‘The Last Kingdom: Seven Kings Must Die’ Review: Long-Running Historical TV Saga Ably Concludes With a Feature-Length Finale
variety.comCatherine Bray Set mostly in England, back before it was officially called England — and centuries before Great Britain was so much as a glint in the eye of James I — director Ed Bazalgette’s workmanlike historical epic “The Last Kingdom: Seven Kings Must Die” wraps up the events of “The Last Kingdom,” the Netfix drama series based on Bernard Cornwell’s “Saxon Tales” novels.
Playing like “Game of Thrones” with more history and fewer dragons, the film opens with several smaller kingdoms, including Northumbria, Mercia and East Anglia, gearing up for a power struggle exacerbated by the recent death of Alfred the Great, king of Wessex, and worsened by the surreptitious attempts of the Danes to sow discord.
The hero of the hour is Uhtred (Alexander Dreymon), a young Saxon and the protagonist of the TV series, who fans will know was raised by Danes after a Danish attack wiped out most of his family — before he relocated to Wessex to work for the aforementioned Alfred.
None of this backstory is really necessary for newcomers to understand that Uhtred is a good guy, happy to respect religious and cultural differences in the name of peace.
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