Strings

Strings is a mythological fantasy tale about Hal, the son of a king, who leaves his home determined to avenge his father's death. His kingdom, Hebalon, has long been locked in hostility with its neighbours, and Hal believes they are responsible for the killing. What he finds on his journey changes how he understands his people, his enemies and himself, and he also discovers love in a place he did not expect. The story turns on the conflict between his desire for revenge and the wider truth about who really wanted his father dead and why.

The film was directed by Anders Rønnow Klarlund, who also wrote the screenplay, and it is the first of the two features listed for him, followed much later by The Last Client. It was made as a co-production between the United Kingdom, Denmark, Norway and Sweden, with Zentropa Entertainments, Nordisk Film, Film and Music Entertainment and BOB Film Sweden among the companies involved, on a budget of about 3 million US dollars. James McAvoy voices Hal, with Derek Jacobi as Nezo, Catherine McCormack as Zita, Julian Glover as Kahro, Ian Hart as Ghrak and Claire Skinner as Jhinna among a credited cast of 24.

Released in October 2004 and running 88 minutes, the film holds a 6.9 rating on IMDb from around 4,500 votes and a 6.6 on TMDB from a much smaller number of votes, while its critics' rating stands at 7 out of 10 from five reviews.