The Letter to the King (TV series)
| Television series | |
|---|---|
| German title | The letter for the king |
| Original title | The Letter for the King |
| Country of production | Netherlands |
| original language | English |
| year | 2020 |
| Production company |
FilmWave |
| length | 45 minutes |
| Episodes | 6 in 1 season ( list ) |
| genre | Drama , fantasy , youth series |
| idea | Will Davies |
| production | Chris Clark |
| music | Brandon Campbell |
| camera |
Petra Korner , Larry Smith (3 episodes each) |
| cut |
Oral Norrie Ottey , Jesse Parker (3 episodes each) |
| Initial release | March 20, 2020 on Netflix |
First publication in German |
March 20, 2020 on Netflix |
| occupation | |
| |
The Letter for the King (original title: The Letter for the King ) is a Dutch youth series based on the novel of the same name by Tonke Dragt . The miniseries was released on March 20, 2020 via the streaming service Netflix .
action
Although the series essentially follows the plot of the novel, it differs greatly from the original in some scenes and in some characters.
The series is about the young squire Tiuri who was adopted by a knight. He is supposed to pass the exams to become a knight but is very untalented. His foster father bribes some of the opponents at the tournament so that his son can still take the knight's examination. So he has a hard time among the young budding knights, who of course know of his taking advantage. He is also plagued by voices that keep distracting him. As a test, they are subjected to a night watch. You are not allowed to speak or open the door. When finally someone knocks on the door, Tiuri opens the door anyway. He is led to a black knight lying in the dying man, who hands him a letter that King Unauwen must reach before the blood moon . With the knight's horse he sets off on the long journey, but the red knights pursue him.
When he is first picked up by his father, he witnesses how he is murdered by Fatuman, a power-hungry knight. He himself is suspected of murdering the black knight and so he not only sees himself being pursued by the red knights, the other squires are also sent after him.
On his escape he meets Lavina, who helps him. They travel on together by ship. Deceived by a stranger, Tiuri is revealed to be one of the last shamans . The voices were only harbingers of his strength. The stranger wants to deprive him of these powers, but the miners and Lavina free him. The budding knights decide to help him, but one of their number betrays him. But together they can escape their captors. However, it is Lavina who has the shamanic powers.
When they arrive at the king's, the squires blow up the banquet. Tiuri hands over the letter, but the young Crown Prince begins his betrayal in front of the crowd. With dark magic he wants to eliminate his father and become king himself. But Lavina and Tiuri join forces and are able to stop the traitor.
In the end, Tiuri and his squire friends are knighted.
production
The streaming service Netflix commissioned a new version of the well-known youth book by Tonke Dragt from the British production company FilmWave in July 2018 . This gave screenwriter Will Davies a lot of freedom in designing the six episodes. In particular, the stronger emphasis on the fantastic is new. The series was produced in the Netherlands. Filming locations were New Zealand and the Czech Republic . Despite the Dutch production, the series was shot in English.
No second season has been announced yet. However, due to some signs in the final, it is speculated that a sequel is planned. In the novel The Wild Forest , Viridian was the villain, but he was killed in the first season. Whether he will return in a second season or whether a new villain is planned with Queen Alianor as indicated in the last scene is still open.
Episode list
| No. | German title | Original title | Director | script |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gathering storm clouds | Storm Clouds Gather | Felix Thompson | Will Davies |
| 2 | Isn't she a pot of gold? | Isn't she a sweetheart? | Alex Holmes | Will Davies, Stacey Gregg |
| 3 | At the far end of the world | At the end of the world | Felix Thompson | Rose Heiney |
| 4th | The knights of danger | Danger Knights | Alex Holmes | Harry Cripps |
| 5 | spiral | Spiral | Charles Martin | Joy C. Mitchell |
| 6th | When the blood moon is in the sky | When the Blood Moon Rises | Felix Thompson | Will Davies |
| On March 20, 2020, all episodes of the series were released simultaneously on Netflix. | ||||
Reviews
The style of the series reminded many critics of a kind of Game of Thrones for teenagers. The critics are divided on whether this has been achieved. Oliver Armknecht awarded 3.5 (out of five) stars at Film-rezensions.de:
“Basically, that's not wrong as a goal. But you probably didn't really know how to combine such a series with target group-oriented elements. Every now and then one has the impression that there are scouts out here who sit by the campfire in the evening and dream of getting their next badge. That's kind of nice, but doesn't really fit the given doomsday scenario. (…) In direct comparison, the Nordic colleague The Guardian of Truth - Dina's Destiny is the better choice when it comes to youthful fantasy adventures, alternatively If you were king , who the Arthurian saga in an unusual way in the present reinterpreted. "
On the other hand, the film service awarded four points and summed up: “With the set pieces of the fantasy genre, the mini-series tells a coming-of-age story about the search for recognition and the examination of one's own identity and adapts the narrative patterns adequately for“ adult ”fantasy series a young audience. "
Web links
- The Letter for the King in the Internet Movie Database (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b The letter for the king - Season 1. In: Film-Rezensions.de. March 22, 2020, accessed April 15, 2020 .
- ↑ "The Letter for the King" - Season 2: Start, Contents, Actors. In: TV Movie. March 23, 2020, accessed April 15, 2020 .
- ↑ "The Letter to the King" on Netflix: The End - and Queen Alianor's Eyes! - explained. Film releases, accessed April 15, 2020 .
- ↑ The letter to the king. In: filmdienst.de. Retrieved April 15, 2020 .