Rating: ** (max. ****)
Poorly paced Viking epic about Mitchell, who comes to protect the wife of a dead king from an usurper, unaware that she has reason to exact vengeance on him. Storyline is unusually complex but going-ons seem stretched out unnecessarily. Some consider this a western - well, if it wasn't for that setting they may be right. Score, photography, acting is quite nice, but, to reiterate, sluggish story-telling diminishes the effect. For Bava completists. Stick with OPERAZIONE PAURA, LISA E IL DIAVOLO, CANI ARRABBIATI or CINQUE BAMBOLE...
Afterword:
In the liner notes, Bava historian Tim Lucas considers this film "the genre's last hurrah" and sees it as a "distinct forerunner of the sword and sorcery genre". A "hurrah" it ain't, and Schwarzenegger's CONAN was inspired by HERCULES (Bava was involved!). For more Bava reviews, please visit my homepage.
Poorly paced Viking epic about Mitchell, who comes to protect the wife of a dead king from an usurper, unaware that she has reason to exact vengeance on him. Storyline is unusually complex but going-ons seem stretched out unnecessarily. Some consider this a western - well, if it wasn't for that setting they may be right. Score, photography, acting is quite nice, but, to reiterate, sluggish story-telling diminishes the effect. For Bava completists. Stick with OPERAZIONE PAURA, LISA E IL DIAVOLO, CANI ARRABBIATI or CINQUE BAMBOLE...
Afterword:
In the liner notes, Bava historian Tim Lucas considers this film "the genre's last hurrah" and sees it as a "distinct forerunner of the sword and sorcery genre". A "hurrah" it ain't, and Schwarzenegger's CONAN was inspired by HERCULES (Bava was involved!). For more Bava reviews, please visit my homepage.