Royal Deceit Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		0.5
Overall		3.5

Royal Deceit Blu-ray Movie Review

To B(al)e or not to B(al)e.

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman September 15, 2021

Those acquainted with Tom Stoppard's fantastic Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead know that the piece revisits Hamlet from the perspective of two (supposedly) minor characters. What some may not realize is that William Shakespeare himself was revisiting a previous piece with Hamlet, offering his own literary "spin" on a tale that had been told for centuries in Denmark, notably by author and theologian Saxo Grammaticus in a tome entitled Gesta Danorum. Royal Deceit, which evidently began its cinematic life under the name The Prince of Jutland (the title the film bears in the trailer included on this disc as the sole supplement), is based on Gesta Danorum's treatment of what is probably frequently thought of as "the Hamlet saga", and kind of like Stoppard's play traverses the edges of Shakespeare's tale with its focus on two "sidebar" characters, Royal Deceit begins its exploration of the story from the perspective of the character who would inspire The Bard to create Claudius (i.e., Hamlet's uncle, and usurper of the throne). In this case, rightful king Hardvendel (Tom Wilkinson) is actually still alive, but his younger brother Fenge (Gabriel Byrne) is already plotting his demise, which will not only give Fenge the crown, but also Hardvendel's wife, Geruth (Helen Mirren). Fenge's plan is accomplished without much fuss and bother, other than the fact that Hardvendel's son Amled (Christian Bale) witnesses his father's murder and vows to take revenge.

Royal Deceit under any title was evidently a pet project for co-writer and director Gabriel Axel, who at the time of the release of this film was still arguably a pretty hot property after his BAFTA winning Babette's Feast. Axel actually closes the film's credits roll with a special thanks to his mother for introducing him to Gesta Danorum when Axel was a little boy, which suggests that this film had a rather long gestational period. Considering Axel's involvement, not to mention a cast that includes the aforementioned Gabriel Byrne, Helen Mirren, Christian Bale and Tom Wilkinson, in addition to Kate Beckinsale, Brian Cox, Freddie Jones and even Andy Serkis (in his evident big screen debut), one might think that the film would have generated considerable attention, but a cursory internet search uncovered surprisingly little contemporary coverage of the film, and there doesn't seem to be any box office data available from the "usual sources", which typically can mean the film bombed in its theatrical exhibition.

If for no other reason than its relatively starry cast and writer-director imprimatur, Royal Deceit might be ripe for reexamination, but the good news is this seemingly largely forgotten film is rather interestingly evocative in its own cool, Scandinavian way. Some of this may came off as a bit on the silly side, as when Mirren gets to coo seductively about fabric for wall hangings she wants to make, but this "version" of the story has a surprisingly visceral side that suggests a more feral family dynamic than in the relatively courtly (if ultimately deadly) Hamlet.

Byrne is especially compelling as the ultimate king who can't quite believe the mere fact of his birth order has seemingly determined his fate. I'm frankly not so sure I bought Bale's kind of odd, method-ish account of Amled, especially in scenes where he's pretending (or is he?) to be mad, but there's an undeniable (if goofy) intensity to his characterization. Axel films with story with a rather nice combo platter (no Babette's Feast pun intended) of both burnished sylvan beauty and gritty medieval life.

Royal Deceit Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Royal Deceit is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of the MVD Marquee Collection, an imprint of MVD Visual, with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.78:1. There's no technical data included on the cover of this release, as can be the case with MVD releases, but this kind of a tale of two cities, or at least two kind of shooting locations, in terms of its presentational aspects. A lot of the outdoor material looks nicely detailed, though occasional minor damage can show up (look at the frame right side of Bale's jaw in screenshot 2 to see a tiny white fleck). Colors are generally quite robust in these exterior locations, and bright lighting helps to support fine detail levels. The interior scenes can often be at least a bit grittier looking, and at times quite noticeably so, with a more roughhewn appearance and at times not as fulsome detail levels. Some of the interior footage has a somewhat yellow tinge which can also show up in the grain.

Royal Deceit Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Royal Deceit features an LPCM 2.0 track that nicely supports a kind of rustically tinged soundtrack that offers a lot of outdoor ambient effects along with a kind of ancient folk music infused score from Per Norgaard. There's above average dynamic range on this track courtesy not just of the segueing between indoor and outdoor locations, but also due to some quasi-action elements once Almed springs into action. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English subtitles are available.

Royal Deceit Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailers includes Royal Deceit (SD; 1:25), under its original title of The Prince of Jutland, along with trailers for other releases from MVD Visual.

Royal Deceit Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I admittedly found some of the writing in Royal Deceit to be a bit on the clunky side, but then again, I probably couldn't help but compare it, subliminally at least, to Hamlet and Shakespeare. Performances are generally involving, though I found Bale to be a kind of hit or miss proposition as Almed. Axel shoots the story with considerable visual flair, and this can almost come off as feeling, perhaps appropriately, like an Ur-Hamlet. Technical merits are generally solid, and Royal Deceit comes Recommended.