The Northman

The Witch remains my favourite, but I definitely enjoyed The Northman more than the overrated The Lighthouse. In the first half, I believed I would give it a full rating. It’s harsh, stylish and in the raid on the village scene, Alexander Skarsgård is a true “animal”. What I enjoyed the most were the shamanic rituals and the mythical scenes, balancing between hallucination/dream and the supernatural. But in the end, I have to deduct a point for something Eggers tried for the first time in this film, which didn’t convince me much: normal, positive human emotions; love, to be more specific. The Witch and The Lighthouse didn’t have anything positive, but here there’s a rather important story arc (between Skarsgård and Taylor-Joy) built on love, and, in my opinion, it doesn’t work at all. So much so, in fact, that until the last moment I was convinced that the infatuation on one side or the other (or both sides) was just a ruse that would result in some evil twist. (14/04/2022)

After experiencing The Lighthouse, I was quite worried about The Northman, suspecting Eggers of casting Kidman as a poster attraction, so that the widest possible base, which is not indifferent to her name, would be interested in the film... But everything is different in the end. It's as if I'd forgotten that Kidman has, quite by default, worked with notable directors before, from Kubrick to von Trier. Additionally, for viewers of the Vikings series, The Northman can be a nice tie-in to the broader theme. There is no reason to be afraid or prejudiced; on the contrary, it is advisable to enjoy The Northman on the big screen and let yourself be carried away by Icelandic nature, just like Sjöström once did. (17/05/2022)

Fortunately, the big-studio system hasn't ground Robert Eggers down; despite the higher budget he has remained his own, uninhibited and original, although I think that of his three films so far this one is probably the least interesting. The narrative is not exactly flawless, especially in the middle part the story drags a lot, as if it doesn't know which way to go, but thank Odin it catches its breath again with the bloody climax and the final fight is an atmospheric blast. You will also enjoy the unusual insights into the life of the Old Norse, their customs and shamanic practices. The manly Skarsgård impresses with his animalism and muscularity, so his traditional puppy dog look doesn't matter. Nicole Kidman, on the other hand, is a horrible sight when the camera filter isn't mercifully working on her; facial liposuction is evil. Ageing also demands grace. (02/06/2022)

Eggers’s take on Hamlet conceived as Conan the Barbarian with a bit of Norse mythology thrown in. This also describes the reason that The Northman is fascinating and why, at the same time, it doesn’t achieve the aura of revelation like the director’s previous two films. Whereas The Witch and The Lighthouse were supremely distinctive and original works, The Northman remains a variation on a familiar story. Therefore, viewers may be less absorbed in the narrative and less impressed by the wow effect that they would get from watching something essentially new and more aware of the finesse of execution and adaptive shifts. On the other hand, Eggers’s formalistic signature – from the well-thought-out long shots to the expressive design – is awe-inspiring in and of itself. The film also successfully evokes intense physical experiences by drawing viewers into a world of pagan mythology and merciless brutality. Eggers has stripped Hamlet of its Shakespearean literal insight into the protagonist, but that doesn’t mean that he has dispensed with its tragic or even topical elements. The fatal flaw of his Prince Amleth does not consist in the character’s indecision or any other character trait. Eggers bases his narrative on the contrast between personal will and supposed predestination, which he reveals as an extended arm of the patriarchy as a system of hereditary egocentrism built on self-destructive ideals of masculinity. These are motifs that Eggers had already explored in his previous films, though it is necessary to recognise that he depicted them there in more dreadful and disturbing outlines. (17/04/2022)

I was a little wary of The Northman. I found Robert Eggers's previous films interesting rather than really good, and I was worried that in the case of his new film, the trailers might lie and that the result would be torn between an attempt at epic Viking carnage and a not entirely accessible auteur style. But my worries were unwarranted. Eggers has kept himself very much in check as an artist and auteur in an unexpected way, and The Northman is a very audience-friendly film. There's not much room for any interpretations of images, dialogue or anything else; it's much more about the Viking carnage, which is quite simple at its core, and its creator is aware of that. If you accept the fact that Eggers simply wanted to revive a legend of betrayal and revenge, and more than anything else he was interested in showing the cruel world of the Vikings on screen and having a good time audiovisually, you'll be satisfied. Or maybe you'll be thrilled like me. Musically, it's a treat, the one-shot scenes of the attack of the town, with dozens of people dying and blood spurting, made my jaw drop to the floor, because it must have been a mad dash to think this up and organise it to work. But the result is worth it. There's nothing to fault the actors either, and the fantasy elements are inserted into the plot in a non-violent way and fit in perfectly naturally in a wild world full of strange rituals. I really enjoyed the two and a quarter hours. However, I can imagine that fans of The Lighthouse will be a little upset by this actually unexpectedly audience-friendly film. Personally, though, I haven't seen anything better than The Northman so far this year. (12/04/2022)