Director: Marcus Nispel
Writers: Thomas Dean Donnelly, Joshua Oppenheimer
Here we have the 2011 remake of Conan the Barbarian. Now, I know alot of people out there despise remakes. Personally, I am not one of them. I often enjoy seeing new takes on older movies. Generally, the remakes do not live up to the original, but I think that's more of a nostalgic factor than anything else. Everything beloved from our childhood is always going to be "better" than a new version. Conan the Barbarian is a great example of this.
No matter what I say here, there are those that are going to hate this simply because it is a remake. I'm not saying this is the greatest movie of all time or anything close to that. But I did quite enjoy this movie. Does it live up to the original? Of course not. But I think Jason Momoa does a fantastic job here. He has great intensity and presence. I like the fact that this Conan isn't overly muscle bound.
I think most of the cast here is very good. I love Stephen Lang and I think he makes a great villian. I even enjoyed Rose McGowan, who I'm generally not a fan of. And, of course, Ron Perlman makes any movie better.
I really hate to call this a remake. It does recreate Conan's origin, but besides that, this flick is completely different. While the story elements are similar, the actual storyline is different. Which, to me, is much better as I can enjoy both this and the original without feeling like I'm watching the same movie.
There is some nudity in here, but not a whole lot. Which surprisingly enough, I think is good as to not seem exploitative. There's plenty of pretty faces and great visuals. The special effects I think are well done. I especially enjoyed the "sand people".
Overall, I think this is a good movie. No It's not going to replace your original Conan. Nor do I think i'ts trying to. I think it stands on its own as an enjoyable popcorn flick to throw in the player every now and again.
Verdict: Recommended
The Cast
Jason Momoa ... Conan
Rachel Nichols ... Tamara
Ron Perlman ... Corin
Rose McGowan ... Marique
Nonso Anozie ... Artus
Raad Rawi ... Fassir
Nathan Jones ... Akhun
Milton Welsh ... Remo
Leo Howard ... Young Conan
I agree. The film has its faults - but then (horror of horrors) so does the Arnie version of Conan.
ReplyDeleteI think the real mistake the film-makers made was giving the same name as Arnie's version... pretty much forcing people to make comparisons (or mix the two up).