Camelot

film by Logan [1967]

Written by Lee Pfeiffer

Fact-checked by The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Camelot, American musical film, released in 1967, that was adapted from the hit Broadway musical of the same name. Although a box-office disappointment, it became popular with fans of traditional Hollywood musicals.

Camelot centres on England’s reluctant, angst-ridden King Arthur (played by Richard Harris), whose attempts to bring civility to his land are undermined by the love affair between his queen, Guenevere (played by Vanessa Redgrave), and his most loyal knight, Lancelot (played by Franco Nero). The couple are eventually caught together, and though Arthur forgives them, he is forced to fight Lancelot. As the battle approaches, Arthur realizes that his hopes for Camelot are lost.

The film was based on a musical adapted from T.H. White’s novel The Once and Future King (1958). Roundly criticized at the time of its release as overblown and overlong, Camelot was a major financial disappointment for Warner Brothers. Many critics complained that the production was too small in scope and that director Joshua Logan had a damaging obsession with close-ups. The leading actors, who originally had to contend with the memory of Richard Burton’s and Robert Goulet’s successful performances in the stage production, seem in retrospect perfectly suited to their roles.