The Green Knight

The Green Knight is a 2021 epic medieval fantasy film directed, written, edited, and produced by David Lowery, adapted from the 14th-century poem Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. The film stars Dev Patel as Gawain, who sets out on a journey to test his courage and face the Green Knight. It also stars Alicia Vikander, Joel Edgerton, Sarita Choudhury, Sean Harris, and Ralph Ineson. The Green Knight was theatrically released in the United States on July 30, 2021, by A24. The film received acclaim from critics for its cinematography, music, acting (particularly Patel's), production values, and Lowery's originality, direction and writing. It grossed over $19 million against a budget of $15 million. Plot On Christmas morning, Gawain is awakened in a brothel by his lover, a common woman named Essel. He returns to the king's court, where he is scolded by his mother. Gawain attends a feast at the Round Table with his uncle, the king, who invites Gawain to sit at his right hand though he has yet to acquire a story to tell of himself, the mark of a true knight. Elsewhere, in a tower, Gawain's mother performs a magic rite that summons the mysterious Green Knight. He barges into the king's court and states that any knight who lands a blow on him will win his green axe but must travel to the Green Chapel and receive an equal blow in return on the following Christmas. Gawain takes up the challenge. The knight yields, and Gawain, wielding the king's sword, decapitates him. The knight rises, retrieves his severed head, repeats the requisite date to Gawain, and rides away. Gawain lives on the story of his deed and revels all year. The king reminds him to uphold his side of the challenge as time draws near. Gawain departs on horseback for the Green Chapel. He takes the green axe and he wears a green girdle given to him by his mother. She says that as long as he wears it, he shall suffer no harm. On his journey, he crosses a battlefield littered with dead warriors, where he meets a scavenging boy. The boy directs Gawain to a stream that leads to the Green Chapel and requests payment. Gawain flips him a single coin. Shortly afterward, the boy and two others ambush Gawain and steal the axe, girdle, and horse, leaving Gawain tied up. After hallucinating his own death, he crawls to his sword and uses it to cut himself free before pursuing the thieves. At nightfall, Gawain arrives at an abandoned cottage and falls asleep in its bed.