Cast your mind back a month or so. It’s Christmas 2024 and, as is my wont during this festive period, the time has come to indulge in my yearly roster of comfort movies. I’ve never been one for explicitly festive fare – the likes of Deck The Halls or even Home Alone are enough to have me attempting to electrocute myself with the Christmas lights or throw myself onto the open fire – but I’m always willing to use the holiday season to bathe in the soothing warmth of the films and shows that can be guaranteed to bring me the most amount of pure pleasure. Impending global conflict and destruction in the claws of AI? They can wait, I’m watching A Knight’s Tale, and Heath Ledger’s hair looks sensational.
Once Ledger’s anachronistic medieval romp has been devoured, it’s time for a change of scenery. Gone are the lists of the jousting tourney, replaced by two figures entwined on an empty beach in the glistening Caribbean. The sun is setting on their heartfelt encounter, made all the more gut-wrenching – for the pair and the misty-eyed viewer – since it will be ten whole years before the couple can be together again. It’s like something drawn straight from ancient Greek mythology, and while I might not fully have appreciated its emotional significance as a small tyke, there’s a very noticeable lump forming in my decidedly adult throat. The ensuing emotional brew – a blend of melancholy, relief, joy and genuine sadness – is threatening to become my defining festive memory of last year. Pathetic, isn’t it?
