In the year 1215, the rebel barons of England have forced their despised King John to put his royal seal on the Magna Carta, a seminal document that upheld the rights of free men. Yet within months of pledging himself to the great charter, the King reneged on his word and assembled a mercenary army on the south coast of England with the intention of bringing the barons and the country back under his tyrannical rule. Barring his way stood the mighty Rochester castle, a place that would become the symbol of the rebel's momentous struggle for justice and freedom.
rebellion medieval rivalry england battle violence knights templar tyrant invasion torture epic hero ambush fight castle battlefield knight duel king knight templars 13th century
Nate H. reviewed Ironclad (2011)
Review from the comment
I could draw out a plot synopsis of Ironclad which would have to include a brief history of Medieval England. Instead, know that there is an evil king (Paul Giamatti) who has been recently ousted from power. But, armed with a new commitment from the Vatican, King Giamatti is coming back to England pissed off and after the heads of the barons who ousted him. Brian Cox plays one of those barons and James Purefoy is the Knight Templar who backs him along with a motley crew of rebels they round up to assist. The knight is the focus here and Purefoy plays him with a brooding grimace through most of the film which shows you he is tormented at what he has seen and done. There isn’t anything complex as far as plot goes. We’ve seen pieces of this story in the Robin Hood films, Braveheart, and even Gladiator to some degree. It’s the fight scenes that excel here. They are savage and vicious and just might be the first film that captures the brutality of the Crusader wars in their entirety.
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