Made for TV 'Merlin' clone is a drab fantasy-drama with too much melodrama and not enough fantasy. Bust out the dry ice to create some ambience, fill some sets with era-appropriate props, and let CGI take care of the rest seems to be the casual approach here with predictably poor results.
The acting is over-wrought and at times comical as the gruff Merlin throatily delivers his words of wisdom (he looks possessed most of the time, like he's consumed some bad forest mushrooms), whilst the plot so laboured and interminably tedious, it's a struggle to persevere for almost 100 minutes.
Battles with beasts are clumsily staged and lacking suspense (the encounter with the Medusa witches had potential but was marred by the ridiculous CGI), and then the soap opera-styled melodrama is pointless padding to fill in the time when nothing happens (which is most of the time).
As Merlin defiantly announces to his bunch as they approach the castle 'it's not Camelot, it's an abomination!' and that could equally be the byline for this medieval misfire.
The acting is over-wrought and at times comical as the gruff Merlin throatily delivers his words of wisdom (he looks possessed most of the time, like he's consumed some bad forest mushrooms), whilst the plot so laboured and interminably tedious, it's a struggle to persevere for almost 100 minutes.
Battles with beasts are clumsily staged and lacking suspense (the encounter with the Medusa witches had potential but was marred by the ridiculous CGI), and then the soap opera-styled melodrama is pointless padding to fill in the time when nothing happens (which is most of the time).
As Merlin defiantly announces to his bunch as they approach the castle 'it's not Camelot, it's an abomination!' and that could equally be the byline for this medieval misfire.