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William Tell (2024 film)

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William Tell
Theatrical release poster
Directed byNick Hamm
Screenplay byNick Hamm
Based onWilliam Tell
by Friedrich Schiller
Produced by
  • Piers Tempest
  • Marie-Christine Jaeger-Firmenich
  • Nick Hamm
Starring
CinematographyJamie D. Ramsay
Edited byTariq Anwar
Music bySteven Price
Production
companies
  • Free Turn Films
  • Tempo Productions
  • Beta Cinema
Distributed by
Release dates
  • September 5, 2024 (2024-9-5) (TIFF)
  • January 10, 2025 (2025-1-10) (United Kingdom)
Running time
133 minutes
Countries
  • United Kingdom
  • Italy
  • Switzerland
LanguageEnglish

William Tell is a 2024 epic historical action film written and directed by Nick Hamm, based on the play of the same name by Friedrich Schiller. It stars Claes Bang, Connor Swindells, Golshifteh Farahani, Jonah Hauer-King, Ellie Bamber, Rafe Spall, Emily Beecham, Jonathan Pryce, and Ben Kingsley.

The film had its world premiere at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival on 5 September 2024,[2] and was theatrically released in the United Kingdom on 10 January 2025. It received mixed reviews.

Synopsis

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In the year 1307, Switzerland is a province under the rule of the Austrian royal house of Habsburg. The Swiss people are resentful this foreign occupation, and rebellion is brewing, especially since the Habsburg soldiers brutalize the population at their whim. Some Swiss nobles, like Rudenz of Attinghausen and Werner Stauffacher, try to remain in good standing with the Habsburgs, either out of self-interest, fear of retribution, or - in Rudenz's case - his love for Bertha, Albert's niece who resents her uncle's tyranny over Switzerland and is pursued by Albert's vassal Gessler.

Konrad Baumgarten, a farmer who killed constable Wolfshot for raping and murdering his wife, becomes a fugitive. When he attempts to cross a storm-tossed lake to escape his pursuers, he is aided by William Tell, a war-weary former Crusade soldier renowned for his skill with the crossbow. As a result of the assassination, Albert of Habsburg installs Gessler as a bailiff to maintain order in the canton. While seeking temporary shelter with the Stauffachers, the fugitives encounter Gessler, who is searching for Baumgarten and lets them go, though he suspects them. Werner's wife Gertrude urges Tell to help the Swiss organize a rebellion against the Austrians, but Tell is reluctant to involve himself. He still helps Stauffenbach and Baumgarten in contacting his friend Furst, a priest in Altendorf, to act as a spokesman in uniting the cantons.

To humiliate the Swiss, Gessler has posts erected and helmets placed on their tips, and a public decree is passed that the population must bow to the helmet when passing by the posts, in reverence to the king's authority. When Tell refuses to bow before such a post, Gessler's henchmen have an excuse to arrest him. As the people rise in protest, Gessler arrives in Rudenz and Bertha's company and, for his cruel amusement and despite the outcry of all onlookers, challenges him to shoot an apple off his son's head in return for his freedom. Tell succeeds, but when in the aftermath he confesses that he would have struck down Gessler if he had killed his son, Gessler has him seized and taken away. Incensed by Gessler's cruelty, Rudenz returns to his dying uncle, who has long tried to appeal to his nephew's allegiance to his country, and pledges himself to his people's cause, and the canton leaders assemble and unite as a nation.

As Tell is transported across the same lake over which he carried Baumgarten to safety, another storm hits and grounds the vessel at its shore. Bertha frees Tell, and they escape into the nearby woods, where Tell learns from local huntsmen that Gessler is on his way to Küssnacht. He ambushes Gessler's caravan in a ravine leading to the town, but only wounds him and is forced to flee. Before she parts with Tell to try and dissuade King Albert from helping Gessler, Bertha reminds him to pursue his goal with more caution instead of blind revenge. Tell joins the resistance, where he learns of a failed attack against Gessler's Altendorf garrison which was betrayed by a turncoat and in which Gertrude was killed. He assumes leadership and trains the freedom fighters for a renewed assault, while Gessler is determined to hold out until Albert's reinforcements arrive.

Bertha is arrested and sentenced to death when she stands up to her uncle and his tyranny, but is freed by one of her cousins and assassinates Albert in his bed. While Tell challenges Gessler at the town gates to draw his attention, several resistance fighters enter the town through a secret tunnel and open the city gates the next morning, allowing Tell's forces to storm Altendorf. During the fighting, Gessler kills Rudenz and Stauffacher, captures Tell's son Walter and holds him and the town's people hostage, but his hopes are dashed when the Habsburg relief force turns back after learning of their king's death. As Gessler's soldiers surrender around him, Walter fights free. Tell prepares to kill Gessler, but spares him upon Walter's insistence and walks away from him. Three days later, as Tell wearily attempts to return to his old life, Bertha reunites with him and reports that Albert's daughter Agnes has sworn vengeance on the Swiss people, including him, for her father's death, marking the start for another, bloodier conflict for Switzerland's freedom.

Cast

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Production

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The production, which would be directed and adapted by Nick Hamm, received funding to shoot in South Tyrol in June 2023.[3]

In October 2023, the production was fully announced, with Claes Bang set to star as the titular folk hero. Connor Swindells, Ellie Bamber, Golshifteh Farahani, Jonah Hauer-King, Rafe Spall, Emily Beecham, Jonathan Pryce and Ben Kingsley were also cast, with production entering its final week in Italy.[4] Post-production was underway by May 2024.[5]

Reception

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Critical response

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As of March 2025, the movie has a score of 61% and an average rating of 2.5/5 based on 23 reviews on Rotten Tomatoes. Critic Helen O'Hara of Empire Magazine stated that "while this old-fashioned tale of folk heroism and hardy underdogs benefits from solid performances and spectacular vistas, ... it loses points for a sequel-baiting ending."[6] On Metacritic, the film scores 53 out of 100 based on 10 reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[7]

References

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  1. ^ a b Goodfellow, Melanie (6 September 2024). "Claes Bang Picture 'William Tell' Sells To UK & Ireland, German-Speaking Territories For Beta Ahead Of Toronto WP". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 6 September 2024.
  2. ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (2024-08-13). "TIFF Adds 20 More Movies To Lineup With 'Saturday Night', Jacob Elordi & Daisy Edgar-Jones' 'On Swift Horses', Max Minghella's 'Shell', 'Megalopolis' & More". Deadline. Retrieved 2024-08-13.
  3. ^ "Secondo round di finanziamento 2023: dalla commedia poliziesca al film fantasy – l'Alto Adige è al centro delle produzioni internazionali". IDM Film Commission Südtirol (in Italian). June 26, 2023. Retrieved 9 August 2024.
  4. ^ Goodfellow, Melanie (October 24, 2023). "Beta Cinema Launches Nick Hamm's Epic William Tell With Claes Bang, Connor Swindells, Ellie Bamber, Golshifteh Farahani & Ben Kingsley; Releases First-Look Image – AFM". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 24 October 2023.
  5. ^ Ford, Lily (May 16, 2024). "Nick Hamm's Epic William Tell, Starring Claes Bang as Resistance Fighter, Sells Wide". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 9 August 2024.
  6. ^ "William Tell". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved March 8, 2025.
  7. ^ "William Tell". Metacritic. Fandom, Inc. Retrieved March 8, 2025.
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