Reclaiming the Blade

Filmmaker Daniel McNicoll's aptly titled documentary Reclaiming the Blade aims to honor the importance of swords in human history, and restore their rightful place as one of the most essential implements in the development of technological civilization throughout the ages. With its soundtrack of well-chosen but occasionally overbearing music by such popular groups as the Doves, Yo La Tengo, and the Dandy Warhols (among others), Reclaiming the Blade is conspicuously targeted to Earth-bound Jedi Knights, Lord of the Rings fans, and chivalrous members of the Society for Creative Anachronism. At times, in fact, the film's connection to Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings trilogy feels a bit too intimate: narrated by LOTR veteran John Rhys-Davies, much of the material here consists of interviews and footage that might've been culled from outtakes of LOTR's DVD bonus material, with LOTR alumni including designer/illustrator John Howe and special effects master Richard Taylor from Jackson's legendary Weta Workshop, actors Viggo Mortensen and Karl Urban, and LOTR swordplay instructor Bob Anderson featured prominently throughout. While the film jumps from topic to topic somewhat erratically, it does spotlight the importance of swords and their ongoing influence in popular culture, drawing on film examples, comments from present-day swordsmiths and swordfighters, historical documents regarding medieval warfare, and discoveries concerning the creation of swords. The extensive DVD extras on this double-disc set include a featurette about the New York Jedi (a group with a modern-day passion for swords employed in science-fiction), deleted scenes, sword-training videos, a “making-of” featurette, and more. Recommended. Aud: C, P. (J. Shannon)