A very ambitious and serious take on the stories by R.E. Howard and the adaptation turns out better than one would expect.
"Conan the Barbarian" follows the long and difficult journey of Conan who seeks revenge for the savage massacre of the people in his village - including his parents and the theft of a sword that Conan's father took his time in creating.
Arnold Schwarzenegger (in one of the few roles) that made him a star portrays Conan who doesn't say a whole lot but makes up for it with simply being honest. Throughout the movie, Conan picks up a few friends (Sandahl Bergman, Gerry Lopez, and Mako) in his quest to find the one person who led the attack on Conan's village, Thulsa Doom (James Earl Jones), a cult leader who has a large legion of followers. Conan and his quartet certainly have their share of adventures that are nothing short of seriously intense.
The director, John Milius (who was the right choice to direct this movie) co-wrote the script with Oliver Stone and here, Milius lets the film go at a steady pace and the battle sequences are well done instead of being too violent and careless. Also, another issue of note, the movie's handling of the characters and humor is treated with care and going way over the top.
The performances by the cast in the movie are very respectable here and Milius' direction is excellent. If there's one thing that I can't forget bringing up in the review here, it's the magnificent musical score composed by the late Basil Poledouris. The music itself in the battle scenes reminded me of Elmer Bernstein's best composed work ("The Magnificent Seven", "The Great Escape"). For me, you don't hear composed music like this these days (and if there's a few noteworthy examples, then please forgive me).
A sharp, unique, and well-crafted adventure.
"Conan the Barbarian" follows the long and difficult journey of Conan who seeks revenge for the savage massacre of the people in his village - including his parents and the theft of a sword that Conan's father took his time in creating.
Arnold Schwarzenegger (in one of the few roles) that made him a star portrays Conan who doesn't say a whole lot but makes up for it with simply being honest. Throughout the movie, Conan picks up a few friends (Sandahl Bergman, Gerry Lopez, and Mako) in his quest to find the one person who led the attack on Conan's village, Thulsa Doom (James Earl Jones), a cult leader who has a large legion of followers. Conan and his quartet certainly have their share of adventures that are nothing short of seriously intense.
The director, John Milius (who was the right choice to direct this movie) co-wrote the script with Oliver Stone and here, Milius lets the film go at a steady pace and the battle sequences are well done instead of being too violent and careless. Also, another issue of note, the movie's handling of the characters and humor is treated with care and going way over the top.
The performances by the cast in the movie are very respectable here and Milius' direction is excellent. If there's one thing that I can't forget bringing up in the review here, it's the magnificent musical score composed by the late Basil Poledouris. The music itself in the battle scenes reminded me of Elmer Bernstein's best composed work ("The Magnificent Seven", "The Great Escape"). For me, you don't hear composed music like this these days (and if there's a few noteworthy examples, then please forgive me).
A sharp, unique, and well-crafted adventure.