Valhalla rising.
Valhalla rising is a 90 minute action drama film starring Mads Mikelson, it is directed by Nicolas Refn. The plot features a Viking who after making an escape runs into a group of Christian’s on the way to the holy land, he joins up with them but they get lost in the fog at see.
This film really knew how to make use of its time and pace to create a good atmosphere (particularly the bit on the boat), great build up to its violence. The gore here is really well placed and takes you by surprise, you really feel the violence and action scenes in this movie, it’s a raw, gritty, manly piece of cinema too at that. Noticeable is the lack of dialogue for much of the film’s run which I consider a plus, movies are a visual medium, it is a sensible decision to make use of that and Valhalla rising does just that, actors are able to proficiently tell the story physically. It doesn’t wait around/sit on its ass, it gets you into it straight from the start. That said the films pacing also does work against it sometimes, it isn’t for everyone, it can be tiring/a drain on one sometimes too.
Constrained by its budget yes very much so but a nice example of how to do a decent historical indie flick on the cheap as it were.
Verdict: ***