A Knight's Tale (2001)
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58% of critics liked it
(146 reviews) -
80% of users liked it
(345,764 ratings)
This crowd-pleasing medieval adventure tale is very loosely inspired by Geoffrey Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales and mixes the anachronistic elements of modern-day rock music and colloquialisms with a period setting and characters. Heath Ledger stars as William Thatcher, a low-born 14th century… More This crowd-pleasing medieval adventure tale is very loosely inspired by Geoffrey Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales and mixes the anachronistic elements of modern-day rock music and colloquialisms with a period setting and characters. Heath Ledger stars as William Thatcher, a low-born 14th century squire who, in a fit of inspired spontaneity, replaces his deceased employer as the competitor at a jousting competition. Jousting is a pastime only permitted to knights, who are of noble birth, but Thatcher wins and decides to continue his new pursuits. With the help of his two fellow squire friends Wat and Roland (Alan Tudyk and Mark Addy) and none other than the gambling-addicted Geoffrey Chaucer (Paul Bettany), Thatcher has soon adopted a false identity and is winning one joust after another on his way to a championship in London. His victories inspire the affection of a female fan, Jocelyn (Shannyn Sossamon), and the ire of a competitor, Count Adehmar (Rufus Sewell), but Thatcher's ruse is threatened with exposure. A Knight's Tale is the sophomore directorial effort of acclaimed screenwriter Brian Helgeland, who won an Oscar for his work on L.A. Confidential (1997) and debuted behind the camera with the troubled production of Payback (1999). ~ Karl Williams, Rovi
- Directed By
- Brian Helgeland
- Written By
- Brian Helgeland, Curtis Hanson
- Genres
- Drama, Action & Adventure, Romance
- In Theaters
- May 11, 2001 Wide
- Studio
- Columbia Pictures
Critic Reviews
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Geoff Andrew, Time Out
Whipping along at speed, with elaborate camera movements and rousing speeches, this knows how to engage a crowd. It's corny, of course, but a guilty pleasure: romantic, diverting, with mildly amusing modern gags.
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Peter Rainer, New York Magazine
Instead of pulling young audiences imaginatively back into the past, A Knight's Tale cheapens the process by demonstrating that there's no essential difference between then and now.
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Rita Kempley, Washington Post
The movie promises to rock you, and much of the time it does.
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Richard Schickel, TIME Magazine
The result is half Python, half Ivanhoe -- and not as much fun as either.
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David Edelstein, Slate
You might find yourself smiling and laughing all the way through it.
See more critic ratings and reviews on Rotten Tomatoes
Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)
Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)
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Cast
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Heath Ledger
as William Thatcher
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Mark Addy
as Roland
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Rufus Sewell
as Count Adhemar
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Paul Bettany
as Chaucer
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Shannyn Sossamon
as Jocelyn
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Alan Tudyk
as Wat
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Laura Fraser
as Kate
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Christopher Cazenove
as John Thatcher
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Bérénice Bejo
as Christiana
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James Purefoy
as Colville
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Olivia Williams
as Phillipa Chaucer (uncredited)
- Roger Ashton-Griffiths
- Scott Handy








