King David [1985]

The brief nudity in the wedding chamber sequence has in my tape, been darkened so as to be imperceptible; either this is a flaw in the tape, or an effort not to offend and capture a wider audience, which would be silly, as this is a very mature drama. It contains much brutal violence making it unsuitable for children, and the confrontation with Goliath for example (which is exceptionally well done), is one of four beheadings.
Richard Gere is a marvelous David, and stands up well against an excellent international cast. He was thirty-five when this was filmed, and is about as handsome as a human has a right to be. The actor who shines above all though is Edward Woodward as Saul. He is riveting, and it's a brilliant character study of courage mixed with jealousy, revenge, and madness.

This is far from being a "Big Bible Epic" with lots of well known stars, instead it's serious and beautifully acted, and perhaps arrived on the scene at the wrong time, that it was so unappreciated two decades ago. Total running time is 114 minutes.
"It is through the heart, the heart alone, that God speaks to man".


Sword, Sandal, Sex and Sanctity   May 5, 2004
I. R. Lowell (Northampton, UK)
5 out of 5 found this review helpful

Bruce Beresford has directed an engaging take on the biblical story of David as found in 1 & 2 Samuel and 1 Kings. It starts as it means to go on, plunging the viewer into a different and bloodthirsty world as Dennis Quilley's Samuel beheads Agag the defeated King of the Amalekites. This uncompromising view of the prophets, continued in Niall Buggy's Nathan, is presented in stark contrast to a troubled and questioning David, portrayed by Richard Gere. Edward Woodward's depiction of Saul and the disintegration of his spirit and mind is nigh perfect, pulling in the story of Jacob's all night struggle with the angel of God from Genesis. Saul's offering of himself as God's sacrifice at Mount Gilboa is a wonderfully emotive scene. The other two spectacular scenes are duel between David and Goliath, and the announcement of Saul's death to David. The cameo of the escaping Philistine king is worth replaying in the first, and the second is a marvellous bit of intercutting between David watching the runner and the deaths of Saul and Jonathan. Michal's mocking of David dancing naked in front of the ark captures the biblical emasculating remark of Saul's daughter. The story of David's rule is flashed through, and this a weakness in the film, though there are the biblical echoes of Absalom in revolt behaving exactly as David did to Saul. The end is rather mawkish, with the conniving of Bathsheba to put Solomon on the throne greatly underplayed (more 1 Chronicles than 2 Samuel). But it is still an excellent telling of the story of David, albeit with Richard Gere in the title role.


Saul steals the movie from David   July 24, 2006
Trevor Willsmer (London, England)
King David was the Alexander of its day, a critically reviled epic that was damned more for what it got right than what it gets wrong. Critics at the time were aghast at the violence and ridiculed the scene where Richard Gere dances through the streets of Jerusalem in a loincloth, but in actuality both are straight from the Bible and are considerably watered down: this David doesn't give his father-in-law hundreds of Philistines foreskins in return for the hand of his daughter, and the decimation of his enemies takes place safely offscreen. But the film's attitude to religion is strikingly grim. This isn't the cosy feelgood God of Sunday school but a vengeful, unforgiving God who orders genocide and abandons those He anoints. Both Saul and David fall from Grace, but strangely enough it's Saul's fall that really registers. Edward Woodward is superb in the role, and all too easily dominates the film in the face of little competition from some especially bland British and Irish actors.

Gere should be ideal casting for David's vanity at least, but he's a transparent presence in the film, lacking depth and over-reliant on his limited range of affectations. But he's not helped by the fact that David never becomes a character or even an active participant in his own life story: if anything, he is almost a bystander observing the deeds of others. After slaying Goliath, we never see him in battle or earning his reputation as a great king, and he doesn't feature in either of the two underwhelming battle scenes, a problem highlighted by intercutting them with shots of David miles away waiting to hear the result. As an epic, it's desperately underpopulated (they had major problems getting enough extras to the Italian locations), and you get the feeling at time that it's almost a picture made up of leftovers - the costumes were originally made for Scorsese's first abortive attempt to film The Last Temptation while the Ark of the Covenant probably has `Property of Indiana Jones' stamped inside it

Somewhere in there there's an idea fighting to get out about the search for God, but unfortunately it's so low-key and evenly paced that there are no real highs to the film. Carl Davis' score has its moments and it's not the turkey its reputation implies, but it never catches fire. As Bruce Beresford noted, they should have taken the hint when they started shooting in Israel only to get caught up in snowstorms - someone was definitely trying to tell them something!

No extras on the Region 1 DVD, although it does have an acceptable 2.35:1 widescreen transfer.