Knightriders

Starring:Ed Harris, Gary Lahti, Tom Savini, Amy Ingersoll, Patricia Tallman, Christine Forrest, Warner Shook, Brother Blue, Cynthia Adler, John Amplas, Don Berry, Amanda Davies, Martin Ferrero, Ken Foree, Ken Hixon, John Hostetter, Harold Wayne Jones, Randy Kovitz, Michael P. Moran, Scott H. Reiniger
Director: George A. Romero
Studio: Anchor Bay
Product Type: DVD

Editorial Review:
Amazon.com
After years of dominating the midnight circuit with the likes of Night of the Living Dead, Martin, and Dawn of the Dead, George A. Romero took a departure from bona fide horror films to make this naturalistic tale of a traveling troupe of motorcycle-riding jousters. (Think Hell's Angels on Wheels goes to the Renaissance Faire.) While this may sound ludicrous on the surface, the film emerges as a powerful character study. When the success of their jousting tournaments--in which armor-clad bikers go at each other with real lances for the entertainment of county fair crowds--attracts the attention of bigtime promoters, creeping commercialism threatens to spoil their delicately constructed Camelot. The troupe is a mirror of King Arthur's court, complete with its King (Ed Harris), Merlin (Brother Blue), and Morgan le Fay (Tom Savini). Only they ride motorcycles, and try to knock each other off with maces. Ed Harris turns in a topnotch performance as Billy, the focus of the film, who goes progressively nuts as it becomes apparent he's losing his grip on the troupe (unconsciously playing out the final days of Camelot). Knightriders is thoroughly engrossing during the jousting tournaments and whenever Ed Harris is onscreen, but is less successful in-between, when toeing the line of the Arthurian Legend makes the film too mannered. And at 145 minutes, the film could have been trimmed a bit. But why cavil when presented with the spectacle of Ed Harris spinning slowly out of control? Watch for a cameo by Stephen King himself, playing a spectator debunking the jousting tournaments as "all fake," through ample mouthfuls of his hoagie. --Jim Gay

Knightriders
Average customer rating:

Highlights

One for the B Movie Hall of Fame

Love the Romero

King Bronco Billy?

Camelot is a State of Mind

Knightriders
Starring: Ed Harris , Gary Lahti , Tom Savini , Amy Ingersoll , and Patricia Tallman
Director: George A. Romero
Manufacturer: Starz / Anchor Bay
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video
General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video
Action & Adventure | By Genre | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video
Ferrero, Martin | ( F ) | Actors & Actresses | Stores | DVD | Video
Foree, Ken | ( F ) | Actors & Actresses | Stores | DVD | Video
Harris, Ed | ( H ) | Actors & Actresses | Stores | DVD | Video
Jones, Harold Wayne | ( J ) | Actors & Actresses | Stores | DVD | Video
Savini, Tom | ( S ) | Actors & Actresses | Stores | DVD | Video
Tallman, Patricia | ( T ) | Actors & Actresses | Stores | DVD | Video
Romero, George | ( R ) | Directors | Stores | DVD | Video
DVDs Under $7.49 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video
( K ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
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ASIN: 6305808082
Release Date: 2000-07-11

Amazon.com

After years of dominating the midnight circuit with the likes of Night of the Living Dead, Martin, and Dawn of the Dead, George A. Romero took a departure from bona fide horror films to make this naturalistic tale of a traveling troupe of motorcycle-riding jousters. (Think Hell's Angels on Wheels goes to the Renaissance Faire.) While this may sound ludicrous on the surface, the film emerges as a powerful character study. When the success of their jousting tournaments--in which armor-clad bikers go at each other with real lances for the entertainment of county fair crowds--attracts the attention of bigtime promoters, creeping commercialism threatens to spoil their delicately constructed Camelot. The troupe is a mirror of King Arthur's court, complete with its King (Ed Harris), Merlin (Brother Blue), and Morgan le Fay (Tom Savini). Only they ride motorcycles, and try to knock each other off with maces. Ed Harris turns in a topnotch performance as Billy, the focus of the film, who goes progressively nuts as it becomes apparent he's losing his grip on the troupe (unconsciously playing out the final days of Camelot). Knightriders is thoroughly engrossing during the jousting tournaments and whenever Ed Harris is onscreen, but is less successful in-between, when toeing the line of the Arthurian Legend makes the film too mannered. And at 145 minutes, the film could have been trimmed a bit. But why cavil when presented with the spectacle of Ed Harris spinning slowly out of control? Watch for a cameo by Stephen King himself, playing a spectator debunking the jousting tournaments as "all fake," through ample mouthfuls of his hoagie. --Jim Gay

Customer Reviews:

Highlights.......2005-05-21

Thinking back on KnightRiders after not having watched it for a few years is rather like trying to recall a particularly vivid, epic dream. This picture is certainly not to everyone's taste, but it is an original, heartfelt story.

I won't re-hash the entire plot, but these are some highlights:

Ed Harris' acting - bravo!

Brother Blue's take on Merlin as a scat-talking medicine man, especially his mesmerising beat rendition of one of the Arthurian myths

An amazingly moving, wordless scene late in the picture, between King Billy and Morgan - I won't give away the details but it's one of the purest "moments" I've ever seen on film

The thrilling bike combat stunts, almost equalling those of the Road Warrior

The sad and beautiful funeral scene

The soundtrack, which has apparently just been released for the first time by an indie label.

One for the B Movie Hall of Fame.......2005-05-05

Occasionally, I discover a B movie that is so off the wall, so cleverly quirky, and so perfectly original that it earns a place in my imagination and in the ranks of my favorite films. `Knightriders' is such a film. After the briefest of runs on the drive-in theater circuit, it moved directly to late night airings on Cinimax in the early `80s, and there earned a small cult following. Now, with this fine DVD presentation, this odd B movie masterpiece should continue to garner new fans.
`Knightriders' tells the tale of a troupe of odd ball outsiders and their low budget traveling Renaissance fair. The main event in this fair is a genuine jousting tournament between armor clad knights mounted on motorcycles. The troupe is composed of a mismatch of hippie types who dig the romance of the medieval mythos, and adrenalin junkies who are only in it for the bikes and the action. The figure who holds them all together is King Billy (Ed Harris), the group's founder and star, who is driven by an obsessive, nearly messianic vision of the importance of their endeavor. The group's idyllic existence starts to fall apart as financial difficulties and trouble with red neck police play havoc with their ability to continue, and they start to split between those who are committed to the purity of King Billy's vision, and those who want to pursue a more practical and commercial direction for their show. A final showdown between those knights loyal to King Billy and the rogues led by Morgan the Black Knight (Tom Savini) who want to go commercial with their act, is decided by a winner take all grand martial competition between the cycle mounted knights.
Ed Harris plays King Billy convincingly as a driven dreamer swiftly descending into obsession approaching the edge of madness in his desire to preserve his vision. Tom Savini takes a turn in front of the camera and proves that he is not only a master of FX gore, but a pretty fair actor as well in his role as Morgan, leader of the rogue knights. Brother Blue plays Merlin as a jive/blues medicine man dispensing wisdom and first aid. Fans of director George Romero, who are familiar with his Living Dead franchise will recognize many of the players here as well who have had roles in numerous Romero zombie flicks.
The cinematography in `Knightriders' is surprisingly well done, as B movies are not usually known for their great camera work. It is filmed beautifully, taking full advantage of the scenic landscapes of Western Pennsylvania, where director Romero does most of his work.
The commentary track that comes with this DVD is great fun as well. Director Romero, Tom Savini, and others simply chat over the film, having a good time as they informally tell stories and remember the fun they had as they were making it. Listening to them, you get the feeling that you are sitting in a den sharing their beer as they laugh over old times.
`Knightriders' runs a tad long, but that is the only gripe I have with it, and not enough to dock it a star. It belongs in the B movie hall of fame and in your collection as well.

Theo Logos

Love the Romero.......2005-04-17

In this film Romero manages to bring together his friends and coworkers to make a flick that refreshingly deviates from his usaul horror theme but still puts his wit and inteligence towards the social commentaries he is known for. A well done movie with a good performance from Harris, happy to see Savini and co too.

King Bronco Billy?.......2005-01-29

Has anyone noticed that this film is a near-clone of the Clint Eastwood movie BRONCO BILLY? Or maybe vice-versa? KNIGHTRIDERS has a listed release date of "81; BRONCO BILLY, of '80. I haven't checked the specific production dates, but unless there was something very odd going on in the zeitgeist around 1980, someone was heavily "influencing" someone else's movie. The films are, in basic plot and theme, virtually identical, with KNIGHTRIDERS substituting a "Renaissance Fair/Biker" setting for BRONCO BILLY's "Wild West" setup. The main characters (King/Bronco Billy) even have the same first name. They both focus on a group of out-of-step-with-their-time likable outcasts who live in self-made fantasy worlds in the form of traveling circuses, they both deconstruct major myths, they both even include a run-in with the standard corrupt, hippie-hating Sheriff. Of the two movies, I think Eastwood's is the better one, but that doesn't mean KNIGHTRIDERS isn't enjoyable; It's too long, and I find hippies innately hilarious, but the take on mythology is clever, the young Ed Harris is, as usual, excellent, and it's tragic-but-vaguely-hopeful ending (How else can an Arthurian story end?) contrasts interestingly with BRONCO BILLY's lighter-toned "happy ending".
Incidentally, a note to the earlier reviewer who claims that KNIGHTRIDERS' ending was so funny that he and his friends laughed about it for "hours"; Unless the behavior was chemically induced, sitting around and just laughing for hours is generally a sign of impending insanity. Seek professional help before it's too late.

Camelot is a State of Mind.......2004-04-11

A film that incorporates Arthurian legend within a modern day Renaissance Faire that has knights doing battle on motorcycles? Directed by famed horror director George A. Romero? It may seem like a silly concept, but you know what? It worked, for this viewer, at least.

Knightriders (1981) stars Ed Harris, Gary Lahti, Tom Savini, and Amy Ingersoll. Harris is Billy, the king and inspiration behind the Faire, believing and living the noble ideals of a time long since past. Problem is, these ideals often conflict with the present, and especially when it comes to paying the bills. This epic tale (it runs almost 2 ½ hours) details the relationships within this seemingly tight knit group, the conflicts that develop as commercialism tries to creep in by means of a sleazy promoter wanting to take the 'act', as he calls it, to bigger, more theatrical venues, which threatens to spoil the noble ideals Harris tries to put forth and live on a daily basis. Things start to fall apart as the conflict between the members grows worse, and outside pressures force decisions to be made.

In a really gutsy move that I don't think paid off in terms of financial success at the time of the films' release, Romero breaks out of his the genre he's become known and respected for, delivering a lavish tale, one that I found interesting, although a tad drawn out, at times. The character Harris plays seems like a kook, but you may begin to understand his beliefs, what he's trying to put forth, creating a community of not just entertainers, but a family of different peoples who believe in themselves and what they do. The action is quite thrilling as the knights ride around on motorcycles instead of horses, doing battle using jousting poles, broadswords, battle-axes, and maces. There is plenty of action, and the stunt work is quite excellent, adding a realistic flavor throughout. Some of the drawn out plot threads seemed a bit odd to me, like the one involving a rather minor male character and questions that arose with regards to his sexual preferences. I didn't have a problem with the material, but just how the subject came out of nowhere and continued to linger on for quite awhile. It just seemed too much attention was focused on this minor plot point, and thereby causes it to stick out against the rest of the film. I think this tact was followed in a move to try an develop at least a passing interest in as many of the characters as possible, allowing for the viewer to take a real interest within the group, and thus feel the difficulties as the characters did at the fragmenting of the group, but it was just taken a bit too far at a couple of points, in my opinion. Harris is great as the ideal driven leader, fighting a seemingly losing battle of trying to hold the group together and keep the spirit alive. Tom Savini is also wonderful. Usually known more for his work on special effects, he shows he can really act playing the character of Morgan, the Black Knight, whose main reason for participating is for the thrills and excitement. Appearing as only a two dimensional character in the beginning, Savini really infuses much into Morgan throughout the film, providing a great deal of depth.

Presented here is a really good looking wide screen print and special features include a commentary track by director Romero, stars Tom Savini, John Amplas, Christine Romero, and film historian Chris Stavrakis. Also included are behind he scenes home movies, a theatrical trailer, and television spots. Some notable appearances to look for are Stephen King and his wife Tabitha as spectators (actually, they're credited as Hoagie Man and Hoagie Man's Wife as King is seen chowing down while spouting off how fake the fighting is), and a young Patricia Tallman as Julie, a love interest to Gary Lahti's character. While not a starring role here, she later did star in Romero's 1990 remake of his classic Night of the Living Dead, as Barbara. Knightriders is a fun, drawn out tale with lots of action and a lot of heart. The ending seemed a bit hokey, but really, looking back on it, I wouldn't have expected different. Fate and destiny, at least in the movie world, just cannot be denied.

Cookieman108

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