Review of Conan the Barbarian (2011) by David L — 11 Mar 2014

Never really heard much about this when it came out, so presumed that because it managed to slip under the radar, it can't have been very good. It therefore came as a pleasant surprise when it grasped my attention from start to finish.

It's nothing different to what other battle films have given us like Troy, Gladiator, 300, and Black Death, but it lived up to the billing by providing plenty of action scenes, villains that are truly villainous, a muscly alpha male hero for a female audience to lust over, and a helpless bint for the guys to ogle at.

Born on the battlefield and having witnessed his fathers death at a tender age, the story basically follows Conan on a journey of revenge, killing all those involved in his dads murder, leaving the ultimate battle with his arch nemesis until the end.

As it happens, the final duel was one of the weaker scenes which left my opinion with a somewhat sour view, but other fights made up for it somewhat, including the battle with the Sandmen which looked distinctly like it had been copied from 'The Mummy' series.

It's not a particularly star studded line-up, which cast doubt in my eyes over its likely credibility and after the death of Ron Perlman, there was hardly a recognisable name left, other than Rose McGowan who led as a formidable enemy with her array of flimsy battle costumes and sorcery! With many commenting that it can never live up to the original screening with Arnie playing the lead, I'm very keen to now see this again myself, because for a slated remake, this wasn't half bad in my eyes.