Young Prince Amleth (Oscar Novak) witnesses the murder of his father King Aurvandil (Ethan Hawke) at the hands of his Uncle Fjolnir (Claes Bang) and flees his kingdom. Years later as a warrior (Alexander Skarsgard) consumed by hate and vengeance he seeks to avenge his father and rescue his mother Gudrun (Nicole Kidman) from his uncle’s rule. 

The Northman is utterly brilliant. In fact it’s so immense it will be hard to capture it in words alone. It is a film so fully committed to the visceral nature of its protagonist’s vengeance that it will leave your jaw on the floor. Co-writer and director Robert Eggers showed promise and flair with his first two films; The Witch and The Lighthouse. But this launches him into the stratosphere as a visionary and at only 38 years old hopefully we will have the joy of plenty more to come from him. 

Visually the film is spectacular. Shot in Northern Ireland but set predominantly in Iceland it features stunning vistas during the day time but shines even more in its night time and battle sequences. The night shots are alternately lit by fire or in a monochrome night vision which is also used for its moments of prophecy. The battle sequences of which there are many are brutal and awe inspiring to watch. One sequence follows Amleth scaling a wooden wall, dispatching defenders in his path before launching into a passing horseback rider with his axe. 

The film’s commitment to the Viking way of life is spectacular and may be off putting to some. Whilst the violence in the film is exceptionally brutal it is perhaps the ritual and devotion to fate that the story portrays that will be the most off putting. We see warriors rituals before battle, burial rites and coming of age rituals. There are shamans and witches with dark portents. And absolutely none of it is given short shrift or is displayed with anything less than complete commitment. Willem Defoe and Bjork are aptly chosen to portray those that dish out the fate of Amleth at different points in the film. 

Then of course there are the performances that elevate an already brilliant film to legendary status. Alexander Skarsgard is the most intense of them all and his character to some extent reminded me of Leonardo DiCaprio’s in The Revenant due to the level he is driven to his goal. The difference is that he has muscles on his muscles and can sell the fact that his warrior Viking believes that he is transforming into a wolf in a pre-battle ritual. Claes Bang as the usurping uncle is equally a man mountain and just on presence alone deserves to be in more films. Nicole Kidman gets to deliver a far deeper role than that of the Queen held against her will. Ethan Hawke delivers the honourable and righteous King role in a short space of time. Whilst Anya Taylor-Joy who had previously appeared in Eggers The Witch delivers another performance that uses her otherworldly looks to perfection. 

Of course the story itself may feel familiar to many as Shakespeare’s Hamlet or in the case of my son whom I was explaining it to, The Lion King. But some research showed me that in fact the Scandinavian legend of Amleth dates back to the 10th or 12th century and was a direct inspiration for Hamlet. 

Inspirational stuff.