Directed by Michael J. Bassett
2009, 104 mins, Rated R
Re: Based on the comics and novels by the same man that created Conan is a bit more civilized. That is to say, he feels a little bad about killing things and as a general rule, is more concerned with the repercussions of doing so. After learning that Satan wants his soul for some reason, Solomon retreats to a monastery, but is quickly shown the door. So he wanders for a bit until hooking up with a family traveling to the New World. Or something. Really, the important part is that the girl gets kidnapped and Solomon has to start killing again to save her.
Outstanding: Though it parades around all doom and gloom in the posters, this movie does capture some of the pulpy sword and sorcery fun of the Howard stories and classic movies of the genre. The actors and actresses do a fine job and the director shows a fairly restrained hand when it comes to the battle scenes.
Unacceptable: The story is pretty muddled and has a few too many happy coincidences. And there are quite a few instances of the dreaded Digital Blood Spatter.
Summary: Surprisingly decent. Especially considering the fact that I went into it expecting to switch it off after ten minutes. It's a perfect addition to a marathon featuring swords, sorcery and damsels in distress.
3/5
Notes: This film was often unfairly compared to Van Helsing upon it's release, mostly due to the similar hats they characters wear. If only Van Helsing had been this good. Sigh.
Now Reading -
THE SENTRY by Robert Crais
Howard's Conan was a lot more than the monosyllabic brute of Conan the Destroyer, and indeed, he actually did show concern for his violent actions. In the very first story Howard wrote, Conan makes a point of trying not to kill a man who's trying to kill him, because he respects and admires the man so much. He only kills him when he has no choice (i.e. if he doesn't, he'll end up dead).
ReplyDeleteInteresting you mention the doom and gloom, since that's one of the factors that makes Howard stand apart from the Sword-and-Sorcery crowd. Of course, the comparisons to Van Helsing make a lot more sense when you take the fact that the costume designers for Van Helsing specifically took Kane's look in the 1999 Savage Tales of Solomon Kane as inspiration...
Thanks for visiting the blog, Taranaich! From the looks of yours, we have someone far better acquainted with the Howard universe.
ReplyDeleteI guess I should have specified that I was referring to the movies when I said Kane was more civilized. Though I still feel that Kane fits that mold better than Conan, regardless of the genre.
And while I do think Howard's stories have a share of atmospheric gloom and a great sense of dread, I think they're equally filled with old-school pulpy adventure fun. In a way, he was as much a ladies man as Bond and cool-headed thief as Parker.
I should say, however, that while I've read the Conan novels, it was decades ago, so my opinion of them may have mellowed over time.