TIFF 2024 Review: William Tell

The brutal 14th century rule of Austria over Switzerland results in a revolt with one of the rebel leaders being a renown crossbowman and former Crusader William Tell.    

Back in 1307, Austria treated the bordering Swiss cantons as its own private fiefdom where farmers were unscrupulously taxed, women raped and villages burned to the ground.  When a tax collector is murdered by a framer in retaliation for his wife being defiled and killed, the dominos fall into place for a rebellion that calls upon the skills of a former Crusader haunted by his time in the Holy Land who is a master in crafting and firing the crossbow.  The man in question is William Tell and his reputation and prowess make him a target of the occupying powers which go to great lengths to break his spirit and instead ignite his fury.

The blood-red-soaked title sequence hints at a lot of bloodshed and there are plenty of corpses but nothing that borders on being classified as a gruesome killing. Jonathan Pryce and Sir Ben Kingsley add some ever-so-brief thespian regalness while Claes Bang does an admiral job of playing the haunted warrior turned hunter. Adding dramatic heft is the dialogue which is Shakespearean in spirit.  Less forgiving are the Austrian characters that come across as boorish and have a habit of chewing up the scenery which may or may not have been made better if Ethan Hawke was cast as the petulant and spiteful antagonist seeking to grind the protagonist into submission.

Nothing was left unturned when it comes to epic battles and beautiful vistas as filmmaker Nick Hamm takes advantage of having a vast canvas at his disposal.  The famed arrow and apple incident is maxed out for suspense with slow motion punctuating the moment.  A poignant scene is the swords piercing the ground in a call for solidarity.  The story is a familiar one in that the reluctant hero needs to be persuaded to be called to action and William Tell requires a lot of convincing which is in explained flashbacks that gradually reveal how he met his wife and son and his disdain for warfare.  Then there is the conclusion which can either be taken as a warning or the prelude to a sequel if the box office deems it necessary.

The 49th Toronto International Film Festival runs September 5-15, 2024, and for more information visit tiff.net.    

Trevor Hogg is a freelance video editor and writer who currently resides in Canada; he can be found at LinkedIn.