A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court (1949)

Director: Tay Garnett
Starring: Bing Crosby, Rhonda Fleming, Cedric Hardwicke

Synopsis:
A 20th Century blacksmith takes a blow to the head and wakes up in Camelot.

Impressions:
Mark Twain and I have different tastes. He wasn't a fan of medieval romanticism or its revival in his time, so the original book was intended to lampoon all that. I actually have a liking for that sort of thing, but I can still enjoy his satire. As an adaptation of the book, this film does well enough. The comedy is okay (I particularly liked William Bendix as the dim-witted Sagramour and Murvyn Vye as the conniving Merlin) and since Bing Crosby's in the title role, you get him crooning a few tunes, which fans of his should appreciate. I've liked Cedric Hardwicke in some of his other work, but I'm not sure the role of the buffoonish Arthur quite makes the most of his talents, but he does well enough in the role all the same. All told, this is a pretty decent movie, rather harmless. You may get a few chuckles out of it and some days that's all you need.

Rating:
Watch It