The Medieval Hero on Screen: Representations from Beowulf to Buffy

Few figures have captured Hollywood's and the public's imagination as completely as have medieval heroes. Cast as chivalric knight, warrior princess, "alpha male in tights," or an amalgamation, and as likely to appear in Hong Kong action flicks and spaghetti westerns as films set in the Middle Ages, the medieval hero on film serves many purposes.

This collection of essays about the medieval hero on screen, contributed by scholars from a variety of disciplines, draws upon a wide range of mo...