Customer Reviews
Beautiful. - By: Sosiphanes, 12 Jun 2008 
I read this book many years ago & only recently saw the film for the first time. It is amazing. Yes it is not the same as the book, but what do you expect? Books & films are different media & by its very nature the film could never convey the entire story as presented in the book, it does however capture its essense beautifully.
The sacred marriage between the Goddess & the King is beautifully presented & symbolicallly & ritualisticallly amazing.
It was certainly interesting, and raised a few eyebrows! - By: I. courtney, 29 Apr 2007 
Well, where to begin?! As a whole, this film was watchable, but what most stood out was the new take this film had on the old legends.
SPOILER BELOW!
I watched this film for the first time yesterday, & me & my friends are still laughing about one bit in particular, namely, Arthur inviting Launcelot & Guinevere into his bed for a threesome!!! I certainly don't remember reading that in any of the original legends! Arthur didn't invite them into his bed out of perversion, (so he claimed). You will have to watch to find out why this event occurred. The most interesting & original bit about the film though, was the linking of the Pagan goddess to the Virgin Mary, & the way Excalibur (in this film, a symbol of the goddess) became a cross, so linking the old religion with the new. I also loved the predator & the prey being used as a metaphor for Mordred & Arthur. Mordred was well-played in this film though Arthur could have been better. I couldn't stand Guinevere though, I have never liked the Guinevere character much but in this film she was so annoying that I just wanted to slap her! Slightly different take on Mordred's conception as well. It's worth watching anyway.
Magical - By: Sonia, 09 Jan 2007 Based on Marion Zimmer Bradley's novel The Mists of Avalon, the best book of the Avalon series, this lenghty film brings you back to a world of magic, intrigue & battle. No unusual special effects or complex action scenes but a pretty straightforward approach. The characters are well portrayed by the cast & the story evolves at a good pace, with an interesting plot, but without any incomprehensible turns & twists. A very straightforward film, beautifully done.
a welcome return to sword and sorcery - By: mary gumsley, 11 Jun 2005 After suffering an overdose of over-realistic King Arthur & Camelot movies, The Mists of Avalon sweeps the moviegoer squarely back to the legend of Arthur - or rather, the women surrounding him, & compelling stuff it is too. The dying religion of Avalon struggles to survive alongside christianity & its principal exponents, the lady of the lake & Merlin are happy to indulge in whatever sorcery is necessary to ensure their survival. Huston dominates every scene with her strongwilled interpretation of the Lady of the Lake, this is countered quite nicly with the more easy going but ethereal Morgaine.
The series has a wonderfully surreal lushness about it, & you find yourself surrendering to the impulses that drive this self-seeking band of women. Morgaine emerges as a wonderfully sympathetic character. desperately loyal to her ambitious brother & uneasy about the birth of her son, Mordred. The enchanted world of Camelot is beautifully realised with dazzling sets & a wonderful sense of period.
The inevitable conclusion, with Christianity gaining the upper hand & Morgaine passing quite effortlessly into the new opportunities presented by it, leave you with a sense of longing for the old enchanted, but unpredictable, & very dangerous world of King Arthur.
A Watered Down Adaption of a Phenomenal Book! - By: Maeve, 25 Apr 2005 This cable version of Marion Zimmer-Bradley's classic Mists Of Avalon, is at best a tease, at worst a complete stray from the original story as we know it. The sets are decent although most of the water scenes are done using blue screen technology & unfortunately it shows. The cast is well chosen & the women's costumes are done very beautifully. I would LOVE to see this movie portrayed on the BIG screen as there would be a lot more depth to the overalll production & maybe it would be closer to the original storyline.
It would seem that many of the reviewers here lose sight of the fact that this is an ADAPTION of a book that is nearly 900 pages in length--too long to squeeze into a 3 hour miniseries on cable. It was bound to have plot re-writes due to the time constraints. This movie does well as a stand-alone but I would highly encourage people to read the book as well, as it covers more ground & gives more insight into the characters.
As for the "incest" (Morgaine & Arthur are only half-siblings) aspect to this movie, many people don't realize that in some ancient cultures, cultivating the purity of the royal bloodline was of utmost importance, it guaranteed that there would be no dilution.
The brief glimpses of deity worship & Sabbat celebrations in this movie should not be used as a true gauge by which to judge Goddess/Celtic/Druid practices. The author was a Catholic whose sister, Diana Paxton (also a writer), helped give insight to some of the Pagan worhsip rituals AND went on to write future prequel/sequels to Ms. Zimmer-Bradley's "Mists" ("The Forest House," "Priestess Of Avalon," "Lady Of Avalon")
This movie is a must see for "Mists" fans.
