 or 6 star level. I could not put this movie on the same level as those. That's why I gave it 4 stars.

Now, it does have some decent parts to it. The acting isn't terrible, and neither is the scenery. However, the film moves sooo slowly. It was hard to stay awake at certain times. I feel if there was some more to the story, some more emotion for the viewers to make them commit to the story more, and even more action, this film would've gotten a much better rating.

Would I buy this? Well, if you're a collector, yes. It's not horrible. Other than that, no don't buy it. Is it a must see? Definitely not. However, if you've seen many of the movies Netflix has to offer and you're looking for something new, and you have some free time with nothing to do, sure give it a watch.