dav-37489
Seriously, if you were ignorant and reviewed this in such a state... fix it. Historical accuracy for this specific tale may be thin (seriously but possible), but let's look at the performances. You should realize that they are allowing you to absorb ideals that are not in your usual lexicon (Darwinism). The cinematography is limited by the story, so no easy wins as folks filming in the Alps or on the slope of Everest. AS it is it is dark, but appropriately so. The premise of a viking boy being raised by native americans is a bit far fetched, but can be overlooked. Let's face it, different was evil back in those days. Historical value... you be the judge, entertainment value, it checks most of the boxes for a killed m,y mother, so I kill, burn, kill, slash, and we all are better for it film.
Chris0184
I am usually a massive advocate of "It's a film, it's made up or they are using artistic licence, so get over it and enjoy it". However, in the case of Pathfinder I simply cannot.I have now attempted to watch this twice, the second time assisted by a bottle or two of wine and still have been unable to make it past 40 minutes. The story is terrible, the acting poor and the "Vikings"?!?!? They look more like something out of Mad Max or Chronicles of Riddick.The CGI effects, especially during fight scenes, are extremely poor - a sword clearly touching someones back provides us with a massive splash of CGI blood that is just unrealistic. Simply appalling. I won't be trying a third time with this rubbish!
Bill
I was incredibly disappointed in this film.I watched this expecting it to be a smart, historically-based film about what might have happened if the Vikings -- who we know settled in Newfoundland and New England for a time -- had left behind a boy to be raised by Native Americans. Would he be found years later by later Viking expeditions? Would he fit into Native American culture? What later conflicts might ensue? Or might he serve as a bridge between two cultures?Instead, the movie is a crazy mish-mash of over-the-top sword-based gore, and little else. The "Vikings" look NOTHING LIKE any actual Vikings at all, with costumes, gear, and helmets that are more inspired by Frank Frazetta fantasy paintings from the 70s and 80s than any actual Norse history. Their evil, ferocious behavior in the film is completely fabricated as well. These are just about the most UN-Viking people one could imagine. Moreover, their longboats are about three times larger than any actual Viking longboat found to date...just non-sensical. Even the Native American villages seemed to depart from known facts about them as well.The combat scenes were over-the-top, repetitive, and non-sensical as well, with little self-consistency or grounding in reality.I'm disappointed in Karl Urban for agreeing to act in this film and wonder if he ever read the screenplay before taking the role.I sincerely HOPE someone makes a decent movie about what might have been based on a bit more real-world facts about the known Viking settlements in North America. If anyone is interested in a SMART, dramatic, historically accurate, well-produced series about the Norse who conducted raids on England (i.e., went "viking"...it's a verb, not a noun, in truth), I strongly recommend History Channel's dramatic fictional series "Vikings." Even the acting kicks butt, with Gabriel Byrne playing a key role in most of the first season. The cinematography is breathtaking...especially in the second half of the first season. Moreover, the textured, nuanced portrayal of the peculiarities of the REAL-WORLD Norse culture of centuries ago are fascinating and, at times, shocking.
Angus
The above is a misquote from the lovable, bigoted patriarch of All In The Family. No points for guessing which word I changed, and what it was before. But what was funny in the 1970s is now a cliché Hollywood attempt at catering to white guilt.This movie pretty well follows the same formula that Quigley Down Under and, more recently, Avatar follow: the Dances With Wolves formula. The story is about a child-Viking who lands in North America and gets separated from his people. Raised by Indians, he eventually leads them against his own sinister race, when it returns to bring oppression and genocide. His new nation, while noble and virtuous, is ultimately helpless and backwards, (that's right--it's not entirely about political correctness) and would be facing a route and certain extinction were it not for this great white hope.Now, I'll tell you what would be novel: a movie based on the hypothesis that the indigenous Vikings of Greenland where exterminated by the ancestors of the Inuit. I'd love to see that! (In the same way I'd love to see the Toronto Maple Leafs win a cup: not gonna happen.) What I'd not like to see are the riots that would follow.
AD
