BTW, watched a special feature on Samuel Bronstein, who produced "King of Kings," "El Cid," "Fall of the Roman Empire," and the special effects/costume people ALWAYS used real iron swords because Bronstein wanted a realistic effect.
Now it is, but before he was cast, it was more up in the air. Daniel Day-Lewis has the jaw for it.
I think Sean Bean would have been a fine Aragon.
Interesting about the sword-fighting in the old costume dramas. Bob Anderson, the sword trainer and choreographer, did absolutely everything from Captain Blood to Star Wars. He was practically the one-and-only in that business.
I thought he was the poorest casting choice. I wanted Hugh Jackson.
I have to disagree with the Mortensen pick. This was the latest in a Iong line of kings, but there was nothing regal about Mortensen’s Aragorn. He could have greased a chariot’s wheels with the oil in his hair. He spoke with no real authority or presence. And the continual whining about Arwen was more the behavior of a love-lorn schoolboy than an heir to Isildur.
Badly miscast, in my opinion.
“El Cid,”
My favorite movie!
If you watch the joust scene where they end up using Claymore swords you can tell those are real swords.
EL CID ON dvd is available at Walmart.