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nitrateglow:

The seductive dance sequence from John Boorman’s fantasy epic, Excalibur, in which we see how King Uther fell head over heels for the beautiful but already-married Igrayne.

Now here is a scene that tends to make or break this movie depending upon the viewer. When the instructor of an medieval literature course I took showed this clip to the class, everyone laughed and claimed it was campy. And it is a bit campy, what with Igrayne’s orgasmic movements and Uther’s almost cartoonish excitement.

However, I don’t mind this sequence at all and think my professor did the class a disadvantage by not putting it in context. The pre-Arthur scenes in Excalibur show us a savage world where people are ruled by their passions rather than by honor or virtue. Uther is a man whose existence is all about fighting and conquering. When Arthur comes to the throne, he wishes to establish a new, more civilized order. This sequence is quoted later in the movie, when a newly crowned Arthur watches Guenevere dance with members of the court. It lacks the overt eroticism here and further contrasts the conduct of father and son.