The Green Knight

“Why Greatness? Why Is Goodness Not Enough?”

The Green Knight is another fantastically shot thinker of a film from A24. Leaving the cinema my thoughts were consumed by the film’s themes and messages, what was the film truly trying to say? This will not be for everyone but if you want something thought-provoking, something that’s delicately and purposefully slow-paced, that begs you to question and ponder about the existential aspects of life then this film is for you.

The film truly wouldn’t be as much of a powerhouse without the magnetic and captivating performance of Dev Patel as Gawain. Patel is awe-inspiring in this role, completely embodying all the nuances going on inside Gawain’s mind with such ease. In the final act the film is void of dialogue for the most part, yet Patel is able to flex and convey a plethora of deeply complex feelings so effortlessly, it’s a pure treat to witness.

Alongside him the supporting cast is great, Joel Edgerton, while in very little of the film, is great. Barry Keoghan is fantastic as the scavenger; he plays both the helpful and menacing sides to his character to perfection. But Alicia Vikander absolutely steals the show in both her roles (I didn’t realise until after the film that she played the prostitute as well). She’s able to convey such a tenderness in the beginning with Patel, which the film doesn’t oversexualise, it’s this pure love between the two we’re given instead. And later as the Lady she delivers what’s easily the best monologue I’ve heard about the colour green. Seriously though, the screenwriting in this speech and the way Vikander delivers it with poise and purpose accompanied by some clever sound design made this a standout moment in the film.

On the more technical side of things the movie is practically perfect. This film is STUNNING. It’s hard to put into words how beautiful this film really is, every shot feels so precisely chosen, every detail placed in the frame is meant to be there. Paired with the incredible cinematography is some equally incredible lighting, any scene that featured fog was utilised so well, but especially when the fog had an orange hue to it, every single frame was just delightful to witness. The production design was hand-crafted to perfection, the scenes in the castle were visually delightful and the green knight himself was a piece of art. Also, the crowns are some of the coolest and most visually striking pieces of clothing I’ve seen in a film, they were so unique but fit so well in the medieval setting.

Let’s talk about what might be my favourite aspect of the film though, the score. What can I say, Daniel Hart has crafted something truly special in the score to this film. Filled to the brim with a bevy of strings and orchestral, melodic voices, the score does much to help bring this ethereal and eerie atmosphere to life. Especially in the 3rd act when all we really have audio wise is the score, it shines in how effortlessly it’s able to help craft the world and the story David Lowrey wants to tell.

Speaking of the story, this is where I really want to dig into the plot of the film and its themes. This film has MANY layers, which is honestly a reason in itself to love it as it can be interpreted in many different ways. Firstly, I want to look at this film as being a dissection on what it means to be honourable. At the beginning of the film Gawain is enjoying the pleasures in life that come from being the nephew to the King yet still yearns for more, he wants to be a noble and brave as the knights that surround King Arthur’s table. So, when he sees this opportunity to slay the green knight, he jumps at the chance where no one else would. Gawain decides to chop the head of the knight off, despite being allowed to chop any part off, this is the first hint of the toxic idea he has surrounding honour and valour. When the scavengers take his things and tie him up, we get a beautifully drawn-out scene where the camera does a 360 pan as the seasons change and we find Gawain dead yet the camera then reverses and reveals Gawain alive and manages to escape. Here is the first time we explore what Gawain pictures his future as, he sees that unless he escapes, he will end up dead succumbing to the green of the Earth, dying a natural death, far from the honourable death he is marching towards. So, he escapes, under the fear of being dishonourable.

It’s really this idea of honour that is Gawain’s driving force, the idea that if he doesn’t fulfil the agreements of the game, he is somehow cowardly and unworthy of knighthood. When we get to the ending and then we see another vision of Gawain and how he pictures his life going if he runs away from the green knight, it’s saturated in the idea that Gawain is terrified of the perception of cowardness. The life he pictures is based on a lie, off an internal struggle that he can’t live like a “knight” because he isn’t one, he ran away from his fight and is dishonourable. It’s then that at the end of this sequence we see him beheaded, as although he managed to escape the green knight, he never really did. The green knight would always have a grasp over his life, the idea of honour that he’s engrained into himself is something he can’t let go of. This honour and pride complex that Gawain has so deeply encompassed his life, and this inert desire to be “knightly” could be viewed as toxic perception of masculinity.

Alicia Vikander’s characters are ones of interest throughout the film as they pertain to this theme. Essel represents a good life, one filled with love and tenderness but not the life Gawain desires. When Gawain is thinking about his future, he takes the child that they had together off Essel and marries someone else. It compounds this idea of toxic masculinity, the fact that Gawain couldn’t imagine himself settling down for love, he had to maintain honour and pride by marrying someone of stature. The Lady, on the other hand, exposes the honour/coward complex Gawain is battling. When she offers him the belt, he is so scared for his life that he desires the belt for protection and when he receives it she calls him unworthy. This just ends up pushing Gawain further into the idea that he must uphold the idea of honour, to prove to The Lady, and himself, that he’s not cowardly.

Yet when we return from the vision, Gawain takes off the belt and lets the green knight have the opportunity to behead him. Apparently, Gawain had two choices in his eyes, even though us as the audience know he could’ve had a life with Essel and lived a normal life. But Gawain views the green knight beheading him as the honourable thing to do. I have a slight issue as to why he sees the decision as so binary though. Many times throughout the film Gawain is told the whole thing is a “game”, yet Gawain views his quest as being so serious, as something to make him honourable. At the end of the film, instead of realising that he doesn’t have to become “great”, he can go home and live a “good” life, he finds honour by dying at the hands of the green knight. I just think it’s a little contradictory as to what the film had building towards prior, like the scene where he’s so scared of a natural death yet ends up dying in nature at the hands of the green knight.

I have a slight issue too with his mother. It’s clear that his mother created the green knight and is watching him on his journey as various creatures, what confuses me is why she created him? To give her son an opportunity to show honour? To show her son how good his life is, that he doesn’t have to be “knightly”? To make her son the King? All of the reasons I think are completely valid, but I don’t know if any of them are entirely compelling to the story. There are some other elements to the film that I don’t think cohesively tie into the themes that well, but they didn’t bother me that much.

I could go on about this film for ages, I might do a video essay on it, as this film is stuffed with so many deep questions and ideas that are a lot of fun to explore. Easily one of the best films of the year, it’s absolutely gorgeous and one of best screenplays I’ve seen, with such clever dialogue enhanced by captivating performances and a powerhouse score. And there’s a cute fox.

★★★★1/2