Avenge father. Save mother. Kill Fjölnir. Robert Eggers’ The Northman is a stunning tale of betrayal and obsessive revenge. With excellent worldbuilding and a strong feeling of magic saturating every frame, it’s one of the most transporting, otherworldly, and action-soaked films in some time. Once again, Eggers delivers a can’t-miss cinematic outing.
Alexander Skarsgård plays Viking prince Amleth, an exiled warrior whose father King Aurvandill War-Raven (Ethan Hawke) is killed by his own brother Fjölnir (Claes Bang). Amleth’s harrowing escape and subsequent journey take him on a bloody path of vengeance, where he also meets and falls for the charismatic and mysterious Olga of the Birch Forest (Anya Taylor-Joy), a captured sorceress who will become important in Amleth’s future.
The Northman feels properly mythical from frame one onwards. Eggers is well known for The Witch and The Lighthouse, two stylistically distinct horror films characterized by (among other things) deep historical accuracy and a feeling that something larger than life is happening just beyond the frame. While The Northman is an unusual genre jump for Eggers, it fits right in here in a tale that really feels rich and, at times, otherworldly.
Skarsgård is an imposing figure here, a tank of a warrior driven by one thought only. It’s a powerful and nuanced performance, with both complexity and animalistic fury that really lands the narrative. Anya Taylor-Joy’s Olga is fearsome, multifaceted, and mysterious, while Nicole Kidman excels as Amleth’s mother, Queen Gudrún. Certain players are present in the film only sparingly (like Ethan Hawke and Willem Dafoe), but each brings a top-tier performance for a flawlessly performed film across the board.
It’s also a gorgeously shot film, with Jarin Blaschke really capturing the stunning landscapes and mythical happenings of the narrative. One interesting element, however, is that while the film does have considerable action and scale, it’s more contained, personal, and up-close than one might expect. There are stunning battles and beautiful set pieces, sure, but at its heart it’s a story of one man and his very personal drive for vengeance. Up close and personal is exactly how it’s told, with shots that ground every scene in the film’s characters and their perspectives.
It’s a stunning cinematic accomplishment in general, although at times you can really feel its 2 hour, 16 minute runtime. The choice to tell the story in such a close and personal manner certainly aids the development of the feeling that magic is boiling beneath the surface, adding considerable subjectivity and mystery. At the same time it’s a double edged sword, and at times it makes the film’s world feel small with diminished perceived danger once the action moves to Fjölnir’s village.
Nonetheless, The Northman is a beautifully told story of a young boy who loses his entire world and grows up to be a man hell bent on revenge. It’s loaded with magic and primal energy, beautiful cinematography, powerful performances, and mystique. If one of the major attributes of film as an art form is its ability to transport audiences into worlds and experiences they wouldn’t otherwise get access to, this is a film that really meets that challenge head on to show what film as a medium can do. It’s a stunner, don’t miss it.
The Northman premieres April 22nd.
