‘The Northman’
he Northman”( **** OUT OF **** ), an unforgettable, R-rated, blood, sweat, & tears Viking revenge tale set in10th century Iceland, weaves threads of “Conan the Barbarian” (1982), “Gladiator” (2000), and William Shakespeare's “Hamlet” into its nihilistic narrative. Scholars say the Bard based “Hamlet” on the same fabled Scandinavian saga that served as the basis for “The Northman!” Writer & director Robert Eggers, who helmed “The Witch” (2015) and “The Lighthouse” (2019), and prolific Icelandic author Sigurjon B. Sigurdsson, aka Sjón of “Lamb,” collaborated on the screenplay. They've penned a bittersweet but heroic yarn about an exiled prince's quest for vengeance after he saw his treacherous uncle, Fjölnir (Claes Bang of “Dracula”), slay his sire! Indeed, no sooner had his badly wounded father, King Aurvandil (Ethan Hawke of “Training Day”), ridden home from war than he prepared his stripling son, Amleth (Oscar Novak of “The Batman”), to inherit his empire. Having seen his father's homicidal demise, Amleth vows to avenge him. Making matters worse, Fjölnir weds our hero's mother! Predictably, our juvenile hero decamps after his infamous uncle howls for his head on a pike. After eluding his uncle's army, Amleth joins a marauding band of berserkers. Ultimately, the grown-up Amleth
(Alexander Skarsgård of “Straw Dogs”) bides his time for the right moment to exact sweet retribution. Lensed in both Iceland and Ireland, “The Northman” looks as authentic as its austere scenery. Egger's cinematographer, Jarin Blaschke, who photographed “The Witch,” adopted single-source lighting to generate not only its ominous atmosphere but also to enhance its illusion of realism.
Based on its blood and gore content, “The Northman” easily qualifies as a savage saga. Fate and circumstance drive these troubled warriors and their women to a tragic but inevitable showdown. Nevertheless, Egger's film pales by comparison on the sadism scale with “The Viking Sagas” (1997) and “The Long Ships” (1964). Tenth century life was no picnic. The Vikings ran amuck during the Middle Ages between 793 and 1066 AD. These Norsemen conducted harrowing raids with murderous pugnacity. When a defeated Viking king embarked on his ‘Fatal Walk' in “The Viking Sagas,” he attached one end of his intestines to a shrine to the Norse god Odin and circled that monument until he could walk no farther! Mind you, the ‘Fatal Walk' was not a contrivance of a coked-up Hollywood scenarist. This example of torture allowed the victim more dignity in death than the rib-shattering blood eagle torture. “The Northman” doesn't bristle with exotic instruments of torture, such as the Mare of Steel in “The Long Ships.” A gargantuan sword shaped like a scimitar standing several stories tall occupied a quadrangle within the gated walls of a city. Prisoners straddled this humongous blade with its razor-sharp edge and rode it into eternity! Most Viking movies emphasize extreme barbarism. Weapons were forged by hand from steel as were armored suits of chainmail. Adversaries wielded a wide array of cutlery, ranging from daggers, knives, hatchets, swords, and spears to bows & arrows, etc. You'll be appalled by all the limbs, legs, hands, and heads hacked off. If the villain's head doesn't fly in the finale, the film doesn't have a quintessential Viking ending. Moderately gory adequately describes the intensity of violence in Egger's opus.
Altogether, “The Northman” is worth watching several times if you crave all things Viking! The depth and nuance of the narrative make it compelling, and Eggers never lets the momentum slacken in this sober spectacle. The most popular revenge movies describe revenge as ‘a dish best eaten cold.' These include “Death Rides A Horse” (1967), “Get Carter” (British-1971), “Lady Snowblood” (Japanese-1973),
“The Outlaw Josey Wales” (1976), “Payback” (1999), “Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (2003),” “Oldboy” (South Korean-2003), “Hard Candy” (2005), and John Wick” (2014). Meantime, “The Northman” aligns itself with another kind of revenge movie, similar to the James Bond caper “For Your Eyes Only” (1981). Bond quoted Confucius when he warned a hellbent heroine, “Before setting off on revenge, you first dig two graves!” Basically, Amleth triumphs over adversity despite incredible obstacles because he wants Fjölnir to suffer. Everything Amleth does, including allying himself with a self-professed witch, Olga (Anya Taylor-joy of “The New Mutants”), is aimed at rescuing his mom, Queen Gudrún (Nicole Kidman of “Being the Ricardos”), from a blasphemous marriage to Fjölnir and then slaying his entire family.
“The Northman” features one of Alexander Skarsgård's finest performances, and his most notable since “The Legend of Tarzan” (2016). He must have endured a terrible regimen to acquire his sinewy physique. Ethan Hawke doesn't garner much screen time, but he makes a lasting impression as a Viking living on borrowed time. Confined to the periphery as Heimir The Fool, a sacrilegious jester, actor Willem Defoe steals every scene he has. Watching “The Northman” with its slashing violence and solid storytelling is like tripping back into the past when swordplay settled most disputes while raging volcanoes rumbled on the horizon.