First things first - there is virtually nothing original with the plot here. A young prince "Amleth" (Oscar Novak who later morphs into an effective Alexander Skarsgård) witnesses the murder of his father "King Aurvandil" (Ethan Hawke) and the capture of his mother "Gudrún" (Nicole Kidman) by his treacherous uncle "Fjölnir" (Claes Bang). Lucky to escape with his life, he escapes to the land of the Rus where he is soon a capable and powerful warrior. When he learns that the traitor was, himself, deposed and now lives in the inhospitable Iceland, he decides to impersonate one of a group of slaves being sent to his farm so as to wreak his revenge. There are a few twists to the otherwise largely predictable plot - he meets the enigmatic "Olga" (Anya Taylor-Joy) and comes into possession of a deadly sword that can only be drawn at night; but what really makes this stand out is the gritty, dark and enthralling production. The headlines actors actually feature pretty sparingly, though we get a little more Kidman towards the end, and that's no bad thing. It leaves us to enjoy a storyline that draws heavily on the compelling Norse mythology. Not just of Odin, Freya, Valhallah and the like, but of the whole cult of nature; of animalistic behaviour amongst man and beast alike. It draws on a symbiotic relationship with the environment that tests the faith of pagan and Christian alike. It is brutal, but somehow not gratuitous. That's how man treated man; women were little better than breeding chattels and children were even further down the food chain. Robert Eggers has put much more meat on the bones than almost any similar depiction from this hugely rich and enthralling vein of mythology that mixes fact, fiction, fantasy, mysticism and fear very well. It's 2¼ of well paced adventure that looks stunning on a big screen and is well worth a watch there before it loses much of it's grand scale potency on a telly.
It took me a little while to get into it, but by its conclusion <em>'The Northman'</em> had fully entertained me. Great film!
First and foremost, I'm delighted that I did indeed enjoy this film as my only previous experience of director Robert Eggers was the - in my opinion, and apparently my opinion only! - severely unsatisfying <em>'<a href="https://letterboxd.com/film/the-lighthouse-2019/" rel="nofollow">The Lighthouse</a>'</em>. It's unmistakable that this 2022 flick is made by the same person, but happily the outcome is far greater.
The cast are top notch. Alexander Skarsgård and Anya Taylor-Joy are the two standouts, the latter of which is doing big things lately; she is excellent in the most recent season of television show <em>'Peaky Blinders'</em>, fwiw. Claes Bang, Ethan Hawke and Nicole Kidman are all very good. Willem Dafoe too, naturally.
The story is super absorbing, even early on when I was a tad unsure I was still very invested in what was happening onscreen. The dialogue is a big reason for that, as is the thumping score. At times it can feel like it might become too talky and full of itself in regards to its own mythology and all that, though thankfully it never strays into those realms. It also delivers plenty of action, alongside some good ol' violence as well - the ending is quality in that regard, among other reasons too.
Go watch!
Chris Sawin
April 30, 2022
8
_The Northman_ is a bloody and ferocious battle cry of a revenge film. The action is brutal and the performances are extraordinary. This is Robert Eggers at his most savage and masterful.
Full review: https://boundingintocomics.com/2022/04/25/the-northman-review-a-gory-viking-epic-forged-in-boisterous-greatness/
I was expecting more from this movie, but it turned out to be a big disappointment.
First of all Vikings in this movie were represented more like an animals, acting like a rabid animals rather than humans and Vikings we have seen in popular TV shows, but the reason why I'm giving such a low score to this movie is simple - boredom.
Character development was poor. I didn't care for any of them. Story was a typical vengeance story, nothing special or unique and the movie itself was very slow, lacking action and I almost fell a sleep. At first it seemed a realistic movie, but then they started putting supernatural things, so it wasn't realistic, but wasn't a typical unrealistic movie (like Marvel and DC) either. It was just a poor attempt of mixed jumble. It's sad to see such a great actors wasted in this boring movie, but even they couldn't save it if script was so poorly written and executed.
It's was a terrible movie
Visually arresting with great sound design and respectable production design has its moments (many downright bizarre), the film also features good performances from Alexander Skarsgard and Anya Taylor-Joy, however I wasn't fully immersed with the story but that has more to do with having little interest in Viking-centric stories. That said, it's worth one watch at least. **3.0/5**
**Full analysis at Spotamovie.com** - **Intro** - The Northman is one of the best movies of 2022. It’s a masterpiece of photography and cinematography. And probably it’s the closest film about the Vikings era and culture. Is it perfect? Almost. But we will tell you more in our analysis. - **The Story** - In the North Atlantic of the 895 a.d., a story of betrayals and revenge happened. The protagonist is a little prince, Amleth, who will live his existence in the shadow of vengeance. His life's goal is to fulfil his desire to take back what someone else stole from him: a father, a mother and a kingdom. But, unfortunately, pain and revenge can transform a boy into a brutal wolve. Therefore, Amleth begins his journey, guided by Odin, because justice is what moves our God's desires. But what happened to Amleth? Where is this journey lead him? And what are we going to take back with us after this incredible adventure? - **FULL ANALYSIS AT https://www.spotamovie.com/the-northman-review-and-explanation-movie-2022/**
One of the worst movies I've ever seen this year. A pretty dumb story that full of random illogical moments and nothing more.
Even though the story is very bare bones, Robert Eggers brings in fantastic visuals with great details that it is still a joy to watch. There are so many interesting shots that leave the viewer questioning what reality is. Although that can lead to a bit of confusion, I was still able to keep up with the ideas presented. The acting in this film was amazing all around. I really enjoyed Nicole Kidman and Alexander Skarsgård performances. The romantic relationship between Alexander Skarsgård and Anya Taylor-Joy did feel a little half baked and underdeveloped though. The action in this movie is few and far between, but when it does peak its head out it in brutal and visceral leaving audiences gasping at the bloody details and gore. The action was done really well, with not many cuts and incredible choreography. Overall, this film was really great and I wish I would have watched it in the theaters.
**Score:** _87%_
**Verdict:** _Excellent_
The Movie Mob
August 19, 2022
3
**So so so so bad. Spare yourself.**
“I feel like I’m taking crazy pills!” I keep reading all these reviews that claim this movie is gruesomely violent, action-packed, and well-paced. Did we see the same movie? This movie was the furthest from those three things! The Northam is dreadfully slow, with hardly anything happening, and when the few action scenes did happen, they were very poorly done! The only cool part was him catching and throwing back the spear, and I saw that in the trailer. I will say that the visuals and atmosphere of the movie were super well done, but that was it. Do not waste your time!
