Arn – The Kingdom at Road's End
Encyclopedia
Arn – The Kingdom at Road's End is a 2008 epic film
based on Jan Guillou
's trilogy
about the fictional Swedish
Knights Templar
Arn Magnusson. It is the sequel to Arn – The Knight Templar
.
Filmed in Glasgow
and Morocco
.
– the third volume of the Crusades trilogy
, spanning the period of about 1187 to 1205.
Arn is the commander of a Templar garrison in Gaza
. He is commanded to join a Templar force intercepting the army of Saladin
, which is destroyed in a Saracen attack on their camp. Arn is wounded but as Saladin recognizes him on the battlefield, he is saved and reconvalesces in Damascus
. Saladin sends him home as he prepares to take Jerusalem
.
Cecilia is finally allowed to leave the monastery where she has done penance for twenty years, meeting her son Magnus
for the first time. She soon hears of the fall of Jerusalem and the destruction of the Templars and believing Arn dead decides to join the monastery for good, being offered the post of abbess by the Folkunge clan. Arn meets her as she is just about to enter the monastery, and they marry, building an estate, Forsvik. After a little time they have a daughter together and Forsvik grows rapidly.
Arn starts training several young men and boys to become knights (or at least a competent cavalry force) at Forsvik.
Six years later, King Sverker II attempts to kill the sons of the late King Knut
. Commanding his force of cavalry, Arn defeats the king's soldiers at the Battle of Älgarås
.
Arn takes a fatal wound while pushing forward to attack King Sverker and dies upon his return to Forsvik.
The film concludes by hinting at the completion of the consolidation of Sweden
into a single kingdom a generation later through the deeds of Birger Jarl
, identified as Arn's grandson.
. Sung by Marie Fredriksson
, Roxette
´s lead singer.
Epic film
An epic is a genre of film that emphasizes human drama on a grand scale. Epics are more ambitious in scope than other film genres, and their ambitious nature helps to differentiate them from similar genres such as the period piece or adventure film...
based on Jan Guillou
Jan Guillou
Jan Oskar Sverre Lucien Henri Guillou is a Swedish author and journalist. Among his books are a series of spy fiction novels about a spy named Carl Hamilton, and a trilogy of historical fiction novels about a Knight Templar, Arn Magnusson...
's trilogy
The Knight Templar (Crusades trilogy)
The Knight Templar is a series of books about the fictional character of Arn Magnusson. The series is written by Swedish author and journalist Jan Guillou....
about the fictional Swedish
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
Knights Templar
Knights Templar
The Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon , commonly known as the Knights Templar, the Order of the Temple or simply as Templars, were among the most famous of the Western Christian military orders...
Arn Magnusson. It is the sequel to Arn – The Knight Templar
Arn – The Knight Templar
Arn – The Knight Templar is a 2007 epic film based on Jan Guillou's trilogy about the fictional Swedish Knight Templar Arn Magnusson. The film was released in December 2007 and the sequel, Arn – The Kingdom at Road's End , was released August 22, 2008...
.
Filmed in Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
and Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
.
Plot
The plot of the film loosely follows the book of the same nameThe Kingdom at the End of the Road
The Kingdom at the End of the Road is the third book in Jan Guillou's The Knight Templar book series. This book follows the fictional character of Arn Magnusson as he returns home to Sweden after 20 years as a Knight Templar....
– the third volume of the Crusades trilogy
The Knight Templar (Crusades trilogy)
The Knight Templar is a series of books about the fictional character of Arn Magnusson. The series is written by Swedish author and journalist Jan Guillou....
, spanning the period of about 1187 to 1205.
Arn is the commander of a Templar garrison in Gaza
Gaza
Gaza , also referred to as Gaza City, is a Palestinian city in the Gaza Strip, with a population of about 450,000, making it the largest city in the Palestinian territories.Inhabited since at least the 15th century BC,...
. He is commanded to join a Templar force intercepting the army of Saladin
Saladin
Ṣalāḥ ad-Dīn Yūsuf ibn Ayyūb , better known in the Western world as Saladin, was an Arabized Kurdish Muslim, who became the first Sultan of Egypt and Syria, and founded the Ayyubid dynasty. He led Muslim and Arab opposition to the Franks and other European Crusaders in the Levant...
, which is destroyed in a Saracen attack on their camp. Arn is wounded but as Saladin recognizes him on the battlefield, he is saved and reconvalesces in Damascus
Damascus
Damascus , commonly known in Syria as Al Sham , and as the City of Jasmine , is the capital and the second largest city of Syria after Aleppo, both are part of the country's 14 governorates. In addition to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Damascus is a major...
. Saladin sends him home as he prepares to take Jerusalem
Siege of Jerusalem (1187)
On July 4, 1187 the Kingdom's army was defeated at the Battle of Hattin by Saladin and only Balian of Ibelin commanding a small number of soldiers remained in Jerusalem. The Siege of Jerusalem lasted from September 20 to October 2, 1187. On October 2, 1187 Balian of Ibelin surrendered Jerusalem to...
.
Cecilia is finally allowed to leave the monastery where she has done penance for twenty years, meeting her son Magnus
Magnus Minniskiöld
Magnus Minnisköld was a medieval Swedish Lawspeaker from the House of Bjelbo.He lived at the family estate Bjälbo, in the current Mjölby municipality, Östergötland, Sweden. He was the son of Bengt Snivil, and nephew of the Riksjarl Birger Brosa. He married the noblewoman Ingrid Ylva, and fathered...
for the first time. She soon hears of the fall of Jerusalem and the destruction of the Templars and believing Arn dead decides to join the monastery for good, being offered the post of abbess by the Folkunge clan. Arn meets her as she is just about to enter the monastery, and they marry, building an estate, Forsvik. After a little time they have a daughter together and Forsvik grows rapidly.
Arn starts training several young men and boys to become knights (or at least a competent cavalry force) at Forsvik.
Six years later, King Sverker II attempts to kill the sons of the late King Knut
Canute I of Sweden
Canute I, Swedish: Knut Eriksson , was king over all of Sweden from 1173 to 1195...
. Commanding his force of cavalry, Arn defeats the king's soldiers at the Battle of Älgarås
Battle of Älgarås
The Battle of Älgarås took place at the royal estate of Älgarås in northernmost Västergötland in November 1205 between the House of Sverker and the House of Erik fighting for the Swedish crown. The brothers Jon, Joar, Knut and Erik Knutsson were staying at the estate when the Sverker clan attacked...
.
Arn takes a fatal wound while pushing forward to attack King Sverker and dies upon his return to Forsvik.
The film concludes by hinting at the completion of the consolidation of Sweden
Consolidation of Sweden
The consolidation of Sweden was a long process during which the loosely organized social system consolidated under the power of the king. The actual age of the Swedish kingdom is unknown...
into a single kingdom a generation later through the deeds of Birger Jarl
Birger jarl
, or Birger Magnusson, was a Swedish statesman, Jarl of Sweden and a member of the House of Bjelbo, who played a pivotal role in the consolidation of Sweden. Birger also led the Second Swedish Crusade, which established Swedish rule in Finland. Additionally, he is traditionally attributed to have...
, identified as Arn's grandson.
Cast and characters
- Joakim NätterqvistJoakim NätterqvistDag Joakim Tedson Nätterqvist is a Swedish actor.Nätterqvist was born in Gamla Uppsala. He graduated from the Swedish National Academy of Mime and Acting in Stockholm in 2001....
as Arn Magnusson - Sofia HelinSofia HelinSofia Margareta Götschenhjelm Helin is a Swedish actress best known for the Guldbagge nomination she got for her role in Dalecarlians ....
as Cecilia Algotsdotter - Morgan AllingMorgan AllingSven Robert Morgan Alling is a Swedish actor, scriptwriter and director.Alling finished Malmö Theatre Academy 1990. He become famous in when he was a host for a children's show for television....
as Eskil Magnusson - Stellan SkarsgårdStellan SkarsgårdStellan John Skarsgård is a Swedish actor, known internationally for his film roles in Angels & Demons, Breaking the Waves, The Hunt for Red October, Ronin, Good Will Hunting, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, Dominion: Prequel to the Exorcist,...
as Birger BrosaBirger BrosaBirger Brosa , jarl of Sweden 1174-1202, d. 9 January 1202 on Visingsö, was a son of Bengt Snivil and a member of the powerful House of Bjälbo... - Gustaf SkarsgårdGustaf SkarsgårdGustaf Skarsgård is a Swedish actor, son of My Skarsgård and Stellan Skarsgård and brother of Eija, Valter, Sam, Bill and Alexander Skarsgård...
as king Knut Eriksson - Milind SomanMilind SomanMilind Soman is a Scottish-born Indian model and actor. He was born in Scotland and lived in England for seven years before his family moved back to India.-Professional life:...
- Saladin - Nicholas Boulton as Gerard de RidefortGerard de RidefortGerard of Ridefort was Grand Master of the Knights Templar from the end of 1184 until his death in 1189.Gerard of Ridefort is thought probably to have been of Flemish origin, although some nineteenth-century writers suggested an Anglo-Norman background, apparently through misreading his...
- Azher Adil - Brosoa
Music
Music composed by Tuomas KantelinenTuomas Kantelinen
Tuomas Kantelinen is a Finnish composer. He studied composition at the Sibelius Academy with Eero Hämeenniemi. He is best known for his scores for films such as Rukajärven tie, Äideistä parhain, Mindhunters and Mongol...
. Sung by Marie Fredriksson
Marie Fredriksson
is a Swedish pop singer-songwriter and pianist, best known for forming one half of the pop duo Roxette, which she created together with Per Gessle in 1986...
, Roxette
Roxette
Roxette are a Swedish pop music duo, consisting of Marie Fredriksson and Per Gessle . Formed in 1986, the duo became an international act from the late 1980s, when they released their breakthrough album Look Sharp!...
´s lead singer.