Your Highnessis a 2011 fantasy comedy film directed by David Gordon Green , written by Danny McBride and Ben Best , and starring McBride, James Franco , Natalie Portman , and Zooey Deschanel . Filming began in the summer of 2009 in Northern Ireland and concluded in October 2009.The film was released in theatres on April 8, 2011.

Thadeous ( Danny McBride ) and Fabious ( James Franco ) are the sons of King Tallious ( Charles Dance ). They are both warriors, but Fabious is dashing and skilled whereas Thadeous is lazy and ineffectual. In order to celebrate his latest victory, Fabious decides to marry his virgin girlfriend Belladonna ( Zooey Deschanel ), but the ceremony is interrupted by the arrival of the evil sorcerer Leezar ( Justin Theroux ), who kidnapps Belladona and imprisions her at his dungeon, intending to rape her when the two Moons converge, impregnating her with a dragon that will allow him to take over King Tallious' kingdom.

Thadeous and Fabious set to rescue her alongside their band of knights, which includes Fabious' best friend Boremont ( Damian Lewis ), and Thadeous' servant Courtney ( Rasmus Hardiker ). They visit the Great Wise Wizard, who gives them a magic compass and tells them that they must retrieve the fabled Sword of Unicorn from a labyrinth protected by a Minotaur. On their way there, they are betrayed by Boremont, who felt slighted when Fabious asked Thadeous to be his best man, and escape from him and the corrupt band of knights alongside Courtney.

While collecting themselves at a river, Thadeous, Fabious and Courtney are attacked by nymphs and captured by their leader, Marteetee ( John Fricker ), who imprisions them at an arena and prepares to kill them with magic. However, they are rescued by Isabel ( Natalie Portman ), a warrior that is seeking revenge for her father's murder at Marteetee's hands. With her help, the heroes escape, only to be betrayed by Isabel, who escapes after stealing the compass. Infuriated, Fabious decides to find the Sword of Unicorn alone, but is ambushed and captured by Boremont and his men.

Thadeous and Courtney go to a tavern, where they find Isabel and steal the compass back. Thadeous then discovers that Isabel wants revenge against Leezar for murdering their brothers and they join forces, entering the labyrinth. Thadeous retrieves the Sword of Unicorn and slays the minotaur before it rapes Courtney, proudly wearing its severed penis as a trophy. They then make their way to Leezar's castle, where they free Fabious and kill Boremont and his men as well as Leezar's minions. Fabious then kills Leezar before he is able to rape Belladonna, saving the kingdom.

After their victory, the heroes go back home, but Isabel goes a different way. Fabious and Belladonna marry as Thadeous retreats to his bedroom to masturbate before going to bed. There, he is approached by Isabel, who reveals that she has fallen in love with him. However, for them to have sex, he must first slay the witch that cast a spell on her, locking her in a chastity belt . She suggests that they cuddle first, but Thadeous, feeling renewed by his heroic deeds, is more interested in going on a new adventure.

Cast

• Danny McBride as Thadeous
• James Franco as Fabious
• Rasmus Hardiker as Courtney
• Natalie Portman as Isabel
• Toby Jones as Julie
• Justin Theroux as Leezar
• Zooey Deschanel as Belladonna
• Charles Dance as King Tallious
• Damian Lewis as Boremont
• Noah Huntley as Head Knight
• Eva Wyrwal as Dwarf Queen
• John Fricker as Marteetee
• Brian Steele as Minotaur

Production

According to director David Gordon Green, the dialogue was entirely improvised with only a written outline by writer Ben Best and actor Danny McBride.

Marketing

A red-band trailer for the movie was released on IGN and Funny or Die .On December 21, 2010, the first green-band trailer was released online.It was also shown beforeLittle FockersandThe Dilemma. On March 23, 2011, a second red band trailer was released.

Reception

Your Highnessreceived mostly negative reviews. Rotten Tomatoes reports that the film holds an overall approval rating of 24% based on 96 reviews and 10% among 29 "Top Critics". David Edelstein of theNew York Magazinegave one of the few favorable reviews, describing the film as "a cunning weave of low and high". Richard Roeper awarded the film a "C+" and although admitted some parts were humorous, criticized the action sequences and special effects.Andrew O'Hehir of Salon.com was more negative, noting that "For a few hours after having seenYour Highness, I considered the possibility that it was the worst movie ever made."Both Roger Ebert and Peter Travers gave the film one star out of four; Ebert likened the film to a "juvenile excrescence" while Travers concluded "Nothing works. Nothing."

References