Robert Eggers
Sjón, Robert Eggers
Stars: Alexander Skarsgård, Nicole Kidman, Claes Bang, Ethan Hawke, Anya Taylor-Joy
‘The Northman’ is Robert Eggers biggest and most expensive feature to date, it is also his visually best so far. It’s a peek into Eggers instincts as a choreographer, director and storyteller not only of historical detail but of bloody action. Co-written by Eggers and Icelandic poet Sjón (who also recently co-wrote A24’s Icelandic creature feature Lamb), it’s a story about the revenge of a prince upon the uncle who murdered his father and wed his mother. ‘The Northman’ is basically ‘Hamlet‘, or at least both were derived from the same source material.
For anyone who has seen The Witch or The Lighthouse, it will be evident that The Northman comes from the same director, the movie is dark, twisted, and embodied in the supernatural. King Aurvandill (Ethan Hawke) is slain by his brother Fjölnir (Claes Bang), who in turn takes the deceased ruler’s throne and Queen Gudrún (Nicole Kidman) for his own. Before hes tragically slayed, King Aurvandill names his young son Amleth (Oscar Novak) as his successor, making him an immediate next target for his uncle’s blade. Narrowly evading capture, Amleth rows a wooden boat over the choppy waters of coastal Ireland, tearfully chanting his new life’s mission: “I will avenge you, father. I will save you, mother. I will kill you, Fjölnir.” A chant that will become hypnotic with it’s viewers, it certainly did with me.
Credit: Aidan Monaghan / © 2022 Focus Features, LLC
Years later, Amleth (Alexander Skarsgård) has become a ruthless warrior among a clan of Vikings, pillaging a series of villages in a fury. After one of his tribe’s successful conquests, he hears the name of his father’s murderer for the first time since the day his kingdom fell. The fire of his fury newly awoken, Amleth disguises himself as a slave bound for Fjölnir’s Icelandic residence, meeting Olga (Anya Taylor-Joy) on the treacherous boatride across the Atlantic. When he arrives in the land of black sand beaches and bubbling hot springs, Amleth slowly plans his revenge.
Credit: Aidan Monaghan / © 2022 Focus Features, LLC
One of the strengths of this movie is that it plays out as expected without ever being predictable. It’s a bold picture, that doesn’t self-censor when it comes to blood, gore and nudity. Still, a lot of the most gruesome moments in the movie are hinted at more than shown, leaving viewers to use a bit of their own imagination. While the story is quite simple, Eggers makes up for it by keeping the whole movie experience visually interesting.
Alexander Skarsgard is transformed into a muscular beast, quite unlike any previous versions of Hamlet we’ve seen. He pulls off his portrayal as a Viking and a hero, blinded by his need for vengeance. Anya Taylor-Joy for me was underused I believe in this film, she’s such an incredible talent and while she played the loyal Olga well, I felt she could have been a more crucial part of the story. The romance between Skarsgard and Taylor-Joy, from an old-school movie-lover’s point of view, didn’t really build, and when Amleth departs to finally avenge his father, he didn’t really seem to care he was leaving the love of his life behind. At the same time maybe this was the animalistic nature of the 900’s?
Credit: Aidan Monaghan / © 2022 Focus Features, LLC
‘The Northman’ is the type of cinema that we get too little of today, often a director’s visions are diluted by box office tropes, but ‘The Northman’ allows Robert Eggers to truly display his craft. “The Northman” is a movie, full of masterful imagery, heart thumping sound, and impressive performances, it’ll be hard to find another Viking epic that will be able to dethrone it.
The Northman is in cinemas now.