Merlin and the Dragons (1991) - full transcript

[rain falling]

[thunder rolling]

[dramatic music]

- [Narrator] It happened
shortly after young Arthur

had been crowned king.

It was a terrible night.

And Arthur was having another
one of his bad dreams.

[men laughing]

[suspenseful music]

Wearily, he took a candle

and the crown he had
tossed carelessly aside,



and came to see me in my tower.

[yawning] Arthur,
what is it boy,

what brings you
here at this hour?

I am king, I go where I please.

You are also a boy,
and it is time for boys

to be in their beds, asleep.

I...

I cannot sleep, Merlin.

Why not?

I have bad dreams.

Dreams?

Dreams.

I could read your dreams.

[gentle music]



Well, tell me about them.

They're always the same.

A fatherless boy becomes king,

just because he pulls
a sword from a stone.

[chuckling] I think
I know the very boy.

Well, if you cannot tell
me more about your dreams.

All right, here.

Then I will tell you
a story about mine.

What better than a story
for a rainy night, eh?

- [Arthur] A story?

I could use a good story.

Let's see.

Once I had a dream
about dragons.

[owl hooting]

Dragons, oh I like dragons.

And well you should.

For dragons are the true
dreams of magicians and kings.

[gentle music]

There once lived in the
wild, rugged mountains

of North Wales a lonely,
fatherless boy called Emrys.

He was small, with sharp
eyes like a hawk's.

And a mouth that rarely smiled.

For he too was
troubled by dreams

and visions he did
not understand.

[suspenseful music]

[ground rumbling]

[gentle music]

Because he was without a father,

he made friends with an old man

who spent his time
in the mountains.

He was the kind of old man

who seems to have
been around forever

and knew everything,

from reading and writing
to how birds speak,

and why leaves turn
brown in Autumn.

He liked young Emrys, and
taught him all that he knew.

Now, Emrys' mother
was a princess.

But she lived far away
from her father's castle.

She was a good mother, but
knew nothing of climbing trees

or catching tadpoles
or other boys' sports,

so Emrys had to invent that
part of growing up for himself.

And a lonely inventing
it proved to be.

The boys in the
village teased him

for not knowing
who his father was.

And called him mother's
babe, or little apron-pull,

and never invited him to
take part in their games.

So Emrys spent his days
studying birds and fish,

and marveling at
butterflies, all by himself.

And told no one about
his strange dreams.

It was his odd way with
animals, especially birds,

that finally brought
the other boys to him.

Not in friendship,
but out of curiosity.

And Emrys made up
what he thought

were harmless little
predictions to amuse them.

"The rain will soon
fall," Emrys would say,

and soon after, it did.

"The first bird of
spring will soon arrive."

And soon after, it did.

Well, any farmer's child might
have made the same guesses.

And after a while
the village boys

were no longer impressed by him.

However, once when he
was nine years old,

Emrys found a book of seasons
and planetary movements

in the old man's cottage.

"Today the sun will
disappear," he told everyone.

The next moment there was
an eclipse of the sun,

just as Emrys had
read there would be.

It plunged the
village into darkness.

To the villagers,
this was witchcraft,

and after that they
avoided him altogether,

saying he must have
been spawned by a demon.

So for years following, Emrys
was alone most of the time.

[gentle music]

[hooves beating]

One day, when
Emrys was about 12,

there came to the valley a
ruthless and ambitious man

named Vortigern.

He had unjustly declared himself
high king over all Britain.

After fleeing his
enemies for weeks,

Vortigern arrived
with a bedraggled
army of tired soldiers

and a handful of magicians.

The peaceful life of
Emrys' tiny village

was about to be changed forever.

[dramatic music]

There, atop that mountain,
shall be my tower.

Gather the people
of this village.

They shall build it,
starting at once.

You, my magicians,
do what you must

to please the Welsh gods

so that they allow
my tower to be built.

- [Narrator] Vortigern
forced the villagers

to cut huge pieces of stone
from the mountainside,

and haul them with their
little Welsh ponies.

[dramatic music]

Vortigern drove
them mercilessly,

and soon a mighty tower
began to take shape.

Grim and powerful,

dominating the valley
and the village below.

[dramatic music]

But that very night, the tower
began to shudder and shake.

[ground rumbling]

The mortar cracked, and
the whole edifice fell

with a mighty crash
to the ground.

Well it was just as
Emrys had dreamed.

And it frightened him,
for he did not know

what to make of his powers
to see into the future.

Vortigern was convinced

the villagers had
done it on purpose.

Your work is careless.

Start again, now, and this
time pray you do it right.

- [Narrator] So the
villagers returned to work.

Vortigern drove
them even harder,

and by the following night,

the tower had been
almost rebuilt.

Then, once more a great shudder
rippled through the mountain

and the day's
labor lay in ruins.

Vortigern was furious,

and worked the villagers
till they dropped.

But a third time the
tower fell to the ground,

and by morning nothing
remained but rubble.

A less stubborn man

would simply have
looked for a safer place

to build this tower,
but not proud Vortigern.

He turned to his magicians.

There is some dark magic here.

Find the cause, then
find a solution.

My tower must be built.

- [Narrator] The next morning,

the magicians put on their
most impressive robes.

They drew the magic
circle of power.

They cast the sacred
stones of fate.

[magicians muttering]

They consulted the sacred
sticks of prophecy.

At last they announced
their findings to Vortigern.

You must find a
fatherless child, a boy,

spawned by a demon, and sprinkle
his blood upon the stone.

Only then will the gods of
this land let the tower stand.

Then go, and find
me such a child.

Well, we don't know
if such a boy exists.

Gold, for whoever
brings me such a child.

- [Narrator] Even as the
greedy soldiers hurried off

to search for a victim,

a village boy tugged
Vortigern's sleeve.

Please sir, we of the
village know of such a boy.

He lives right here, and
he was spawned by a demon.

He can talk to birds, and make
the sun fall from the sky.

He lives up there,
on the mountain.

His name is Emrys.

- [Narrator] At that moment,

Emrys was absorbed
in a strange vision.

Under the ruins of the tower
he saw a pool of water,

and in the pool two huge stones.

Bring him to me.

[dramatic music]

What shall I do?

Trust your dreams.

You are Emrys, the boy
spawned by a demon?

I am Emrys, but no demon's son.

I will have your blood

whether you be the
right boy or not.

Slay him.

Now.

[suspenseful music]

[magicians chuckling]

Better you should
have my dreams.

Ask your magicians,
what is under the tower?

Eh? Untie the boy.

What have you seen in dreams?

- [Emrys] Did beneath the ruins.

There you will find a
large pool of water.

An underground pool could
be weakening the tower.

We will test this dream,
but if it proves false,

I will have your blood.

[magicians chuckling]

- [Narrator] Vortigern
set men to digging,

and beneath the ruins
there was indeed

a large pool of water.

In that pool lay two great
stones, breathing in and out.

And at each breath the
mud around them trembled.

- [Emrys] Inside the stones
are dragons, fast asleep.

It is the dreaming
of these dragons

that shakes the earth each
night and makes the tower fall.

- [Narrator] Vortigern's men
descended into the muddy pit.

And with mighty hammers
pounded upon the stones.

Once, twice, three times
their hammers rang out.

[suspenseful music]

Like jets of lightning,
cracks ran around each stone.

Out of one emerged a dragon
with a belly as white as milk.

Out of the other came
a dragon red as wine.

Huge, angry creatures they were,

and their battle cries
echoed in the air.

[dramatic music]

The dragons circled one another,

rising higher and
higher into the sky.

They wheeled about,
poised to strike.

And then came the fire.

They advanced and
clashed, breast to breast.

Raining teeth and scales
down upon the ground.

Vortigern's soldiers were
too dumbstruck to shoot,

so Vortigern grabbed a
bow, knocked an arrow,

and shot at the red dragon,

wounding it in the wing.

Distracted, the red
dragon looked away,

and the white made a
furious slash at its throat.

That was when Emrys remembered
his childhood vision

of this very fight and
these very dragons.

There was a moment of
the most awful silence.

[suspenseful music]

And then the red dragon
tumbled from the sky.

The white dragon followed
its victim to the ground

and set it on fire
with its breath.

Quick as a cat, Vortigern
grabbed another arrow

and sighted on the
white dragon's neck.

But before he could shoot,

the white dragon fled back
into the air, banked northward,

and was gone, winging
over the mountains.

If you're so good at prophecy,

tell me the meaning
of this, boy.

It means that your fate shall
be that of the red dragon,

and soon you too shall be slain.

Tell me if you have
any more dreams.

Back to work, my
tower must be built!

[dramatic music]

- [Narrator] Emrys
watched from the hillside,

feeling his confidence
build within him.

"If only I could find help,"
he thought to himself.

A hawk circled overhead.

Emrys lifted his arm, and
the great bird alighted.

There was a communion
between them,

as though the hawk
understood Emrys' thoughts.

And off it flew.

Rivers and hills, mountains and
forests gave way beneath it.

At last, off in the distance,
it spied a vast army,

led by two noble knights.

These were Vortigern's enemies,

the true heirs to the throne,

coming to rid the country
of the murderous king.

The knights saw the hawk,
took it as a good omen,

and followed it through
a pass in the mountain.

Emrys emerged from his vision

and came down from the
hillside to confront Vortigern.

[suspenseful music]

- [Emrys] Vortigern, I
have had another dream.

I dreamed that you were
attacked by righteous knights

and that you were defeated.

- [Narrator] Vortigern
was ready to slay Emrys

for his impudence,
but at that moment,

a lookout atop the tower
cried out, "Soldiers!"

"Thousands of them!"

[dramatic music]

The two kings were leading
the armies into the valley.

They rode up to the foot
of the tower and cried out,

"Come and meet your
fate, Vortigern.

"Those whom you have made to
suffer cry out for your blood."

Vortigern ordered his
men to defend the tower,

but there wasn't a soul,
not even his own soldiers,

who would take
sides with him now.

Surrender, Vortigern!

You haven't a chance!

Never!

[dramatic music]

Never!

Never!

Wake up, Merlin, wake up, you
can't end the story there.

Eh?

What happened to Vortigern?

Oh, those knights defeated
Vortigern, all right.

Burned him right up
in his own tower.

And what of the two kings?

They were brothers, named
Ambrosius and Uther Pendragon.

Uther, why he was
the last high king.

Perhaps one of his sons will
come to claim my throne.

Uther had only one son,

though only I knew it.

You, Arthur.

Uther was my father?

Then I am not fatherless?

You had a father,
and he was king.

Then I am king, not just because

I pulled a stupid
sword from the stone.

Don't underestimate
your strength

in pulling that
sword from the stone.

There's nothing stupid about it.

It took the son of a
king to do such a thing.

It meant you were qualified
to rule all of Britain.

Why did you not
tell me this before?

I could not tell you
until you were ready.

There are rules for prophets

just as there are rules
for kings, you know.

So I am king in truth.

Always were.

Only you doubted it.

You can thank your
dreams for, well,

for waking you up.

You see, great men
dream great dreams.

- [Arthur] But what of
Emrys, what happened to him?

Emrys, oh he's still around.

Went on dreaming, made
a career of it, I think.

I still have this,
saved it all this time.

You saved a dragon's tooth?

Then you were the
boy named Emrys?

Surely you had
guessed that before.

But now maybe we can
both get some rest?

Kings need their sleep
if they are to be wise.

No more bad dreams, Merlin.

Thank you.

Don't mention it.

My king.

[gentle music]

[dramatic music]

[gentle music]

- [Narrator] Well after
that, Arthur went on

to become a truly great king.

As for me, I did quite
well as a wizard.

Stayed on for years, helping
Arthur with his knights,

and the Round Table, and, well,

those are stories
for another time.

Magicians need their sleep, too.

[gentle music]

[dramatic music]