Good concept, poorly executed.

What a freaking movie. So many twists and turns. Absolutely intense from start to finish.

The movie's not perfect, but it sticks the landing of its message. It was engaging - thrilling at times - and I personally thought it was a great time.

It's a movie as timely as it is provocative and amazingly, for much of its running time, it is weirdly funny.

I'm a huge fan of The Name of the Rose and I try to catch all medieval movies I can. I ran into this by chance, but read from here that it should be a good looking movie in the style of TNOTR. It wasn't at all, I was hugely disappointed.The story is a murder mystery, yes. The setting is medieval with castles and all, yes. That's about it, I can't think of other similarities. But let's start with the good things.The acting is pretty good as far as Bettany and a few others go. I've never been a huge fan of any of these actors, but especially Bettany played his role very well, it's not often that you see a role played so richly yet it doesn't go into theatrical over acting. The story is also interesting and the production design and locations are gorgeous. The biggest problem I had with the movie is that it feels more like a stage play rather than a movie. While there are few nice and creative shots and - I'll mention again - the sets look great, the cinematography and lighting varies from OK to plain awful most of the time. It's very confusing. Lot's of hand held camera and there appears to be zero post processing or color correction. It felt sort of improvised, more like a theatrical act captured on video rather than a movie where you actually care about the aesthetics of the shots.It's kind of annoying that such great sets and locations are ruined by this directorial decision. I'm guessing many didn't mind this as there are very good reviews, but to me it matters a lot how the film looks and feels. While the atmosphere is kind of medieval, it's not "movie medieval", it's like you'd be visiting the village today and they were performing this as a summer theater act. At night the castle was lit like a tourist attraction.I was kind of surprised of all this as some on the boards mentioned McGuigan being a visual director with lackluster stories. I find this the exact opposite. The story is so much better than the visuals that ended up on screen.

Nikolas (Paul Bettany) is a 14th (or so) century priest with a guilty conscience. Guilty of adultery, he exiles himself to the countryside and casts his lot with a group of itinerant theatrical players lead by Martin (DaFoe). Though Nikolas has no discernible acting talent, the troupe begins to grow attached to him, especially as he develops an interest in the mystery of the disappearance and death of several young boys in a small town the players have come to visit. Nikolas exhumes the corpse, attracting the attention and ire of the local magistrate, and discovers a cover-up and conspiracy which his conscience can not allow to go unexposed. Since the courts, the local law enforcement, the church and the local nobility will not listen, Nikolas must plead his case to the citizenry. The troupe takes up the task using their well honed talents.This is a very clever, well written, very well filmed, carefully planned piece of historical fiction. The medieval period is portrayed with far greater accuracy and sensitivity than the usual contemporary film affords, though its cleanliness is a bit absurd, the set is magnificent and reminiscent of Herzog's talents in creating a historic context. The language of the film is also as authentic as it could be without resorting to archaic tongues few would understand. The acting is exceptional, though a couple of Bettany's soliloquies were a little predictably presented (he seems to do a lot of this sort of thing) with DaFoe and Gina McKee providing especially touching and intense performances.The acting and strong script combine to make The Reckoning as good as a character study as it is as a dramatic mystery. It is not, however, a fast paced thriller and will undoubtedly disappoint those used to the style of mystery currently in vogue - that is guns-a-blazin' sex and violence-decorated kill-fests. If you're not in the mood for a slow-moving but intense film experience, avoid The Reckoning. If you want to be immersed in a different, but very real, world, and experience a contemporary issue through the eyes of those who live in that world, see it.

'The Reckoning' is set in the middle ages in England. It is the story of a priest with a past (Bettany), a troupe of travelling actors, and a murder in a small village. All is not as it appears and although the answers will probably be clear to the viewer, it is in my opinion a story worth investigating. This movie is one that got away. Paramount was slow and unenthusiastic in its distribution and marketing. That's a shame because 'The Reckoning' has a great cast and a decent story.The basic story is about a priest with a secret, a group of travelling players and a murder in a small village where all may not be as it seems. The players (led by Willem Dafoe, Brian Cox and Gina McKee)are finding it increasingly difficult to earn a living. The only material performed are stories from the Bible and with competition from larger town guilds (Sheffield, York, Wakefield) where denizens can see everything in a week, smaller ensembles like the travelling one are finding it more difficult to survive. Upon reaching the village and learning of the recent murder (and imminent hanging of the murderer) Dafoe and players decide to perform the murder in an attempt to reinvigorate their flagging fortunes. Brian Cox has a pretty telling line after a first performance has measly results. He notes that in the old days they'd have gotten six shillings while now it's only two. This in itself was initially what attracted me to the film. It is an interesting point in theatrical history between liturgical dramas that were organized by the church and the Tudor period of English Renaissance theatre. I like to think that the film carries a subtle in-joke about the state of movie going as well: Multiplexes wiping out single theatre cinemas and part of the reason that this film didn't receive a generous release.But I digress. The story really picks up when the troupe tries to learn about the murder so that they can perform it. They're attempt is controversial for breaking with tradition, but also for its sensational aspect (the boy has just been buried) and the fact that they're retelling isn't what the village suspects the truth to be. I'll say no more of the plot as no to spoil it. The heart of the movie is character and the lead character is Paul Bettany's priest There are some who may find the priest dim, or meddlesome. I admit it was clear pretty almost immediately who the main villain of the film was and what his crimes were. The movie for me was more interesting as one where a character who is bright but fallible tries to piece the mystery together and unravel the conspiracy. Considering the silence he works with when he asks questions, I don't think his work is that bad at putting pieces together until the inevitable conclusion.Unintrusive score earns points, great atmosphere and good performances from a half a step behind Bettany, a world weary AC-Tor Brian Cox, imaginative and inventive Willem Dafoe and serpentine Vincent Cassel. Intelligent enough to work the little grey matter between your ears and with a decent question about salvation and redemption, 'The Reckoning' is worthwhile. Throw in a philosophical debate on the nature of a God who allows war, suffering and plague and it was enough to keep me engaged. Watch it if you can find it, 'The Reckoning' was under-rated and unfairly missed.

An intriguing premise, plus some insight into the lives of traveling actors and the religious beliefs during the depicted time, are the aspects that keep this film going along. Many of the sequences are filmed by clichés in terms of the editing choices, close-ups, fast motion and slow motion used. The visual style is good otherwise, with high camera angles used effectively, apt sets and costumes, plus some moody landscapes - it is just all put together in a rather drone manner. The film takes a while to build up too, and it tends to be over-complicated without explaining well all that needs to be known. Still, there are interesting elements at hand here, so if it sounds appealing, the film is most likely worth a look.