The Northman – Brutally Savage
Director: Robert Eggers
Writer: Robert Eggers, Sjon (Screenplay)
Starring: Alexander Skarsgard, Nicole Kidman, Claes Bang, Ethan Hawke, Anya Taylor-Joy, Gustav Lindh, Willem Dafoe, Elliott Rose
Plot: From visionary director Robert Eggers comes The Northman, an action-filled epic that follows a young Viking prince on his quest to avenge his father’s murder.
Tagline – Conquer Your Fate
Runtime: 2 Hours 16 Minutes
There may be spoilers in the rest of the review
Story: The Northman starts when a young Viking prince Amleth starts learning the way of Vikings from his father King Aurvandil War-Raven (Hawke) before he is betrayed by his brother Fjolnir the Brotherless (Bang), escaping, swearing revenge and to save his mother Queen Gudrun (Kidman).
Years later Amleth (Skarsgard) has become a fierce warrior, joining destruction of villages, before he finally learns about Fjolnir, setting him on his fight to revenge to complete his fate.
Thoughts on The Northman
Characters & Performances – Amleth is a Viking prince that saw his father murdered and his future crown taken, escaping before they get their hands on him. Amleth becomes one of the warriors fighting for the Vikings destroying village, being one of the most savage in the army. He decides to leave the army after learning about the man who killed his father, sending him to the new kingdom where he can come face to face with the man, waiting for his chance. He is patient in his ways, waiting for the right chance to make this happen, being driven for this moment. Fjolnir the Brotherless is the man that turned on King Aurvandil, taking his crown and his wife, to make his own Queen. Fjolnir might not have got the reign he was expecting, but still ruling over people, not in the same light Amleth remember him as. Queen Gudrun is the mother of Amleth, taken to be Fjolnir queen after the murder of his husband, she is the motivation for Amleth’s journey, to save her from her captor. Olga of the Birch Forest is one of the women sent to be a slave that Amleth joins, she helps him see a better life, a life he never saw before.
The Northman has a fantastic cast, with Alexander Skarsgard bringing this Viking to life in a ferocious manner in combat, but a calming figure when he is planning. Claes Bang gives an amazing performance as a character that can be seen in many different lights. Anya Taylor-Joy continues to be a star you will watch in anything, reteaming with Robert Eggers for another great performance. The whole cast give us great performances, right down to the smallest roles within the film.
Story – The story in The Northman will follow a fallen Viking Prince that will wait for his chance to get revenge on the man who killed his father and took his mother, leaving him to learn the savage ways of the Vikings, as he searches for his opening against the man. In the core of this story, we do get a revenge thriller, with a son wanting to avenge his father’s death. When we look deeper with certain revelations within the story, we get a story that will make you think a lot more about who could be in the right. The story will show just how barbaric the Vikings were, never holding back on the brutal, savage attacks they did on villages.
Themes – The Northman is a violent action adventure that will dive into the mythology in the Nordic Viking behavior. The action is brutal, using a single pan shot to follow the action when it comes to attacks on villages. The locations used are beautiful and breath taking, with different weather figures into different moments in the film. When the film will dive into the fantasy special effects, we are thrown into nightmare like situations, which will make you want to watch, even if they are filled with the biggest horror moments.
Final Thoughts – The Northman is one of the most brutal movies you will see this year.
