There's little effective pretense even though the movie attempts to give some backstory in the first few minutes. This movie will be much more substantial and meaningful to the informed viewers. I initially agreed that the graphic violence was excessive but after researching the man and his exploits on the battlefield, the gore could've gone even farther...
Foster gives a solid performance as Jan Zizka and Sophie Lowe was exceptional as the amiable, loyal and fiercely courageous, Princess Catherine. The Score and Cinematography are both beautifully revealed characters unto themselves.
Medieval isn't 'Gladiator' and doesn't try to be.
It's a stand alone Biographical Account of one of history's greatest military minds. The movie does well with slightly over 2 hours but could easily have been made into a miniseries or multi-part movie(only a small pivotal point of his life is conveyed in the movie). Some may disagree but as a fan of History this is a story that needed to be told, and told in its graphic realism.
There's a couple early hiccups in the dialogue but otherwise it's fairly well written and flows evenly after a lagging beginning. Medieval is a solid 70/100.
