Reclaiming the Blade Page #4

what weapons and armor are

and he did these

amazing blades.

The forging techniques I use

are some ways they're similar

and some ways they're different

from the old techniques.

With sword blades I'll start

with a bar of spring steel.

Usually, I'll cut and grind that

and then if necessary, forge it.

We use bronze, wood, leather,

and various other materials

that were used in period.

The main difference really,

is that today

with mass production

and steel foundries and so on,

that we can get things to

a much more consistent standard.

And essentially they're a lot

easier to get and work with.

The style of the sword,

the level of decoration,

the aging on it, they all

tell you a bit about

whether this character

is a new person,

whether they're

an old warrior.

It's a really

lovely experience

when the actors begin

to take ownership of them.

Bob very much encouraged you

to be familiar with this weapon,

which in some cases

is your livelihood.

Yes, it's only a movie, but,

the more you can feel like

it's not a movie,

the better the movie.

Actors on the stage

also demonstrate swordplay

through real-time

fight choreography.

Doing it on the stage

is so very difficult.

They have to

remember every blow.

On the films you can take

a part of the fight,

film it, do it once, twice,

15 times if necessary.

You get one chance on stage.

But you've got to be really good

to be a good stage swordfighter.

When you've gone to the cut,

and it comes in with a thrust,

you turn, and your hand is

stopped here and as you do it,

you transfer that

all in one fast move.

You try to hit him

on the head

with the cross part

of your sword.

Now if he hangs on to his

sword you pull him down

and you hit him under

the chin with the pommel.

But he knows that,

what he does is he lets go.

Then I go to hit him,

he has the advantage now

and that's why

you see them in the manuals.

The thing that we call

a glissar, which means to glide,

is which leads you

straight at his belly.

In the 18th century the move

still comes into swordplay.

We attack each other's chest,

he comes back,

I stretch him on the lunge, and

the glissar could disarm him.

So there is the same movement

over a period of 200 years

with different weapons

it still has the same intention.

All those moves,

you're trying to find out

what the other one's doing.

Now you can do the glissar

and then they all join together.

It's eye contact,

it's distance, it's balance,

it's timing

and it's intent.

I was looking at Andy's eyes,

I can see everything

that his body's doing but I

can also see Dad standing there

and I can see 180 degrees

in front of me.

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