The Northman

 

The Northman

I did not realize Vikings had such bright and shiny teeth, but that underscores my lack of Nordic culture. This film is one of the most brutal and gory movies I have seen in some time. The movie has elements of Norse lore, Shakespearean and Greek tragedy. The plot is simple; Prince Amleth seeks revenge for the murder of his father by his uncle. The story is about the quest for this revenge. Fantasy is in the mix with dead Vikings coming to life with dead eyes and a magical sword that can only be drawn at night. Unless you are a Norse scholar you should brush up on your Viking history. An outstanding feature of the movie is the breathtaking scenery. The story is supposed to be in Iceland but most of the filming was shot in Northern Ireland.

A very buffed Alexander Skarsgard (a.k.a Tarzan) plays Prince Amleth. He is a brooding killing machine, which he does well. William Defoe is Heimer the Fool barely recognizable under his hair; his screen time is brief. Nicole Kidman is the queen and Amleth’s mother. Her character does provide a pivotable twist in the movie. Anya Taylor-Joy (a.k.a The Queen’s Gambit) is Olga the Slavic slave girl who becomes Amleth’s wife. Ethan Hawk is King Aurvandill War-Ravin Amleth’s father; again too much hair and hard to recognize.

The film received a Rotten Tomatoes score of 89. The production cost was about $90m but the worldwide box office was only  $53m; it needed to make $200m to breakeven. For the target male audience, Thor is easier to digest.

Tarzan

Tarzan

As a boy I was a Tarzan fan. My Tarzan was Johnny Weissmuller. He was German American and a five-time Olympic gold medal winner in swimming. He was not great actor, but the shows were action packed. Swinging from vines, riding elephants using his famous jungle call (which he patented). The focus of the films was action sprinkled with accidental acting.

This action flick this film was slow to get going. There was plot set up, convincing Tarzan to return to Africa, flash backs explaining the back story (done well). It dragged on a bit, but the pace quickened later on with human and non-human battles.

The 2016 Tarzan is a blond Swedish actor named is Alexander Skarsgard (before acting he was a model-dah). He is an obvious departure from traditional Tarzans but it does not detract from the action. His acting a bit stiff, but what he lacks in nuance he makes up in physicality. It took an hour and sixteen minutes before he took his shirt off. The guy is ripped. I stopped counting abs at twelve. He fights apes (not too well), natives and evil white men. He looks great on the vines.

 Margot Robbie is Jane. She is bubbly. Even in dire situation she remains rosy.  Whatever happens she knows Tarzan will come for her. This is a theme of the film, Tarzan’s devotion to Jane. There are geopolitical crises afoot and Jane is used as the bait.

Christoph Waltz is the villain who is in the service of King Leopold of Belgium. The plot is to enslave the Congolese natives and plunger their diamonds. Waltz is an admired actor but when he plays the bad guy with Natizi characteristics, you just want to punch him in the nose. He gives a solid performance absent repartee. This made his performance dower. Some levity would have been most welcomed.

Samuel L Jackson is an American named George Washington Williams who accompanies Tarzan back to Africa. Jackson does not even try to use of 19^th century speech cadence. He is still talks like the man on the plane with does M….F…. snakes. His performance grows on you as he tries to keep up with Tarzan. In part It becomes a buddy movie.

Poor Dijmon Hounsou, someone had to go native and he pulled the short straw. He plays the chief of fierce tribe and is Tarzan’s mortal enemy. His fierceness is compromised by wearing a little leopard skin skull cap and mittens with claws. He is intimidating any disguise, but the mittens kill it.

A problem of the movie is actors seem to be on different planes. Skarsgard is too serious, Robbie is too bubbly, Jackson seems to be playing in another movie and Waltz is graven. For movie to coalesce there needs to be some acting consistency.

For $180m production cost I think more action was expected. With some of the disappointing cinematic fair out there this is not the worst movie you can see. Just calibrate your expectations

Spoiler Alert- No loincloths are worn. Anyway who wants to see Samuel L Jackson in a loincloth.