I don't know why everyone was so hard on Tristan and Isolde. It is a nice little period piece romance. But it does contain several errors of historical fact. It also includes some pretty decent battle scenes for the guys. The dialogue wasn't totally out of the realm of possibility. Overall, although it was a little over 2 hours, I wasn't bored and I quite enjoyed myself.
Tristan’s family gets slaughtered during the meeting of the British Barons who are trying to unite the tribes in order to defeat the Irish (yah, I know its usually the other way around). Another Baron, Marke, saves him at the cost of his hand. Tristan's whole tribe is killed so Marke takes him back to Cornwall with him and lets his sister raise him. Tristan becomes Marke's Lancelot to his Author and all is well in Cornwall. Eventually the Britons rebuild Cornwall (it was also attacked at the same time Tristan’s family was killed). The Irish King believes it is time again to "teach" the British a lesson. His sends his most trusted military advisor to take some of the young women of Cornwall as tribute. Tristan is able to unite to the barons long enough to lead a raid to free the tribute. In the course of the battle, Tristan is wounded with a poison blade.
Everyone believes he is dead and they send him on his spiritual journey, which includes putting him on a boat, setting it on fire. The boat doesn't burn and instead drifts to Ireland where the Irish King's daughter Isolde finds him and heals him during which they fall in love. Tristan finally gets better and returns home without Isolde, as she will not leave with him. The Irish King decides the best way to re-split the British Barons is to have them compete for Isolde's hand and a dowry of land. Tristan, not knowing that Isolde is the prize (she told him a fake name) decides to fight on the behalf of Marke. Will he win Isolde's hand? Can he help bring peace to Briton? And if he wins Isolde, how will they handle the Lancelot/Arthur/Guinevere love triangle? Will his choose the love of his lady over the love and duty to his country?
And while this is a story we have heard before, it does work well here. It does move well and I wasn't bored watching it. Although, there are several errors of fact in this movie including geography errors, errors of terminology and errors such as using things not invented yet and may distract some from enjoying the film. I did, however, think that Isolde’s gowns were very lovely. They were a nice piece of costuming.
The reason the plot works is because the characters seem real and you begin to care about them. James Franco plays Tristan. He is a good-looking boy who plays the sullen hero well. He is loyal and a man of few words. His loves Marke for bringing him up and he takes his duty to his people very seriously. His heart becomes torn because of the situation he finds himself in and it is easy to see it in his face and actions. Isolde has quite a character and Sophia Myles plays her well. Now for the time period it is unlikely her character would have been as such. She is willful and defiant and really doesn't understand her place as woman in this time period. She is bold instead of timid. It is her character that makes this movie interesting; no matter how unlikely it is she really would have been this way.
Rufus Sewell is great as Marke. His is regal, kind and fair. He fits the Arthur prototype well. Bronagh Gallagher is Bragnae the maid to Isolde. She delivers a couple of funny or insightful lines and also seems a little defiant for a maid. Overall the performances while not dazzling were solid.
Overall this is a solid little romance that I enjoyed. It is defiantly worth a watch. Sure, it has some historical mistakes, but what movie doesn't these days. If you like period piece romances then this should be right up your alley.