Movie sword fighting versus real life fencing (Real vs Reel Longsword)

Yes, beginners can win duels. It was one of the warnings masters would give their students because a novice could get lucky or be underestimated.

I've been a stage, film and TV choreographer since 1977 (mostly known for being the swordmaster for the Highlander TV series, seasons 3-6 and the 4th movie Endgame) but I have also been an historical European and Asian sword instructor since the early 80s and an actual fighting practitioner. Fight scenes reflect several realities - the skill of the performer and the available rehearsal time. (on H'LNDR, I often had only 5 hours over several days to teach actors who had never handled a sword the fight scenes) But having extensive background in researching weapons technique in museums around the world from the original manuscripts and studying with incredible masters, I always tried to incorporate as much historical authenticity into the choreography as the script and characters would allow since it's SAFER. You are not trying to force a weapon to do moves for which it was not designed. Generally, it is also much more aesthetically pleasing.

pretty solid production value for such a small channel you are putting your education to good use I see

I really loved seeing the comparison of the movie scene vs real life, especially when he breaks it down after and explains what he would actually do in that situation. So cool!

Two of my favorite silly movie tropes are: 1. The "wind up" where someone pulls their sword back like an axe while the opponent stands there and prepares to block instead of just making a direct stike or thrust to the completely exposed attacker. 2. The idea of someone fighting in multiple duels and not getting a scratch. Even when fighting a complete amatuer, an expert will occasionally get tagged. When two experts are fighting it is extremely rare for either to go multiple rounds without receiving a touch that would be lethal in a real fight. You very nicely demonstrated both of these. 🙂

1. It's the same for knife fights. No one wins in a knife fight and you're going to get cut. 2. Liam Neeson is notorious (in a good way) for adding in the real sword combat he learned for Rob Roy into Qui-Gon Jinn for the Star Wars prequels. 3. Fantastic video.

Well shot, edited and narrated! I've been practicing HEMA for about 4 years and this is a pretty succinct and user friendly intro to the world of weapon based martial arts. Really happy to see the community growing and gaining more visibility, thanks in part to people like yourself, very well done!

30 years learning, competing in, and coaching historical fencing. Nicely video, good points. One thing about Witcher though is that he was suppose to be tougher, stronger, and -- most importantly -- significantly faster than normal humans. If I could choose just one enhanced trait to give me an edge in any hand to hand fighting it would be quickness. It would be the ultimate combat upgrade. I haven't seen a lot of spinning in HEMA fights I've watched in person. I have seen two guys using longsword in video of HEMA tournaments in Europe who used spins effectively so it's unusual but not impossible in the right circumstances. Add in the enhanced speed of the Witcher and I see how it might work for him. But we don't really know what that would look like since what we see on screen has all the fight choreography limitations your video mentioned. That's all speculation about a fantasy situation anyway.

Really nice video, good job.

People don’t appreciate the difference that the risk of mortal injury makes in how people behave. Modern fencing duels are only slightly closer to real combat than watching someone play Call of Duty. The physics are accurate (obviously) but a lot of the things people do when there’s no risk of death they just wouldn’t do…

Wait i know these fencers...

Some interesting studies have been done on the Witcher's fighting style, conducted by people who participate in HEMA, and they found that the fighting style is quite accurate for wat the Witcher is usually fighting, being in the area of large monsters, instead of men. They also touch on how the Witcher seems to be using his shorter blade like a Greatsword, flowing with the momentum of his cuts, instead of just switching between guards to perform an attack, which in some ways is much more useful for fighting multiple, untrained people at once.

This is a fantastic video, one of the best I've seen on the topic of HEMA. It shows your skill in cinematography and your knowledge and love for HEMA. This video and this channel in general deserve a lot more views. Keep up the good work!

Very nice video, you explained a lot of things very well! With regards to Henry Cavill's the Witcher fight, you are correct in assuming that he used a cut length sword, CGI and camera angles. But the actual sword was in of itself a shorter bladed sword anyhow, this was due to the system used to carry and draw it from his back. Tod's Workshop (who was one of the people used in manufacturing the props for this) actual has a video covering this in detail.

Super cool love how much effort and creativity you put into this!

I did take a stage combat class just for fun and learning experience. There is one things that I remember too well is the safety of actors is the utmost important to keep in mind when doing the choreographing the stage fight. Also the safety of the audience include since accidents do occur. The stage combat only focus on the illusion of telling story, not on sport where contests are created. That is a big different between two of them.

One of the best videos for introducing HEMA.

Love it! Always wished I had gotten into fencing when I was younger. Loved seeing the side-by-side comparison of the film vs. real life.

Lovely video! The efficient translation of the Witcher movie fight into proper HEMA techniques was a joy to watch ❤

Very cool video with great production value! It's really interesting to see just how unrealistic sword fighting is in films. It makes me wonder which fights in which films are actually realistic. Also congrats Brad!