One Night with the King
A few months ago I saw this very long trailer that used music by Enya. It was the song, "Book of Days," which was the theme song for the movie,Far and Away. The song and trailer were so, so, companions. Actually, it was rather long, but it got the point across. This was a movie set in the times of Kings, and there was romance. Oh, and Peter O'Toole and James Callis had roles in the movie that just happened to be based on the Book of Esther. Sign me up!
The movie, One Night with the King, is based on a novel adaptation of the Book of Esther, and one of the first things it has going for it is its production values. It doesn't look cheap. Rather, every scene is rich with detail and color and extras, and it really adds to the movie. But who cares about costumes when James Callis as Haron is chewing up lines and spitting them out like nothing. Seriously, BSG is probably more challenging, but his acting really elevated the movie because the actor playing the King needed lessons.
As the story goes, and it was slightly convoluted, the King "loses" his wife, so he searches for a new one. Women are rounded up from around Persia and the surrounding areas. Among them is Esther, a Jew, who hides her identity in order to save her life. She finds favor with the King, and soon becomes the new Queen until her past comes back to haunt her.
The actress who plays Esther is amazing. She brings depth to the character and spunk, both which are necessary when compared to the King who can't decide what he wants to be besides eye candy. Yes, eye candy. Actor Luke Goss spends much of the movie shirtless, and he has the prettiest eyes, but he was the worst King. He acted like a child King! His bare chest was the only redeeming quality, and even then that's only slight.
The movie as a whole was amazing. It didn't preach, and if there is one thing I respect in a film is that it gets its message across in a subtle way. This is no Passion of the Christ, nor is it a Sunday School cartoon. It's a simple story with romance and adversity, and sometimes that's enough.
