The Green Knight is a character from the 14th century Arthurian poem, whose original name is Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. The character is so named because his clothes and skin are green and the reason for the meaning of this color has led to many theories: some identify him as the Green Man, a vegetation being from medieval art; others argue that he is similar to a figure from Celtic mythology; a Christian symbol or even the devil himself.
Writer J.R.R. Tolkien once called him "the most difficult character" to interpret in the introduction to his edition of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. In Arthurian literature this knight plays the role of judge and evaluator of knights and therefore, the other characters consider him friendly but also terrifying and mysterious.
What is the story told in the poem? At Christmas, the Green Knight appears before King Arthur's court holding a holly branch and an axe and posing a challenge: he will allow one of the men to hit him with his axe on the condition that he can hit him back the following year. Even though Arthur accepts the challenge, Gawain intercedes and takes his place beheading the Green Knight. To the surprise of many, the latter attaches the head to his body and tells Gawain to meet him in the Green Chapel after the agreed time.
This will be the plot we will see in the film The Green Knight, directed by David Lowery and starring Dev Patel and Alicia Vikander. Although it still has no release date in Latin America, it is expected to be released in mid-year in the United States, so we will surely have news about this title soon.
Stay tuned!