A friend suggested we ‘witness the rise of the Northman’ in cinemas together. Yeah, right; I was planning to watch it at home, later in the year, where I could hide under the doona covers during more confronting moments, like the ones populated within Eggers’ other movies, The Witch and The Lighthouse 🙋♂️ biggest wuss of the 21st century. But Robert Eggers is one of the most intriguing up-and-coming writer/directors out there after all, and so I owe it to both of us to value his work on the big screen. Good call, friend.
Young Norse Prince Amleth (Oscar Novak, who becomes Alexander Skarsgård) is overjoyed to welcome his father home from glorious battle. But King Aurvandill (Ethan Hawke) has suffered wounds, elevating his concerns in making sure Amleth is mature enough to assume the throne when the time comes for him to lead. Then a coo, orchestrated by Aurvandill’s brother Fjolnir (Claes Bang), sees the King murdered, and forces Prince Amleth to flee from his homelands under the promise of certain death if he stays. As an adult, Amleth finds himself a new life, but his duty, and fate, revolving around avenging his father and rescuing his mother, Queen Gudrun (Nicole Kidman), cannot be forgotten.
Quite clearly, this a very recognisable parable of fate, avenging the fallen King, and embracing ones duty in manhood, seen in many famous places, and borrowing themes from The Lion King, and by extension Hamlet, King Arthur, The Count of Monty Cristo, Dune, The Hobbit etc. The first twenty minutes of this movie actually play so closely to The Lion King that all it’s missing is Timon and Pumbaa singing ‘Hakuna Matata’. This version of the story just happens to be set in Viking mythology, and not unlike The Revenant, it’s the production value, performances, and direction, that all combine to create an elevated production. Considering Eggers’ previous two movies have barely a cast member in sight (The Lighthouse has primarily two, and The Witch, around five), it’s obvious from the very beginning, that the budget has risen, along with the scale of the project, and Eggers proves himself very much up to the challenge. But personally, I couldn’t get past the lack of originality I perceived in the narrative – I voiced by concerns to my friend after the movie, and he wondered if Eggers had taken on a studio film; but Eggers is credited as writer, so this is the story he wanted to tell. I kept anticipating the movie would spread its wings, to deviate from the same rote familiarity; the closest it comes, is when Queen Gudrun turns out to have been in on the assassination plot all along, calling out Amleth’s fated rage as fantasy – but then she snogs her own son, so she’s as trustworthy as a serpent. I remember movies like Wonder Woman exploring ideas of fate, but adding in a little something extra, like, you still have to fight really hard to turn your desires into reality; the only tough decision we really see Amleth make, is to leave his new love Olga (Anya-Taylor Joy) on the boat, and accept he may die, committing to his original plan. Even as he escapes the clutches of death earlier on, as a flock of ravens peck through his roped restraints, I wondered if The Northman was hurt in my mind by The Tragedy of Macbeth coming out less than half a year ago, with similarly fateful witches and ravens, excelling in the depraved Joel Coen landscape – usually I’d lap up the spiritual and mystical elements of a movie, but I found myself enjoying the practical planning in The Northman more, regarding how Amleth and Olga would take their revenge. Because, taking on the tyrant, and avenging the benevolent King, by means of readying the body and mind with appropriate skills and accessories, like an honoured sword, is a time-honoured tale, and I’ve seen Dr. Jordan Peterson break down the deep-seeded extractions using The Lion King, which is over two hours long on YouTube, explaining why these themes resonate so strongly in humanity. And after watching that, it isn’t hard to see how all these stories are the same, reaching for the same intangible meaning. I liked how I saw that, at the first sound of Willem Dafoe’s jester, the Uncle cannot tolerate the mockery, whereas the King views Heimir the Fool’s jabs in good faith – a lesson, as Dr. Peterson says, in humility, and a self-depreciative awareness necessary in civil leadership. So yes, whilst I might’ve been personally disappointed not to find much originality in The Northman, I can still value the production, without being overly enthused by its content.
Hollywood is hard-pressed to find a role Willem Dafoe won’t do. But we love Dafoe, so keep it up – I would have him in every movie if I was omnipotent. I felt a little sorry for Nicole Kidman, though – coming off her Academy Award nomination for her highly skilled and concentrated performance in Being the Ricardos, this is a simple role, despite one, maybe two, meaty scenes; they can’t all be winners, I suppose, and sometimes you’ve got to take the work that’s on offer, I imagine, and I bet she jumped at the chance to be in an Eggers film. But Alexander Skarsgård is the real hero here – when I saw him in The Legend of Tarzan he was jacked, but he’s bulked up even further for The Northman, to look absolutely like a bear. I believe Skarsgård is very versatile, and must be praised for this movie, holding our attention in a relatively silent and scowling lead performance. (Just a funny little note: Nicole Kidman and Alexander Skarsgård played a married couple in the TV show Big Little Lies, where they are mother and son here 😮). I mustn’t leave out Anya-Taylor Joy, who continues to be a very talented actress; but I’d put money on that being a butt-double when she gets into the hot springs near the end – remember Atomic Blonde? Remember how the masked woman beats up all those stuntmen before pulling down her mask to reveal it’s actually Charlize Theron? They hide Olga’s face pretty well when she’s macking on with Amleth in the springs, that’s all I’m saying. Anyway, I must mention Ethan Hawke too – with his voice at a low-tone, and his muscle mass, he completely transforms into this believable King; he’s another versatile actor I admire, who embraces every challenge thrown at him. Claes Bang is also very good – I found it funny that his character, Fjonir, killed his own brother for the kingdom, and then lost it, to become a recluse farmer; what incompetence.
With The Northman, also expect a lot of grunting and virgin sacrifice; I know some may think it terrible that our religious customs are dying out in the modern age, as society becomes more secular, but I can’t help but feel that these folk could have benefitted from a little Netflix at night, just for additional entertainment. The virgins have it the roughest – warding off evil spirits? Kill a virgin. Holding a funeral? Kill a virgin. If you were a young woman of the North, you’d be trying to have as much lewd sex in public as possible! Dampen down that purity before someone needs an escort to the afterlife. But putting my comedy routine aside 🎤 I’ll reiterate; my personal evaluation of this movie must take into account the undeniable quality of production, against the lack of originality I perceive in retelling a tale as old as time. The Northman is glorious, and might be all you need when it comes to referencing this common story in the future. My rating might be insulting, and I predict I’ll soften, but this is how I feel today.
3.5
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