Where Ritchie falters is actually in one of his usual strengths. Since he burst on to the scene with Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels — and most especially with Snatch — Ritchie expertly populates his world with colorful and memorable ensemble casts. Legend of the Sword has many of those Ritchie-esque moments with the characters that make us smile, but the script by Ritchie and Lionel Wigram is so overpopulated that all but Arthur and his nemesis Vortigern (deliciously evil Jude Law) lack any semblance of depth. It’s evident from the way this story of Arthur and the eponymous Excalibur is told that Warner Brothers smells a marketable series

(six films have been planned),

and many decisions were made to play this safe.



