Solomon Kane

Put together Van Helsing's grade-A movie budget with Solomon’s courage to cut little boys’ throats, and everyone is happy. Anyway, although this movie is amusing enough, it comes across as a farce with all its aspects borrowed from other movies. Purefoy’s performance is alright. (12/07/2010)

If it weren't for the fact that the (very good) Klaus Badelt is unfortunately not the legendary Basil Poledouris, Solomon Kane would be comparable in all respects to Conan the Barbarian. I don't know about anyone else, but I just saw a stunningly honest classic fantasy that had an incredibly impressive, dirty medieval atmosphere (skillful direction, beautiful and terrifying cinematography, the aforementioned music), a main Hero with a capital H, and quite a gritty and good (and an almost fairy tale) story of repentance. I had a very good time and I dare say I will never forget many of the scenes (the opening, the church, the crucifixion, etc.). So I give it a strong four stars (which under normal circumstances - i.e., without Poledouris - Conan would probably get) and I'm happy as hell to round it up.__P.S. Only the final digital crap could have been a little less reminiscent of the Balrog. (02/04/2011)

Total satisfaction. This is what every Howard fantasy movie was supposed to look like. Bassett made a movie on a small budget that can proudly stand side by side with, say, The Lord of the Rings. The story is straightforward, but it pleasantly surprises several times, mainly through how realistic it feels at times (like in the short stories). And James Purefoy? Awesome. I don't think they could have picked a better Solomon Kane. He manages to transform himself from an evil bastard into a more moderate evil bastard who wants to snatch his soul from Satan's clutches. The action scenes, full of blood and mud, are admirable. Just superb. The whole thing is colored by Badelt’s wonderful score. Hopefully one day we'll see a sequel. If you save our child, your soul, too, will be saved. (22/05/2010)

A very sympathetic "dirty fantasy", which falters due to the lousy choreography of the fights (they are disgustingly clumsy and mechanical) and especially to the lack of exaggeration, which was included in Conan the Barbarian, a film similar to Solomon Kane. Solomon Kane is essentially a variation of the tale of the tamed savage, despite the fact that instead of an erotic sparkle the film bears the white sheet of Catholic chastity and somewhat unappealing evocations of God's justice. Fortunately, Purefoy clearly enjoys the depravity, and Max von Sydow's face amounts to an experience in and of itself. By including a quality expedition to Czech meadows and groves, solid music and aspiring effects, Solomon Kane is a welcome alternative to raging fantasy dementia for immature children. Instead of hairy creatures, there is a rotting stench permeating the film, and here and there a head rolls down the stairs. Meat, blood and "proud toughness" are missing from modern fantasy films. However, Solomon Kane could and should have been a bit more agile. [65%] (17/06/2010)

By the time I finished watching Solomon Kane, I was practically convinced that the director Basset must be the same guy who made Frontier(s). Exactly the right set of effectively (and well) composed shots that ultimately don't hold together very well. Most of the scenes are at least a minute longer than they should be and the fights, for example, look pretty amateurish. There was also a fair amount of digital effects sporadically, but I forgive the heavily criticized final monster because it was really cute in its Heroes of Might and Magic style. Likewise the creatures in the mirrors at the beginning (although it was a mega-useless scene). I wrestled with the backdrops that were just backdrops, but I think the main character was what pissed me off the most. I mean, the introduction to the character at the beginning was awesome, and I loved the cynical guy. Why he then had to turn into a whiny sock puppet during the course of the film, who I wanted to slap from time to time and yell at him to man up and go do something, is a mystery to me, because I don't imagine the target audience wanted that. But on the plus side: it's finally a fantasy, a FANTASY! Not a medieval fantasy with fantasy elements, an ancient loosely interpreted legend, or a comic book adaptation – it's fantasy. All the witches, spells, monsters, and the like are not dispensed with God knows what kind of wit, and I enjoyed it. In its light artlessness it made me feel like it was really being made by fans and not producers, and I loved the spectacular props like the bloody throne, the inquisitor masks, and Jason Flemyng as the heavily styled bad guy. It's fun and I'm glad they make movies like this, but if only Snyder.... (29/09/2011)