A widescreen epic adventure so beautifully designed and performed that it doesn't have to make a bit of sense.
The 13th Warrior (1999)
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Reviews Counted:87
Fresh:29
Rotten:58
Average Rating:4.6/10
Consensus: Atmospheric, great sets and costumes, but thin plot.
Runtime: 1 hr 43 mins
Genre: Action/Adventure
Synopsis: Director John McTiernan takes viewers back to 900 A.D. in THE 13th WARRIOR. After courting "an untouchable" Muslim princess, Ahmed (Antonio Banderas) is banished and sent North as an emissary. When... Director John McTiernan takes viewers back to 900 A.D. in THE 13th WARRIOR. After courting "an untouchable" Muslim princess, Ahmed (Antonio Banderas) is banished and sent North as an emissary. When traveling from Baghdad to Saqaliba, he stumbles into an encampment of Vikings. At first repulsed by their Nordic ways, Ahmed soon grows fond of the Northerners and joins their party. When news is brought that a horde of flesh eating monsters are ravaging the land, the mystic Oracle ordains that a group of 13 must travel to fight their evil doings. Twelve Nordes rom the party are chosen, Ahmed, a Muslim, is picked as the thirteenth. Knowing that defeat is eminent, the 13 warriors must undergo indeterminable odds to battle and rid the land of the horrific flesh eaters. The 13th Warrior is an epic tour de force created by two of Hollywood's most ingenious: Michael Crichton (JURASSIC PARK, LOOKER) and John McTiernan (PREDATOR, THE LAST ACTION HERO). Its sheer epicness and style make it an astonishing spectacle. Never before has such detail and large scale beauty been present in a Viking film. [More]
Starring: Antonio Banderas, Diane Venora, Omar Sharif
Starring: Antonio Banderas, Diane Venora, Omar Sharif
Director: John McTiernan
Director: John McTiernan
Screenwriter: William Wisher, Warren Lewis
Producer: John McTiernan, Michael Crichton, Ned Dowd
Composer: Jerry Goldsmith
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Release:
Jan 18, 2000
Reviews for The 13th Warrior
Director John McTiernan did this long before The Hunt for Red October and he would be wise to leave it off his resume.
Amounts to little more than a jumble of fire, horses and gory battle scenes. Amidst the constant flow of blood and mud and rain, you kind of feel dirty having just sat through it.
The film falls short of its goal to find a distinct personality and never attains the suspension of belief required of genre films like Conan or 7th Voyage of Sinbad.
Banderas puts in a decent turn, but it's Norwegian newcomer Dennis Storhoi who steals the show; his charming, effortless performance shows both the perils and pleasures of being a Viking.
As far as medieval action adventure epics are concerned, they don't come more proficient than this one.
You're either caught between nothing happening for long scenes of beautiful vista watching, or things happen and are never followed up on.
Banderas creates a sympathetic hero, the script is remarkably free of '90-isms, the Viking characters are engaging, and The 13th Warrior offers some of the rousing retro pleasures of a good '50s cavalry - and - Indians B-movie.
Latest News for The 13th Warrior
November 05, 2008:
Michael Crichton Passes Away (1942-2008)
Best-selling author, screenwriter, and director Michael Crichton has passed away at the age of 66. The medical doctor-turned-filmmaker was best known for writing... More...
July 26, 2006:
Viking Epic Gets Banished to January
Marcus Nispel's "Pathfinder" was just bumped back from September 8th to January 12th, the move most likely prompted by the waves of muffled giggles that greeted the... More...
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