Solomon Kane

2012

Solomon Kane

Critics Consensus

Solomon Kane's formulaic and bleak narrative is overcome by an entertaining, straightforward adherence to its genre, exciting gore, and a gratifying lead performance by James Purefoy.

66%

TOMATOMETER

Total Count: 47

49%

Audience Score

User Ratings: 25,098
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Movie Info

Captain Solomon Kane is a brutally efficient 16th Century killing machine. Armed with his signature pistols, cutlass and rapier, he and his men unleash their bloodlust as they fight for England in war after war on all continents. As the story opens, Kane and his band of pillagers are carving a bloody path through hordes of defenders in an exotic city in northern Africa. But, when Kane decides to attack a mysterious nearby castle to plunder its rumored riches, his mission takes a fateful turn. One by one, Kane's men are picked off by demonic creatures until he alone is left to face the Devil's own Reaper -- dispatched from the depths of Hell to lay claim to his hopelessly corrupt soul. Though Kane at last manages to escape, he knows that he now must redeem himself by renouncing violence and devoting himself wholly to a life of peace and purity. -- (C) Official Site

Cast

James Purefoy
as Solomon Kane
Max von Sydow
as Josiah Kane
Pete Postlethwaite
as William Crowthorn
Rachel Hurd-Wood
as Meredith Crowthorn
MacKenzie Crook
as Michael
Philip Winchester
as Telford
Jason Flemyng
as Malachi
Jeffrey Bell
Alice Krige
as Katherine Crowthorn
Patrick Hurd-Wood
as Samuel Crowthorn
Brian Caspe
John Comer
Mark O'Neal
as Kane's Soldier 1
Robert Orr
as Kane's Soldier 2
Richard Ryan
as Kane's Soldier 3
Frantisek Deak
as Cowering Guard
Christian Dunckley Clark
as Lieutenant Malthus
Ian Whyte
as Devil's Reaper
Thomas McEnchroe
as Young Monk
Andrew Whitlaw
as Older Monk
Robert Russell
as Abbot
James Babson
as Skinhead
Marek Vasut
as Tattoo
Geoff Bell
as Beard
Lucas Stone
as Young Solomon
Samuel Roukin
as Marcus Kane/Overlord
Errol Anthony Wilks
as Edward Crowthorn
Isabel Bassett
as The Witch
Jeff Smith
as Raider Captain
Matthew Stirling
as Eye Patch
Curtis Matthew
as Old Man
Laura Baranik
as Prisoner
Andrea Miltnerová
as Old Woman Captive
Ryan James
as Raider
Mark Franklin Henson
as Landlord
Stewart Moore
as Garrick
Madaleine Bassett
as Young Sarah
Klára Low
as Onlooker
Todd Kramer
as Raider
Todd Benson
as Raider
Mike McGuffie
as Another Raider
Philip Waley
as Drunk
Gordon Truefitt
as Stable Master
David Listvan
as Gilligan
Jiri Kraus
as Smith
Tomas Tobola
as Hawkstone
Beryll Nesbitt
as Old Crone
Ben Steel
as Fletcher
Matthew Blood-Smyth
as Merton
Rory McCann
as McNess
Amy Huck
as Prisoner
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Critic Reviews for Solomon Kane

All Critics (47) | Top Critics (14) | Fresh (31) | Rotten (16)

  • Few characters have much to do but grunt and scream and bleed.

    Sep 29, 2012 | Rating: 1.5/4

    Stephen Whitty

    Newark Star-Ledger
    Top Critic

  • Been there, done that.

    Sep 28, 2012 | Rating: 1.5/4 | Full Review…

    Lou Lumenick

    New York Post
    Top Critic

  • "Solomon Kane" succeeds by embracing its identity as a straightforward genre exercise, complete with bone-crunching and blood-spurting action. By not aiming for more, it hits its target.

    Sep 27, 2012 | Rating: 3.5/5 | Full Review…

    Mark Olsen

    Los Angeles Times
    Top Critic

  • Who knew there were skinhead and zombie equivalents in late-Elizabethan England?

    Sep 27, 2012 | Rating: 1/4 | Full Review…

    Mark Feeney

    Boston Globe
    Top Critic

  • It's hardly original (and Max von Sydow is wasted in brief scenes as Kane's father), but "Solomon Kane" is worthy of big-screen appreciation.

    Sep 27, 2012 | Rating: 2.5/4 | Full Review…

    Jeff Shannon

    Seattle Times
    Top Critic

  • Mr. Basset is too enamored of the usual action film clichés ... But he has a graphic visual style that suits the simplistic material and he keeps you watching even as the wet, sucking sounds of skewered flesh grows tedious.

    Sep 27, 2012 | Rating: 3/5

    Manohla Dargis

    New York Times
    Top Critic
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Audience Reviews for Solomon Kane

  • Aug 02, 2014
    the Son of Sparda vs. the other Son of Sparda excepting you don't get to mash buttons
    Sanity Assassin ! Super Reviewer
  • Jul 27, 2013
    Solomon Kane is, to be sure, a dumb, often profoundly silly, B action horror film in the vein of Season of the Witch. Its' plot and resulting resolution are telegraphed too early, the mechanisms cliched, and the action often cheesy. Yet for all the camp, there's a heart to Solomon Kane that suggests there's elements of a compelling film at play, if not always completely visible. What I appreciated the most about Solomon Kane is the title character, Solomon Kane. His gruff and beyond-redemption character is familiar, yet James Purefoy does enough to give his role a texture not seen in other similar characterizations. His complexity is seen in his performance, and felt in the material. He's a protagonist that is not completely likable at first, yet one that feels strangely enthralling. The film also has a brisk pace, and solid world building. We see an Elizabethan-England that is plagued by witchcraft and death, with a dark foreboding throughout. The performances all around, though never great, are always serviceable. The action is corny but prevalent, and director Michael Bassett manages to bring enough to the table to keep the otherwise familiar material fresh. At the same time, Solomon Kane is full of imperfections. The CGI looks cheap, and film has real issues with its tone. At times it has an atmospheric tone that feels well realized, but then suddenly shifts to such silly plot devices, that what came before it is undermined. It's as if the film wanted the weight of a foreboding tone, but the likability of high camp. The script does nothing especially memorable, with a very lackluster third act. Overall, it's an enjoyable enough B action film, with potential to have been more. 3/5 Stars
    Jeffrey M Super Reviewer
  • Jul 16, 2013
    Just about everything onscreen makes little to no sense, and while that's entertaining for the first hour, everything kind of falls apart when it turns into a series of repetitive action sequences. Also, I was unaware that an evil sorcerer was behind everything until he suddenly showed up five minutes before the movie ended.
    Alec B Super Reviewer
  • Jun 29, 2013
    It started out with some promise, with decent performance by Peter Postlethwaite (I hope for posterity, this wasn't his last film!), but it devolved into an incomprehensible slurry at the end with bigger holes in the plot than had the Titanic. The costumes and special effects were commendable -- but what really was the point of it all?
    Christian C Super Reviewer
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