Even if Medieval occasionally succumbs to its worst biopic influences, it’s still a delightfully confident work from a filmmaking team that knows its way around a sword.

The violence in Medieval is fast, frequent and fierce and could possibly be the film's biggest draw. History might be the film's initial hook, but it's the movie's grisly depictions of military violence that the film will likely be remembered.

Medieval succeeds as a lively, handsome chunk of history (however freely imagined), with nary a dull moment between densely-packed intrigues, chases and battles.

Medieval struggles as a work of historical fiction, but when the action mounts, it’s immersive and exciting.

Medieval works best when it throws dirt, mud, blood, and body parts at the screen, with the crunching battle scenes just about overcoming the narrative shortcomings.