WILLIAM TELL movie poster | ©2025 Samuel Goldwyn Films

Rating: R
Stars: Claes Bang, Connor Swindells, Golshifteh Farahani, Tobias Jowett, Jonah Hauer-King, Emily Beecham, Ellie Bamber, Ben Kingsley, Jonathan Pryce, Jake Dunn, Billy Postlethwaite, Rafe Spall
Writer: Nick Hamm, based on the play WILHELM TELL by Friedrich Schiller
Director: Nick Hamm
Distributor: Samuel Goldwyn Films
Release Date: April 4, 2025

William Tell, for those unfamiliar with the legend, is the Swiss equivalent of Robin Hood, or perhaps Moses. Although a possibly invented figure, Tell is credited with paving the way for Swiss independence and the foundation of Switzerland as a nation.

In a voiceover, Tell (Claes Bang) informs us, “Three days ago, my soul was free from thoughts of murder.”

A screen title places us in 1307 Switzerland, where the Austrians are encroaching on the Swiss. The movie WILLIAM TELL then formally begins with the famous apple scene (if you don’t know about it, we won’t spoil it for you), then cuts back to three days earlier.

While a farmer is away from his homestead, the Austrian tax collector (Billy Postlethwaite) arrives with his soldiers. Not content to simply extort money, the tax collector rapes and murders the farmer’s wife. The farmer arrives home, manages to kill the tax collector and then flees. Tell helps the man escape, although this sets off reprisals from the Austrians.

Austrian King Albert (Ben Kingsley) is contemplating war with the Swiss, but his viceroy Gessler (Connor Swindells) advises simply occupying the land without actual battle. So, Albert tells Gessler to assert Austrian authority in the region.

This leads to conflict with Tell, a former soldier in the Crusades who now wants a peaceful life. However, there’s only so much brutality and injustice anyone can take.

Director/writer Nick Hamm has adapted Friedrich Schiller’s 1804 play WILHELM TELL with an eye towards epic vistas, towering mountains and multiple imposing castles. The production design and costumes are impressive.

The plot complications are also interesting, as Tell’s initial efforts at surreptitiously aiding his countrymen lead Gessler to suspect him. At the same time, Gessler’s pursuit of Austrian Princess Bertha (Ellie Bamber) winds up motivating a Swiss nobleman (Jonah Hauer-King) to reconsider his alliances.

The acting is very good, with Bang convincingly serious and physically capable, and Swindells confident in Gessler’s calculating nature. Golshifteh Farahani is especially noteworthy as Tell’s wife Suna, rescued from the Holy Land and full of pragmatic spirit, and Tobias Jowett is strong as their son.

While the filmmaking tools have advanced since those days, and the bloodshed is a bit more pronounced, WILLIAM TELL feels a lot like a Hollywood historical adventure from the ‘50s/’60s, or perhaps a British television saga from the ‘70s/’80s.

The dialogue is reminiscent of that era, with lines like, “Get word to your mother and remind her of my love” and “I know not where this current leads us.” It doesn’t sound stilted, as the performers are nimble and nuanced in their delivery. However, because practically no English-language films have talked like this for quite a while, it does accentuate WILLIAM TELL’s old-fashioned style.

WILLIAM TELL delivers on what it appears to set out to accomplish. Its primary target audience are those who loved this type of movie in the past and will be happy to find a new one in that vein.

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