Conan - Part 1

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This is a continuation thread, the old thread is 288124

[x-fan]

Heard that they were doing a new movie. It is suppose to be closer to the books, anyone know whats going on with this, not seeing much on it anywhere. I did see a teaser poster on the main page though

[Shon]

rewriting the script while filming the movie? At least 35% and close to 50% of the script was rewritten during filming?

Not a good sign.

[x-fan]

I don't know it maybe that the re-writes could make it a better movie, and almost all movie do this. My understanding is that the re-writes bring the characters closer to the books meant them to be.

[Thebumwhowalks]

Yeah, re-writing on set isn't always a bad thing, esp if the script was not that great in the first place, worry automatically when they had a good script and are re-writing.
One of the producers of the movie was on the boards of conan.com the other day saying that they have brought the character and world closer to the REH stories, and that they don't think there is any problem with reconciling the character's new revenge driven origin with the REH character, or adapting any of his stories for later films.
He would say all that of course, but I don't know, he seemed genuine when I was reading his posts, and they do have plans on a straight adaptation of the REH storeis for the sequel.
He did tackle the question of why they did the revenge driven origin head on, no bs, saying they felt they had to bring a quality to the character that audiences could latch onto, instead of him just being a thief who was out for money, although they are keeping all those qualities too.

edit: It was actually the guy who was re-writing the script, this is what he was saying over at conan.com on this link:

http://www.conan.com/invboard/index.php?showtopic=7098&st=4500

I DO think that Howard stories can be adapted directly for the screen, and I hope that future Conan films will take this approach. I think that a film might have to combine elements from more than one story. For example, The Frost-Giant's Daughter" would make a fantastic cinematic sequence or opening, but it wouldn't be enough for an entire movie.

I compared Howard stories to LOR and Harry Potter (and my thoughts were mostly aimed at other screenwriters) just to suggest that a Conan adaptation is a different kind of problem. I would agree that since the Conan stories are disconnected, it's possible to add new characters and adventures that can fit into Howard's world.

I read over and over that the "revenge" storyline is incompatible with the Howard cannon. I'm not going to argue that, because I'm not going to change anyone's mind (and it wasn't my decision to make anyway,) but I do think that future films can be adapted more directly from Howard without this "origin story" being a contradiction.

My point about dialogue and Howard being language-driven was meant to underscore the difficulty of adapting certain books for the screen. Cinema is a visual medium, and the new Conan The Barbarian has a lot of action and visual storytelling. The long speeches, histories and stories in Howard's dialogue wouldn't play well in a movie. A few pages could take up 10 minutes of an 100 minute movie. Again, I'm used to blogging for screenwriters and filmmakers, not fans, so perhaps my concerns fall upon deaf ears.

A screenwriter might have the same problem adapting Raymond Chandler. A lot of the storytelling in his novels is done via dialogue, in which characters give long accounts, explanations and descriptions of events. This "dialogue" goes on for pages and pages. The rule of cinema is "show it, don't say it" so in adapting Chandler, one would have to figure out ways of showing things visually and dramatically rather than have a long scene in which a character explains the story with words.

This doesn't mean that the spirit of the "hard boiled" dialogue can't be reproduced, and snippets of Chandler's language used in the dialogue. The same is true for the spirit of the dialogue in REH stories.

Lastly, I am not trying to apologize for the film, or justify the decisions made by the people (myself included) who worked on it. I tried to give a honest interview about my experiences and impressions working on the movie.

Fans can decide whether or not the film succeeds in honoring Howard's stories, and moviegoers in general will decide if the film is any good, but cynics should know that there were a lot of very honest, serious and talented people who worked very hard to make an authentic Conan film. Say what you like about the movie when it comes out, but I'm no PR stooge. I gain nothing by lying or covering or equivocating on behalf of the movie... because ultimately the shooting script that I wrote (and the movie) will speak for itself.

Anyway, as a book lover, I admire the way fans of Conan discuss and debate the stories in forums such as this one, and I honestly believe that more people will read the Howard books because of this film.

[...]

Also... just to be clear. The film DOES try to stay true to the character of Conan, an amoral thief and slayer for whom no problem can't be solved by the cold edge of steel.

The issue is how to introduce these kind of characters to wide audience. Amoral characters like Rooster Cogburn in True Grit... all the way back to Philip Marlowe in the Big Sleep... all have some redeeming features revealed by the story that allow the audience to empathize with them.

Rooster Cogburn may be a scoundrel, but his quest to help and defend a 14-year-old girl is one a wide audience can get behind.

In order to stay true to the Conan character, a framework was needed to so that the audience could get behind all his ruthless hacking and slashing. Again, many here may feel we chose the wrong frame (a revenge plot) but the goal was to introduce a grim, complex, amoral character to a wide audience.

and he was responding to discussion on this recent interview he gave(which is what I guess shon was referring to, as he gives out the same rough percenteges of what was re-written):

http://ramascreen.com/exclusive-interview-screenwriter-sean-hood-talks-about-conan-the-barbarian/

[zanos]

Making Conan closer to the books isn't necessarily a good thing. From what I read of Howard's work, Conan was pretty simple and one dimensional. His typical objective in every story was basically how many things he could hack and slash to death in the shortest amount of time.

[terry78]

Making Conan closer to the books isn't necessarily a good thing. From what I read of Howard's work, Conan was pretty simple and one dimensional. His typical objective in every story was basically how many things he could hack and slash to death in the shortest amount of time.

And that's......bad.

[Thebumwhowalks]

I have only read the Savage Sword adaptations of the REH stories, but in many of those tales he sets out to rob such and such, and will encounter folk in distress, and help them out. He is not just a 'bad' guy, just as he is not just a fighter, he has to use his brains to get himself out of many scapes.
He's not just a thief, in the stories he's also been a general of armies, a pirate captain, and just a guy out looking for a good time, yeah, the stories are just simple adventure tales in various settings, but what is thrilling about them is Conan's never say die attitude, and going along with the ride as you wonder how he is going to extract himself from seemingly impossible situations. It's just the same as Indiana Jones, he is going after such and such for the museum, or to help out a tribe, and Conan is going after wotsits and whatnots to keep himself employed in a barbaric land without jobcentres or foodstamps.
We are on a superhero site, lots of the tales told in these movies are simple, but that does not mean they are stupid or boring, keeping it simple is probably a plus point, look at the Ang Lee Hulk movie for an abject lesson in 'how not to', they overcomplicated the Jekyll/Hyde tale to it's detriment.

[rogue trooper]

We are on a superhero site, lots of the tales told in these movies are simple, but that does not mean they are stupid or boring, keeping it simple is probably a plus point, look at the Ang Lee Hulk movie for an abject lesson in 'how not to', they overcomplicated the Jekyll/Hyde tale to it's detriment.

This.:up:

[TruerToTheCore]

Making Conan closer to the books isn't necessarily a good thing. From what I read of Howard's work, Conan was pretty simple and one dimensional. His typical objective in every story was basically how many things he could hack and slash to death in the shortest amount of time.

well, then make no movie out of it. Simple as that. :yay:

[MOVIELORD101]

When the hell we getting a trailer for this??

[rogue trooper]

.....supposedly on April.

[rogue trooper]

Stephen Lang talks "Conan The Barbarian":
http://foxallaccess.blogs.fox.com/2011/02/18/conan-comes-back-again-no-not-that-conan-and-weve-got-details/

[Shon]

Stephen Lang talks "Conan The Barbarian":
http://foxallaccess.blogs.fox.com/2011/02/18/conan-comes-back-again-no-not-that-conan-and-weve-got-details/

Looks like that interview he gave a year ago - almost exactly.

[rogue trooper]

New image of Conan on new Empire issue cover:
http://comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=74789&offset=20#commentLstTop


http://comingsoon.net/nextraimages/tf-empire-01-1.jpg

[x-fan]

I don't like how they have new Arnie below his pic though.

[rogue trooper]

More images: http://www.empireonline.com/magazine/

http://www.empireonline.com/images/magazine/262/4.jpg

[ChickenScratch]

I would love to see a full scan of that page.

On a side note, this weekend at the bookstore in the bargain books section I picked up a book titled Robert E Howard's Conan The Barbarian Complete and Unabridged. Grabbed it off the shelf without really investigating because I already had a sizable haul. Got it home and found that it's missing quite a few stories in there. Can't complain though, it's my fault for not flipping through the book, but it was cheap so I'm keeping it. It's not like I don't already have the stories from the previous 3 volume release.

So a word to the wise, avoid this book - http://www.amazon.com/Conan-Barbarian-Original-Unabridged-Adventures/dp/1853756997

These are the worthy ones, the 3 volume set - http://www.amazon.com/Coming-Conan-Cimmerian-Original-Adventures/dp/0345461517/ref=pd_bxgy_b_img_b http://www.amazon.com/Bloody-Crown-Conan-Cimmeria-Book/dp/0345461525/ref=bxgy_cc_b_text_b http://www.amazon.com/Conquering-Sword-Conan-Cimmeria-Book/dp/0345461533/ref=bxgy_cc_b_text_a

And of course - http://www.amazon.com/Complete-Chronicles-Conan-Robert-Howard/dp/0575077662

Doesn't really bother me though, I'm a literary completest. If you ever checked out my James Bond [Flemming and subsequent authors], Ayn Rand, John Lecarre, Tom Clancy, etc collections it's pretty clear I don't mind.

[Rowsdower!]

More images: http://www.empireonline.com/magazine/



I need that photo of Marion Cottilard on my wall, like... NOW.

[GhostPoet]

This movie sounds amazing because
A) It's sexist
B) It's brutal
C) It has Jason Momoa

[Why Are You Crouching Spock?]

He looks the part.

[Wolvieboy17]

This actually looks kinda promising. As a huge Robert E. Howard fan, it would be a really nice surprise to get a faithful adaptation. I just wish they were doing some of the old stories, like Elephant in the Tower etc.

[rogue trooper]

New set pictures: http://www.conanmovieblog.com/2011/03/01/analysis-of-the-new-set-photos/

[rogue trooper]

This actually looks kinda promising. As a huge Robert E. Howard fan, it would be a really nice surprise to get a faithful adaptation. I just wish they were doing some of the old stories, like Elephant in the Tower etc.

I believe that the sequel for this film, which has already been greenlighted, is based more specifically on a particular Howard story. I believe the script for it was done by the guys who wrote the film "Outlander".

[Wolvieboy17]

Hmmm that could be cool. I wonder which tales... Perhaps it's when he goes to Zamora and encounters thieves and civilised men for the first time :P

[Enlil]

NEW POSTER:
http://www.cinewebradio.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2305:poster-pour-conan-le-barbare&catid=29:the-news&Itemid=41

[rogue trooper]

Try this link: http://www.conanthebarbarianin3d.com/motionposter/


That is NICE!!!!

[Spideyfan93]

Oh no.

I didn't give 20,000,000 cow ****s about this movie. After looking at that awesomeness, I WANT A TRAILER! This looks like it could surprise people.

BAD ASS!

[Rowsdower!]

That is pretty awesome.

[Iron_Stark]

Pretty badass poster.

Just moved up a couple of slots on my anticipation list.

[Midnyte_Sun]

Whatever. I still have my reservations.

[rogue trooper]

Pictures from Empire magazine: http://www.conanmovieblog.com/2011/03/03/empires-april-2011-issue-including-the-debut-of-khalar-zym/


http://www.conanmovieblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/ConanEmpireApril2011_Conan-leather1-300x195.jpg (http://www.conanmovieblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/ConanEmpireApril2011_Conan-leather1.jpg)


http://www.conanmovieblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/ConanEmpireApril2011_Conan-knife-300x152.jpg (http://www.conanmovieblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/ConanEmpireApril2011_Conan-knife.jpg)


http://www.conanmovieblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/ConanEmpireApril2011_Conan-and-Remo-292x300.jpg (http://www.conanmovieblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/ConanEmpireApril2011_Conan-and-Remo.jpg)

http://www.conanmovieblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/ConanEmpireApril2011_Khalar-Zym-and-Jailer5-267x300.jpg (http://www.conanmovieblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/ConanEmpireApril2011_Khalar-Zym-and-Jailer5.jpg)

http://www.conanmovieblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/ConanEmpireApril2011_Jailer-300x288.jpg (http://www.conanmovieblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/ConanEmpireApril2011_Jailer.jpg)

http://www.conanmovieblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/ConanEmpireApril2011_Khalar-Zym-134x300.jpg (http://www.conanmovieblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/ConanEmpireApril2011_Khalar-Zym.jpg)

[Spideyfan93]

Wow!

[x-fan]

Looking better and better

[Iron_Stark]

Damn!

[ChickenScratch]

Sweeeeet

[Thebumwhowalks]

Yeah, Mamoa looks great as Conan, but I am not sure about the look of those two other guys, who I assume are baddies. They look like they might take a walk into 'Chronicles Of Riddick' territory with the overdone armour, but hopefully not.
After tanking through lots of SSoC comics last year, I would say this is my most anticipated movie of this year, although I think X-Men, or perhaps Cap America, could be the best sh/action adventure flicks this year. The reason I am looking forward to this one most is because I am just really interested to see if they have captured the character I have read in the REH adapted comics.

[Doc Ock]

This movie is just looking more and more fantastic!

[rogue trooper]

I just love the look of that big ogre-like character(Nathan Jones)!! He looks like a John Buscema drawing come to life!!:up:

[Thebumwhowalks]

I just love the look of that big ogre-like character(Nathan Jones)!! He looks like a John Buscema drawing come to life!!:up:

Yeah, you are right, he does, heh. I just hope the design of the armour, and y'know, the design of the world itself is not too ott. It was mainly the other guy's armour that reminded me of CoR a little.

[Shon]

I don't like how they have new Arnie below his pic though.

Why would you not like that? Arnie was easily one of - if not the - greatest action stars of all time. That is an undeserved (to date anyway) compliment to Momoa - look at the positive.

[x-fan]

Why would you not like that? Arnie was easily one of - if not the - greatest action stars of all time. That is an undeserved (to date anyway) compliment to Momoa - look at the positive.

I'd rather it said the new Conan. Arnold was great but I want Mamoa to be better in this role, and not try to be the new Arnie

[Wolvieboy17]

Yeah, the character should always be bigger than the actor, and Conan is a pretty big character.

[Rowsdower!]

Looks cool but Conan just isn't the same if he's not wearing a leather Speedo. :hehe:

[Wolvieboy17]

Yeah, if by not the same you mean 'not the same awful bastardised version of the original source material'

[rogue trooper]

I think it's also very encouraging to hear(or read) that Nispel cites "Apocalypto" as an influence on this film. By that, I presume he is going to make the violence/action as authentic and as brutal as possible.

[Shon]

Yeah, if by not the same you mean 'not the same awful bastardised version of the original source material'

Do you not realize that the writers of this movie are basically copying the Arnold film and not following the source material?

The tale of Conan the Cimmerian and his adventures across the continent of Hyboria on a quest to avenge the murder of his father and the slaughter of his village.

[Wolvieboy17]

Yeah, I know it's an original story, but visually (which is all we have to go on now, isn't it) it already looks loads more faithful than the Arnie ones ever did, and they're already talking about a sequel based on a REH story. What's your point?

[Midnyte_Sun]

Do you not realize that the writers of this movie are basically copying the Arnold film and not following the source material?

The tale of Conan the Cimmerian and his adventures across the continent of Hyboria on a quest to avenge the murder of his father and the slaughter of his village.

I agree, they made this movie more for general movie audience. Maybe in twenty years we'll get another shot at it.

[rogue trooper]

Do you not realize that the writers of this movie are basically copying the Arnold film and not following the source material?

The tale of Conan the Cimmerian and his adventures across the continent of Hyboria on a quest to avenge the murder of his father and the slaughter of his village.

The killing of his father and the village slaughter will be just about the only thing in common with th 82' film. How Conan goes on through life after the slaughter will be a different route from the original film, I believe.

Yes, this film is more a pastiche, but one that will be more faithful in spirit to Howard than Milius was.

[Panthro]

Pictures from Empire magazine: http://www.conanmovieblog.com/2011/03/03/empires-april-2011-issue-including-the-debut-of-khalar-zym/


http://www.conanmovieblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/ConanEmpireApril2011_Conan-leather1-300x195.jpg (http://www.conanmovieblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/ConanEmpireApril2011_Conan-leather1.jpg)


http://www.conanmovieblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/ConanEmpireApril2011_Conan-knife-300x152.jpg (http://www.conanmovieblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/ConanEmpireApril2011_Conan-knife.jpg)


http://www.conanmovieblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/ConanEmpireApril2011_Conan-and-Remo-292x300.jpg (http://www.conanmovieblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/ConanEmpireApril2011_Conan-and-Remo.jpg)

http://www.conanmovieblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/ConanEmpireApril2011_Khalar-Zym-and-Jailer5-267x300.jpg (http://www.conanmovieblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/ConanEmpireApril2011_Khalar-Zym-and-Jailer5.jpg)

http://www.conanmovieblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/ConanEmpireApril2011_Jailer-300x288.jpg (http://www.conanmovieblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/ConanEmpireApril2011_Jailer.jpg)

http://www.conanmovieblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/ConanEmpireApril2011_Khalar-Zym-134x300.jpg (http://www.conanmovieblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/ConanEmpireApril2011_Khalar-Zym.jpg)
Looking good.

[Speedball]

This film is turning out to look pretty fantastic. He looks just like Conan from the comics.
Jason Momoa has big year ahead of him, because he's Conan and Khal Drogo in A Game of Thrones.

[Bug-Eyed Earl]

The killing of his father and the village slaughter will be just about the only thing in common with th 82' film. .

Plus that idea didn't originate with that film; I saw a Savage Sword of Conan panel that showed conan forging a sword, vowing to avenge his murdered family. SS was around in the early 70s; it had aquite a long run, so who knows if that predated the movie.

[Wolvieboy17]

Yeah, come to think of it, i'm pretty sure all the Cimmerians got slaughtered in the REH stories too.

[ChickenScratch]

No, there are many wars and skirmishes in the stories but the Cimmerians were never defeated or destroyed, REH went to great lengths to point this out several times. Cimmerians don't figure much into the stories because Conan stories are pretty much travelogues of REH's world, we never revisit them because we know all we need to from the story The Hyborian Age and from Conan himself. Cimmerians didn't build great cities nor were they any sort of real power during the Hyborian age, many of their men became mercenaries for other causes, but otherwise there is no real reason to tell a story about villages in barren crags and rocky hills.

One can posit that they are all dead because it's easy to get a movie plot rolling with some revenge rather than a 16 year old who gets a thrill from raiding his neighbors for plunder, then moves on to bigger things in more established places.

[Wolvieboy17]

I'm pretty sure his father died in the old books though. I think it was just a regular battle though, and I remember him claiming his fathers sword.

Edit: Wait, I think i'm mixing things up. I was thinking about how he is born on the battlefield. I'm pretty sure he does just get the wanderlust and say "See you guys, i'm outta here". That's the problem with Robert E. Howards stuff, there are a lot of missing facts and it's hard to put the order of all the stories together... It's like "Wait, Conan is a pirate now? What happened to his wench from the last story?"

[ChickenScratch]

That's because he was meant to be that way, make what you will of the continuity. REH was clearly infatuated with the idea of Hyborea, just read the short story for proof. Stories are set in different countries, kingdoms, political climates, because that's what he wanted to show, Conan's the constant.

But it's hard for movie audiences who have never read a full Conan story to get that he has wanderlust and moves from place to place and gets into adventures along the way. The easiest explanation of him leaving his village was his inherent intelligence. He's pretty much genius level intelligent, he does not belong living among the crags, eking out a living from the rocky land and the occasional raid. But revenge is easier for the populous at large to grasp I think, and since he leaves and never returns it gives them full license to make up stuff.

[Doc Ock]

This film is turning out to look pretty fantastic. He looks just like Conan from the comics.
Jason Momoa has big year ahead of him, because he's Conan and Khal Drogo in A Game of Thrones.

I hope he is Ronon Dex again someday...

[Shawn Wayne]

I am cautiously optimistic for this film but doesn't Conan have smoldering blue eyes?

[rogue trooper]

Momoa wore blue contact lenses. On some action scenes he didn't wear them and supposedly the blue will be added with cgi.

[Shon]

The killing of his father and the village slaughter will be just about the only thing in common with th 82' film. How Conan goes on through life after the slaughter will be a different route from the original film, I believe.

Yes, this film is more a pastiche, but one that will be more faithful in spirit to Howard than Milius was.

both movies are basically the same - a certain person comes through and slaughters his family and village - he spends his days seeking revenge against that specific person.

Arnold's movie it was James Earl Jones

Momoa's movie it is Stephen Lang.

rehash - whatever. I just hope it is good - the new pictures give me hope but i would rather see more muscle on Momoa.

[Wolvieboy17]

Wait, so it's rehashed plot because it has a villain in it too?

Seriously dude, after like, what, a page and a half proving the differences between the two concepts for the films, you're going to sum up it's a rehash with those two points?

[Shon]

Wait, so it's rehashed plot because it has a villain in it too?

Seriously dude, after like, what, a page and a half proving the differences between the two concepts for the films, you're going to sum up it's a rehash with those two points?

not sure what your issue is but you seem to have a tough time putting two and two together here - much like your earlier "what's your point" post. You bagged on the original when in fact the remake is the same.

The basic premise of this movie is exactly the same as the Arnold film is what i am saying, more so that just his family being killed. the driving force of the character is revenge and he spends the entire movie with one goal in mind - seeking out and finding this one individual and exacting this revenge. No new motivations or emotions for the character, no new plot for the film and no new basic story element. Seems pretty obvious - sorry it was too much for you to comprehend. Sure they will change what happens to him along the way but the basic core elements will remain the same.

You are not even worth talking with.

[Sgt.Pepper]

Cool pics. I'm excited to see a trailer.

[batsfan81]

Trailers been classed, maybe coming soon:

http://www.albertafilmratings.ca/recentclasstrailers.aspx

[Wolvieboy17]

Oh my god, you've opened up a world of possibilities for me... That means Spider-man is just a rehashed version of Batman because it's about someone who becomes a superhero to fight for justice over the loss of a loved one.

Yeah dude, I understood your point, it was just totally weak sauce. So the character will have the same motivation the movie is exactly the same? Like scene for scene? If you read the full synopsis of the movie, from like the second par onwards it diverges. The synopsis itself sounds loads more REH than the Arnie ones ever did.

But hey, if i'm not worth talking to, great. One less mindless idiot to talk to on the hype is a good thing, right?

[ChickenScratch]

Calm down Wolvie. He's obviously not read REH and is grasping at superficialities to try to make his point. The Cimmerians were never defeated, Conan was never enslaved, Valeria didn't die that way, "The Thing In The Cave" was forced into the movie it seems, etc.

The new movie using the same revenge motivation is disconcerting, but I like what I see so far.

[Shawn Wayne]

Anyone know when the trailer comes out?

[rogue trooper]

^^Sometime in April, last we heard. It might be attached to "Fast Five", I figure.

[Shawn Wayne]

^^Sometime in April, last we heard. It might be attached to "Fast Five", I figure.


Thanks

[Thebumwhowalks]

..................................

[LongDong]

Oh my god, you've opened up a world of possibilities for me... That means Spider-man is just a rehashed version of Batman because it's about someone who becomes a superhero to fight for justice over the loss of a loved one.

Yeah dude, I understood your point, it was just totally weak sauce. So the character will have the same motivation the movie is exactly the same? Like scene for scene? If you read the full synopsis of the movie, from like the second par onwards it diverges. The synopsis itself sounds loads more REH than the Arnie ones ever did.

But hey, if i'm not worth talking to, great. One less mindless idiot to talk to on the hype is a good thing, right?

wow

[Thebumwhowalks]

wow

I have to say i have more respect for his rant than your 'wow', at least he is contributing to the discussion, rather than just coming in to have a dig at someone.

[Wolvieboy17]

Coming from the guy who wrote '....................' two posts prior :P

[Thebumwhowalks]

Coming from the guy who wrote '....................' two posts prior :P

I did write up a post thanking Chicken Scratch for posting up the links to the REH books, as a few months ago had been wondering what the best editions for them were. But, I have been having problems with some people on the forum recently, and I thought that the way my post was worded, could have been mis-construed as a hidden messgae/attack on someone, so i took it down.

Ok, I was standing up for your post back there, but i maybe should not have called it a 'rant', sorry about that, but, a rant is not always a bad thing y'know, as long as you don't lose your temper while doing it and keep your cool.
I actually agree with your points, I'm no kiss ass bub, so don't think i am saying that as you just had a go at me, there are not that many people on this forum whose hate would bother me.

[Wolvieboy17]

Hahaha it's all good dude, I was only teasing. I know you were backing me up. Of course, now I have even more respect for you because you called me 'bub'.

All I need now is a hot redhead to call me 'Tiger' and my nerd dreams have come true.

[Thebumwhowalks]

Hahaha it's all good dude, I was only teasing. I know you were backing me up. Of course, now I have even more respect for you because you called me 'bub'.

lol, i was not even thinking of your username conciously there, the Wolverine in me just popped out.


All I need now is a hot redhead to call me 'Tiger' and my nerd dreams have come true.

Next Halloween, dress up as Tony the Tiger and hang out in Scotland or Ireland.

[Wolvieboy17]

Thats just crazy enough to work! Or I can tell redheads I've got Tiger Blood and Adonis DNA...

[Thebumwhowalks]

Thats just crazy enough to work! Or I can tell redheads I've got Tiger Blood and Adonis DNA...

Get a Jim Morrison haircut, that should cover the Adonis dna, and some tiger skin pants, in fact, tiger skin leather pants for the whole Morrison/Adonis/Tiger blood combo.
I have not actually seen any of those Charlie Sheen interviews, but yeah, they sound like they were funny.

as for this Conan movie, man, I cannot wait to see it, I think at the very least we will get a real good performance from Jason Mamoa, i have not even seen the guy in anything yet, but he is apparently really dedicated to the REH writings, and will be rbinging that attitude into the film. i seem to recall them trying on set to make scenes more in tune with that mode of Conan.
this movie needs to be a hit though, so we can see the proposed REH adaption for the sequel, there were a couple of theories as to what story they alluded to adapting in that interview, but i can't recall what they were.

[LongDong]

Coming from the guy who wrote '....................' two posts prior :P

lol. best thing you have ever written on here.

[Wolvieboy17]

I take extreme offense to that. I've written loads of cool things.

[chelo248]

'Conan the Barbarian' Teaser Trailer (1:00) (http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1809953260/video/24490513)

[Project862006]

that is a pretty epic teaser

love his Conan voice as well

[The Squirrel]

That was awful. hahaha. Oh my gosh... that narrator voice. lol.

[zanos]

Finally a true teaser. Every teaser today is really a quickly edited trailer. Unfortunately I've been waiting to see something from this film so long I just want to see a real trailer already.

[ChickenScratch]

Nice! He said his line from "Queen Of The Black Coast." They showed some of the Picts! Call me happy.

[Thebumwhowalks]

i can't see it on those sites i have to embed it from youtube

gFyuQtE6vmM

edit: em, dunno, what can you tell from a teaser trailer eh? One thing the Phantom Menace taught me was that you can't trust a movie to be any good from a trailer.

[MOVIELORD101]

Just to ask, is that Jason as Conan I hear at the end of the teaser? Cause he sounds more like Conan actually would in real life than Arnold EVER did! No offence.

[Whiskey Tango]

Growly voice is growly.

[Sgt.Pepper]

A passable teaser. Waiting for a longer trailer before I make up my mind.

[Wolvieboy17]

Would have loved it even more without that god awful trailer voice. Why couldn't it have just had the words?

[Blackman]

Saw the trailer. LMao me and my friend were laughing so hard at "I kill, I love, I am content" line or whatever it was

With a line like that it seems like itll be one of those good B movies like Predators at best. Have to wait for official trailer though

[블라스]

Saw the trailer. LMao me and my friend were laughing so hard at "I kill, I love, I am content" line or whatever it was

With a line like that it seems like itll be one of those good B movies like Predators at best. Have to wait for official trailer though

You and your friends were "laughing so hard" at a quote from one of the original Robert E. Howard stories, Queen of the Black Coast.

[Blackman]

ok....
still sounded corny regardless of where it came from. Most of the theater was laughing. It was just one line

[Whiskey Tango]

Would have loved it even more without that god awful trailer voice. Why couldn't it have just had the words?

heh his voice reminded me of this-

w2yv8aT0UFc

Saw the trailer. LMao me and my friend were laughing so hard at "I kill, I love, I am content" line or whatever it was

With a line like that it seems like itll be one of those good B movies like Predators at best. Have to wait for official trailer though

That line is straight from REH's Conan himself.

"I have known many gods. He who denies them is as blind as he who trusts them too deeply. I seek not beyond death. It may be the blackness averred by the Nemedian skeptics, or Crom's realm of ice and cloud, or the snowy plains and vaulted halls of the Nordheimer's Valhalla. I know not, nor do I care. Let me live deep while I live; let me know the rich juices of red meat and stinging wine on my palate, the hot embrace of white arms, the mad exultation of battle when the blue blades flame and crimson, and I am content. Let teachers and philosophers brood over questions of reality and illusion. I know this: if life is illusion, then I am no less an illusion, and being thus, the illusion is real to me. I live, I burn with life, I love, I slay, and am content."

I think this teaser sucks hard but I remain cautiously optimistic. I want this to at least be a good sword & sorcery flick, if not a good Conan one.

[Whiskey Tango]

Most of the theater was laughing.

Theater audience hyperbole, I choose you!

:awesome:

[Iron_Stark]

Pretty awesome teaser.

[Whiskey Tango]

This summer...
In a world where everyone sounds
like they've been smoking five packs a day
since childhood...

pgAwtW1QXvg

It's growing on me a little bit after seeing it a few times. Doesn't give a lot to go on, maybe the full trailer will show him cleaving the skull of some wretched ape demon, or choking a sorceror with one hand while brandishing that big ass sword in the other one. That would be awesome!

[rogue trooper]

ok....
still sounded corny regardless of where it came from. Most of the theater was laughing. It was just one line

May Crom curse you for that remark!!:argh: It was a very nice teaser!!

[Thebumwhowalks]

May Crom curse you for that remark!!:argh: It was a very nice teaser!!

Maybe it was a typo and he meant cromy? Ach, you need to hear cheeseball lines like that in contaxt.

But, i would have preffered a trailer that showed us quick scenes, other than that smokey candle crap or whatever it was.

[Wolvieboy17]

Visually, it was very much like the recent Conan comic adaptations of the Robert E. Howard tales, which is a great thing. Also like the Conan game.

[Doctor Jones]

I don't know which voice was worse, the narrator or Conan.

That line is fine, it's just the delivery. Yeesh.

[Wolvieboy17]

Yeah, I think it sounded kinda corny just because they didn't wrap any context around it. I mean, lets be honest, if Arnie had ever said that line, it would have been ridiculous. It's not the line itself thats great, but the character who says it.

[Thebumwhowalks]

Visually, it was very much like the recent Conan comic adaptations of the Robert E. Howard tales, which is a great thing. Also like the Conan game.

I would have liked to have seen what some of the locales looked like, I was expecting a series of quick images from the movie from different places.

[rogue trooper]

I don't know which voice was worse, the narrator or Conan.

That line is fine, it's just the delivery. Yeesh.


Say what you will of the narrator, but Momoa's voice is spot-on for Conan. Probably the best Conan voice to date.

[Doctor Jones]

I know it's out of context, but based on that, does it need to be that hardcore sounding over such a short line like that? I hope he doesn't sound like that delivering all of his lines. It shouldn't be "sound my manliest" with every delivery.

[Shawn Wayne]

I was hoping for the best but this 'teaser' has cheap red flags all over it

[Wolvieboy17]

Personally, I still think Ron Perlman in the Conan video game was spot on.

[Iron_Stark]

Momoa sound great. I don't see what the problem is.

[Midnyte_Sun]

Nauseating teaser. Like the big Inception sounds though.

[Doc Ock]

The teaser could of been better....the narrator was kinda annoying.

[Donut]

Momoa sound great. I don't see what the problem is.

People are complaining about the bad narrator not Jason

[Doctor Jones]

Say what you will of the narrator, but Momoa's voice is spot-on for Conan. Probably the best Conan voice to date.

Meh, it's not that good to me. It sounds like he's trying too hard.

[zanos]

Maybe it was a typo and he meant cromy? Ach, you need to hear cheeseball lines like that in contaxt.

But, i would have preffered a trailer that showed us quick scenes, other than that smokey candle crap or whatever it was.

Teasers are mostly about teasing the audience. What you want is a full on trailer, which alot of studios are doing nowadays.


heh his voice reminded me of this-

w2yv8aT0UFc



That line is straight from REH's Conan himself.

"I have known many gods. He who denies them is as blind as he who trusts them too deeply. I seek not beyond death. It may be the blackness averred by the Nemedian skeptics, or Crom's realm of ice and cloud, or the snowy plains and vaulted halls of the Nordheimer's Valhalla. I know not, nor do I care. Let me live deep while I live; let me know the rich juices of red meat and stinging wine on my palate, the hot embrace of white arms, the mad exultation of battle when the blue blades flame and crimson, and I am content. Let teachers and philosophers brood over questions of reality and illusion. I know this: if life is illusion, then I am no less an illusion, and being thus, the illusion is real to me. I live, I burn with life, I love, I slay, and am content."

I think this teaser sucks hard but I remain cautiously optimistic. I want this to at least be a good sword & sorcery flick, if not a good Conan one.

Good find, I really liked the teaser, but by now I just want to see a trailer.

[Iron_Stark]

People are complaining about the bad narrator not Jason

Ah ok, its too bad the voice over guy died a few years ago he would've done a better job.

Oh well, this movie is going to kick all sorts of ass with or without bad voice overs, can't wait.

[Eelectro 2]

i thought it was cool. its a teaser and im just thrilled they actually are rebooting a movie that deserves to be redone. its not the only one i back up, but films (aside from spider-man and hulk) that we around less than 5-10 years prior just dont deserve a reboot.

[Project862006]

jason has a very natural deep voice tho i think thats just his natural low voice

[Thebumwhowalks]

Teasers are mostly about teasing the audience. What you want is a full on trailer, which alot of studios are doing nowadays.


No, I know the difference, it's just that most teasers at least show you some quick scenes of locales, the Batman Begins teaser for example. Very short, but it still showed you a couple of locations, even though it did not show you actual footage of Batman, only showing two photos of Batman at the end.

[Fanticon]

that was one of the worst teasers ever...it gave me a Kull the Conqueror vibe...*shudders*:dry:

[Project862006]

its rated r buddy

momoa actually looks like conan and looks bigger than your guy

oh and did i mention momoa is 6'4 and Manu Bennet is 5'10

[ChickenScratch]

I'm sorry but those pictures of Bennett and of all those other depictions of Conan that seem one step removed from Frazetta don't work for me. He was a great artist and I respect what he did, but like in any "heroic art" things are made larger than life. There's a reason Charles Atlas was used as the model for statues of George Washington among others, Washington was not that big ... but it makes for an awesome image.

I love the Conan books, heck, I'm reading through the REH canon right now for the umpteenth time. Jason strikes me as much closer to what I imagined Conan as in my head. Jason's voice matches the "deep rumble of millstones" voice Conan should have. He's big, but still believable as a man who grew up on the steppes rock climbing, horseback riding, sword swinging and practicing archery. Conan's built, but not that big, he is dwarfed by other people in the books both by REH and subsequent authors.

We are all entitled to what we think Conan "should" be. But at this point I'm happy with what I'm seeing. I hate to put myself into my posts but I am a martial artist, with 25 years of experience (I started at 5, I'm not that old) and I teach Karate. As a lifelong physical culturist there's a huge difference between functional muscle and muscle for looks. There are just certain looks and builds that look more functional fit but still are impressive, and truth be told Arnold's form when using the sword showed many deficiencies from my standpoint. But again, I'm coming from a Japanese slant where I learned to use the sword in Kendo class.

[Paroxysm]

The dude looks like Conan.

[Blackman]

whats the budget on this?

[Wolvieboy17]

Superboy, Conan existed well before the comics, so using that comic as a guide for how he's supposed to look is just wrong. Momoa looks more like the REH Conan than any depiction i've seen, with the exception of the Kurk Busiek/Cary Nord recent graphic Novel, which was based on the REH depiction.

[Hurm...]

What a poopy teaser trailer.

[Whiskey Tango]

Superboy, Conan existed well before the comics, so using that comic as a guide for how he's supposed to look is just wrong. Momoa looks more like the REH Conan than any depiction i've seen, with the exception of the Kurk Busiek/Cary Nord recent graphic Novel, which was based on the REH depiction.

Yeah something tells me this guy hasn't ever touched a REH story.

[Wolvieboy17]

You know Whisky, now after seeing you post his full collection of posts, I wish I hadn't bothered with my previous post. People like that just aren't worth talking to. I lose all respect for the opinion of ANYONE who tries to attack others for potentially being 'young' and then goes on to berate and troll in the most juvenile manner possible. Seriously, people like that have just been corrupted by the internet (or they were d*cks to begin with).

Also, as for the eyebrow plucking? Conan was always a fairly neat cat. He was described as 'panther like' with pure black hair, bronzed skin etc. No where in the books does it describe him as a big hairy, manly man beast. THAT would be more cliched than this supposed 'twilight' thing. Seriously, is that connection PURELY being made because both he and Jacob have similar skin complexion and both hairless chests? Yeeeesh.

[Superboy-Prime]

Wow, all my posts were deleted. pathetic.

[Morg]

OK, enough with the bickering and such. I don't like giving time outs but I will if the name calling doesn't stop

Also please remember when you hot link pictures and if any of the pics turn to porn you can get banned for it

[Morg]

Wow, all my posts were deleted. pathetic.

Better tune it down, I deleted not just yours but everyone in the bickering, now let's start over and no more bickering.

[Whiskey Tango]

You know Whisky, now after seeing you post his full collection of posts, I wish I hadn't bothered with my previous post. People like that just aren't worth talking to. I lose all respect for the opinion of ANYONE who tries to attack others for potentially being 'young' and then goes on to berate and troll in the most juvenile manner possible. Seriously, people like that have just been corrupted by the internet (or they were d*cks to begin with).

I'm all too easily drawn into bickering like that. No one comes out of it clean.

Wow, all my posts were deleted. pathetic.

You might even say they were plucked!

[Whiskey Tango]

Better tune it down, I deleted not just yours but everyone in the bickering, now let's start over and no more bickering.

Affirmitive.

[Morg]

I plunked yours too Whiskey, now everyone play nice

[Wolvieboy17]

Ha, 'plunked' Just like 'Kerplunk!'

Isn't there a new reality TV candid camera show hosted by Jason Momoa called "Plunk'd"? :D

[Whiskey Tango]

Incidentally, if anyone is interested in reading the original Conan stories the way God intended then they should pick up the Del Rey collections, starting with The Coming of Conan the Cimmerian (http://www.amazon.com/Coming-Conan-Cimmerian-Original-Adventures/dp/0345461517/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1300062148&sr=8-4). Two more collections follow that one and they are most definitely worth it.

http://i51.tinypic.com/2db9rpi.jpg

[Project862006]

good those posts likely including mine were plucked they got too bushy

[C. Lee]

Back in the 70's, practicly all if not all of REH's works were put out in paperback. I bought and read everything I could find. I'm always looking forward to adaptations of his various works (still waiting for the recent Soloman Kane movie to be available over here)....so I look forward to this movie.

[rogue trooper]

whats the budget on this?

$90 million-$100 million.

[rogue trooper]

(still waiting for the recent Soloman Kane movie to be available over here).

It's on youtube.

[ChickenScratch]

Back in the 70's, practicly all if not all of REH's works were put out in paperback. I bought and read everything I could find. I'm always looking forward to adaptations of his various works (still waiting for the recent Soloman Kane movie to be available over here)....so I look forward to this movie.

Lee, in a weird way I envy you. My first impression of Conan being a child of the 80's was Arnold. I was maybe 14 before I even knew they were books. It's weird, my dad had all the James Bond novels, got them the moment they came out, as well as Clancy, western novels, action, horror, he had a pretty good collection ... yet he didnt have Conan.

When I discovered the books it was mindblowing to me. Changed my whole idea of who and what Conan is. Whats weirder is that it was a
L. Sprague de Camp book. But from there I went on to get the REH stuff.

[Blackman]

$90 million-$100 million.

ANd this is reportedly rated R right?

[rogue trooper]

Yep.

[C. Lee]

It's on youtube.
That's like saying you have a flip book of it....when I watch a movie, I watch it on my large screen TV .
Lee, in a weird way I envy you. My first impression of Conan being a child of the 80's was Arnold. I was maybe 14 before I even knew they were books. It's weird, my dad had all the James Bond novels, got them the moment they came out, as well as Clancy, western novels, action, horror, he had a pretty good collection ... yet he didnt have Conan.

When I discovered the books it was mindblowing to me. Changed my whole idea of who and what Conan is. Whats weirder is that it was a
L. Sprague de Camp book. But from there I went on to get the REH stuff.

A kid in the 70's (if he was a reader) was in a golden age. So much of the great stuff from the 30's and 40's were being republished in cheap paperbacks. I still have my complete paperback collections of REH, Edgar Rice Burroughs, Doc Savage, and so on. I was reading the original Conan stories before Marvel released the comic, which came out years before the movie.

[ChickenScratch]

That's like saying you have a flip book of it....when I watch a movie, I watch it on my large screen TV .
A kid in the 70's (if he was a reader) was in a golden age. So much of the great stuff from the 30's and 40's were being republished in cheap paperbacks. I still have my complete paperback collections of REH, Edgar Rice Burroughs, Doc Savage, and so on. I was reading the original Conan stories before Marvel released the comic, which came out years before the movie.

Yes indeed it was a great time in literature. Hey, I went to college for Journalism and Literature so stuff like that I actually think about. You did grow up in a great era, but come on, the 80's had the techno-thriller and the birth of the airport novel. Nothing I love more than a door-stopper of a book ... that also happens to be action.

But getting back into Conan, I guess when I was a kid the Conan novels were in a bad place. Robert Jordan really did a pedestrian job on his run. Not that I read them in the 80's, but yeah, that's what was going on with Conan when I was a kid. LOL.

[Whiskey Tango]

Pretty cool motion poster, but it might be months old for all I know. Haven't followed this thread closely until recently.

http://conanthebarbarianin3d.com/motionposter/

[zanos]

I've read a bit of the Coming of Conan book, The Sowers of Thunder and Fires of the Dragon and I can't say I'm all that impressed with Howard. I do like his prose, and his short stories aren't bad, but I have no idea why he appears to be so popular.

[Wolvieboy17]

Well you haven't listed any reasons as to why you weren't impressed, so it makes it hard to converse on the subject...

[Morg]

That's like saying you have a flip book of it....when I watch a movie, I watch it on my large screen TV .


A kid in the 70's (if he was a reader) was in a golden age. So much of the great stuff from the 30's and 40's were being republished in cheap paperbacks. I still have my complete paperback collections of REH, Edgar Rice Burroughs, Doc Savage, and so on. I was reading the original Conan stories before Marvel released the comic, which came out years before the movie.

heh, same here was reading the Conan paperbacks back in the 70's :woot:
Got a ton of other paperbacks from other authors that did more stories.

[ChickenScratch]

heh, same here was reading the Conan paperbacks back in the 70's :woot:
Got a ton of other paperbacks from other authors that did more stories.

Yeah, I started with de Camp so I'm no different. But of course I read the originals after a couple of the pastiches. As far as the other authors go, the quality of the work varies as in all things.

[zanos]

@Wolvie

The stories are just simple entertainment. There's really no depth to them because they're so short. Even Fires of the Dragon was just a short story dragged out into the length of a novella.

[rogue trooper]

@Wolvie

The stories are just simple entertainment. There's really no depth to them because they're so short. Even Fires of the Dragon was just a short story dragged out into the length of a novella.

There's the theme of "barbarism vs civilization" in Howard's tales.

[Wolvieboy17]

Yeah, I loved that theme. The whole idea of someone completely naive to the ways of civilisation trying to find a way to function in normal society. Throughout all his stories, he essentially just tries everything, and ends up becoming king of Aquilonia. That's a fairly great idea, plenty of depth and ideas behind that, I would say.

Also, in his purity, Conan doesn't really discriminate, he just sees strength as good and weakness as bad. I love when he first enters society and gets ripped off, after punching the inn keeper, decides to try and understand civilisation by immersing himself in the worst it has to offer, namely Zamora and the city of thieves. That's a really cool idea. If anything, I would say the Conan books are a great potential study of anthropology and sociology. A LOT of social issues in Conan, which is all the more interesting for study when you consider it was written by a Southern man in the 1920/30's. Makes you wonder what he was trying to say? Huh?

[afan]

The "This summer....." narration has been lampooned so often.

Other than that failing..... the teaser actually is pretty good....loved the Conan quote and Momoa's reading.

[GhostPoet]

So, looking forward to the movie...but me and the friends I was with were actually laughing at the teaser. The deep voice narriator was hilariously cheesy.

[Whiskey Tango]

So, looking forward to the movie...but me and the friends I was with were actually laughing at the teaser. The deep voice narriator was hilariously cheesy.

One of the Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy trailers (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MbGNcoB2Y4I#t=1m) joked about this. :woot:

RIP Don LaFontaine.

[regwec]

I think this looks pretty good. I was a big fan of the original Arnie movie, and I sporadically read the Dark Horse comics. I recently plowed through about 2/3 of the short stories, but I have to say they are a little bit samey. I think I enjoyed the story set in the Pictish wilderness the most- it would be nice to see Conan in a fight to the death with some other barbarians.

[Dark Knight]

Ugh.

This ill conceived Conan film huh? :doh:

[Panthro]

Saw the teaser with "Battle: Los Angeles". Thought the teaser was a little underwhelming, but that does not deter my interest in seeing the film.

[TheVileOne]

This will probably be PG-13 unfortunately.

[Panthro]

This will probably be PG-13 unfortunately.
And then there will probably be an unrated director's cut.

[rogue trooper]

This will probably be PG-13 unfortunately.

I highly doubt it.

[zanos]

Unfrotunately, the studios probably feel they need to do that in order to get the whole family to go see Conan.

[rogue trooper]

Yes, studios do tend to do lousy stuff like that. However, the producers and the screenwriter have already very much assured that this will be a hard R in the tradition of "300".

[Iron_Stark]

This will probably be PG-13 unfortunately.

They already confirmed gore and beheadings and some of the first pics that were released were of Conan with topless wenches.

This isn't going to be PG-13.

[Shawn Wayne]

They already confirmed gore and beheadings and some of the first pics that were released were of Conan with topless wenches.

This isn't going to be PG-13.




This is why I'm still clinging to hope that this movie will be good. A REH Conan SHOULD be a hard R

[Wolvieboy17]

Lol I love it when Americans call it a 'Hard R' because an R for you guys is 'MA' for us, which is softer than our R. So a 'Hard R' seems kinda weak lol.

Lets get this bad boy a Hard PG13+ !

[Valaquen]

For me, the original Conan had some real moments of wonder, mostly when everything was silent and we saw this battered but fresh-faced, wonder-eyed hulk traversing through this weird landscape with sexual witches and snake warlords. I love the shot at the end with Conan at the top of the tmple, overlooking everyone. He throws Thulsa Doom's head down, takes his woman, and leaves the place to burn. Fantastic.

[Wolvieboy17]

Nah, Arnie just played him as an idiotic barbarian. The REH Conan was cunning and smart, but unfamiliar with civilisation. He's not so starry eyed and more apprehensive and mistrusting of everything foreign, which is a much more interesting way to portray the character, since that was the whole comment on society Howard was trying to make.

[Octoberist]

I can't help it but to think the this teaser is probably one of the worst ones I've seen in a long time from a major(ish) studio.

[Wolvieboy17]

Yeah, I recommend just watching it with the sound down. Visually, it's kinda cool.

[Valaquen]

Nah, Arnie just played him as an idiotic barbarian. The REH Conan was cunning and smart, but unfamiliar with civilisation. He's not so starry eyed and more apprehensive and mistrusting of everything foreign, which is a much more interesting way to portray the character, since that was the whole comment on society Howard was trying to make.
The Schwarz movie has no sociology going on, for sure, but the character isn't stupid. We see his education in the film, and he outwits a horde in one battle by setting up traps, etc. He's a different Conan, yeah, he was raised in a pit as a gladiator, whereas the literary Conan grew up in the plains, fighting battles and whatnot. So he's not going to be as starry-eyed as the Milius version. I'm for both.

[regwec]

For me, the original Conan had some real moments of wonder, mostly when everything was silent and we saw this battered but fresh-faced, wonder-eyed hulk traversing through this weird landscape with sexual witches and snake warlords. I love the shot at the end with Conan at the top of the tmple, overlooking everyone. He throws Thulsa Doom's head down, takes his woman, and leaves the place to burn. Fantastic.
Yes, I love both those moments. Without any dialogue, they seem to capture Conan's loneliness in both the "naked land" and among human civilization equally.

I loved the use of narration, as well. While superficially quite cheesy, it does prevent Conan from having to give voice to his own feelings and motivation, which wouldn't be a very Conan-ish thing to do.

[Doctor Jones]

I should read these stories. Along with Solomon Kane, which I have been ****ing waiting for ages to come out here in the states. I don't want to resort to youtube, but I may have no other choice.

[Shawn Wayne]

Lol I love it when Americans call it a 'Hard R' because an R for you guys is 'MA' for us, which is softer than our R. So a 'Hard R' seems kinda weak lol.

Lets get this bad boy a Hard PG13+ !


I wish you lived closer so we could hang out

[Wolvieboy17]

I was saying in one of the other threads how funny it would be to have a huge Hype movie club, and all go and see these movies together.

[terry78]

Lol I love it when Americans call it a 'Hard R' because an R for you guys is 'MA' for us, which is softer than our R. So a 'Hard R' seems kinda weak lol.

Lets get this bad boy a Hard PG13+ !

Damn Europeans and your fancy plus and minus signs. I go to the movies, I want to read letters, not do math. :argh:

[Wolvieboy17]

Not European. Too exclusive for THAT :P

[rogue trooper]

New picture of Stephen Lang as Khalar Zym: http://www.newsarama.com/film/conan-Khalar-Zym-image-110318.html

http://i.newsarama.com/images/conan_movie_02.jpg

[Wolvieboy17]

Oh my god, he's just clearly a rehashing of James Earl Jones. He has eyes, a nose, he even has teeth. This is just going to mirror the original :O

[rogue trooper]

Heh:yay:

[ChickenScratch]

That's pretty sweet. In the right lighting with the right camera angles that's gonna look impressive.

[Shon]

I'm sorry but those pictures of Bennett and of all those other depictions of Conan that seem one step removed from Frazetta don't work for me. He was a great artist and I respect what he did, but like in any "heroic art" things are made larger than life. There's a reason Charles Atlas was used as the model for statues of George Washington among others, Washington was not that big ... but it makes for an awesome image.

I love the Conan books, heck, I'm reading through the REH canon right now for the umpteenth time. Jason strikes me as much closer to what I imagined Conan as in my head. Jason's voice matches the "deep rumble of millstones" voice Conan should have. He's big, but still believable as a man who grew up on the steppes rock climbing, horseback riding, sword swinging and practicing archery. Conan's built, but not that big, he is dwarfed by other people in the books both by REH and subsequent authors.

We are all entitled to what we think Conan "should" be. But at this point I'm happy with what I'm seeing. I hate to put myself into my posts but I am a martial artist, with 25 years of experience (I started at 5, I'm not that old) and I teach Karate. As a lifelong physical culturist there's a huge difference between functional muscle and muscle for looks. There are just certain looks and builds that look more functional fit but still are impressive, and truth be told Arnold's form when using the sword showed many deficiencies from my standpoint. But again, I'm coming from a Japanese slant where I learned to use the sword in Kendo class.

Conan didn't pick up a bow and arrow until he was out of Cimmeria correct?

George Washington was actually pretty big, well over 6 foot and considered a giant among men back then. He was impressive - you should pick up a biography on him and read it. He was unbelievable with the things he accomplished and the things he went through/survived on his own guts and stamina alone.

[Wolvieboy17]

Somebody start singing starts and stripes.

[Midnyte_Sun]

That's pretty sweet. In the right lighting with the right camera angles that's gonna look impressive.

His chin looks like it's falling off. They're going to need some CG.

[Wolvieboy17]

I think thats his actual chin. I remember noticing that weird line in Avatar.

http://mimg.ugo.com/200912/12522/cuts/quaritch_288x288.jpg

[ChickenScratch]

Conan didn't pick up a bow and arrow until he was out of Cimmeria correct?

George Washington was actually pretty big, well over 6 foot and considered a giant among men back then. He was impressive - you should pick up a biography on him and read it. He was unbelievable with the things he accomplished and the things he went through/survived on his own guts and stamina alone.

I've read a biography of George Washington. No matter howhe was described, he was not a bodybuilder, nor anywhere as impressive. I guess you missed the point of my post, that they used Charles Atlas as the model for many historical figures because art leans towards idealism, especially when it comes to heros.

As for the bow thing. I would have to check again, I could be wrong on when exactly he picked it up. But I'm pretty sure he did carry a bow when the Cimmerians united to attack the fort and drive back the invaders when Conan was 15 (first couple pages of Beyond The Black River he talks about it).

[Shon]

I've read a biography of George Washington. No matter howhe was described, he was not a bodybuilder, nor anywhere as impressive. I guess you missed the point of my post, that they used Charles Atlas as the model for many historical figures because art leans towards idealism, especially when it comes to heros.

As for the bow thing. I would have to check again, I could be wrong on when exactly he picked it up. But I'm pretty sure he did carry a bow when the Cimmerians united to attack the fort and drive back the invaders when Conan was 15 (first couple pages of Beyond The Black River he talks about it).

Never said he was a bodybuilder, but he was head and shoulders taller (pushing 6'4") and bigger than just about every man of his time, when I say he was impressive I was obviously using a context as more than just his physical stature.

[ChickenScratch]

I know you didn't say that. But you did mention GW being big by the standards then. But I was making the point that heroic art is in most cases idealized and he's a prime example of that.

But back to Conan. Do we know what city/cities this movie will be taking place?

[rogue trooper]

Picture of Leo Howard as young Conan with a what seems to be a Pict:

http://i51.tinypic.com/2hydr7r.jpg

[ChickenScratch]

Could that kid pass for 15? Because in Conan's early raiding parties he did encounter Picts. Assuming that is one, that is.

[C. Lee]

I haven't read the actual REH stories since the 70's, so things are getting hazy.....guess it's time to re-read them.

[ChickenScratch]

I haven't read the actual REH stories since the 70's, so things are getting hazy.....guess it's time to re-read them.

Do it man. I've been reading through them again in the past few weeks.

Right now I'm towards the first third of Red Nails when Conan and Valeria just enter the city and are wondering around from room to room. But before Valeria kills that guy in the skull get-up.

[LongDong]

Could that kid pass for 15? Because in Conan's early raiding parties he did encounter Picts. Assuming that is one, that is.

He is awful small for a 15 year old Conan

[tecnowraith]

Height does not matter for age. I have know 15 yrs who were 5.6 or 18 yrs' who 5.4.

[rogue trooper]

Jason Momoa talks "Conan The Barbarian" and sequel:
http://www.denofgeek.com/movies/833247/exclusive_jason_momoa_confirms_conan_the_barbarian _sequel_plan.html

[Shawn Wayne]

Jason Momoa talks "Conan The Barbarian" and sequel:
http://www.denofgeek.com/movies/833247/exclusive_jason_momoa_confirms_conan_the_barbarian _sequel_plan.html


Thanks for the post!

[LongDong]

Height does not matter for age. I have know 15 yrs who were 5.6 or 18 yrs' who 5.4.

It appears you do not know the character. He is small for Conan at 15 very small. I would say he is supposed to be much younger than that in the photo.

[LongDong]

Went to the movies yesterday and the teaser trailer played, fairly negative reaction. The older guy in front of me who I would think would enjoy this type of film (in his 50's?) commented "That looks retarded" and people around him snickered.

Anyone else gotten a reaction in the theater from the teaser - pos or neg?

[rogue trooper]

Thanks for the post!

Here's the interview in its entirety. Momoa seems to really get it!! Check it out:
http://www.denofgeek.com/television/836822/jason_momoa_interview_game_of_thrones_playing_cona n_and_more.html

[rogue trooper]

Michael A. Stackpole talks novelization and the film:
http://www.conanmovieblog.com/2011/04/07/michael-a-stackpole-on-novelizations-and-the-film/

Jason Momoa on Access Hollywood:
http://www.conanmovieblog.com/2011/04/07/jason-momoa-interview-with-access-hollywood/#more-1751

[ChickenScratch]

It's all very exciting. Of all the movies this summer I'm looking forward to, I think I'm most looking forward to this and GL over all.

[afan]

Conan didn't pick up a bow and arrow until he was out of Cimmeria correct?

George Washington was actually pretty big, well over 6 foot and considered a giant among men back then. He was impressive - you should pick up a biography on him and read it. He was unbelievable with the things he accomplished and the things he went through/survived on his own guts and stamina alone.


As I recall Conan had a strong distaste for the bow and arrow as a weapon. It allowed for dispatching an enemy in an impersonal method without honor. That's not to say as King of Aquilonia he wouldn't recognize it's tactical worth on a battlefield, but it was not a weapon of personal choice for him.

[rogue trooper]

New image from a French magazine: http://www.elbakin.net/fantasy/news/conan/14193-Conan-dans-Mad-Movies

http://www.elbakin.net/plume/xmedia/fantasy/news/conan/mad-conan.jpg

[Shon]

Went to the movies yesterday and the teaser trailer played, fairly negative reaction. The older guy in front of me who I would think would enjoy this type of film (in his 50's?) commented "That looks retarded" and people around him snickered.

Anyone else gotten a reaction in the theater from the teaser - pos or neg?

All I have heard is neg, heard some pos on these forums and that is it

[rogue trooper]

Look, the Howard purists have actually gone from being negative to neutral towards the film. It seems as more has been shown(like the Empire magazine pics), the more at ease they've become, so far.

It's really the Arnold aficionados(whom most of em' probably haven't read a Howard book) who are at odds. They hate that Momoa doesn't look like the Governator.

The ones who seem to be more excited at how this film is looking so far are the fans of the Marvel and Dark Horse Conan comics.

[Rowsdower!]

Arnold and his diehard cultist fans can go enjoy The Governator cartoon. All two episodes of it before it gets cancelled.

I do hope they release a better trailer soon though. The teaser was okay, but it felt a little direct-to-DVD to me. Not exactly sure why. I guess just because they showed so little in it and what they did show really wasn't that interesting. I did like Conan's lines though. I really hope Momoa does a good job because it's tough to step into a role that is so tied to another actor. The sad thing is that it's not even tied to a GOOD actor.

[SatEL]

Arnold and his diehard cultist fans can go enjoy The Governator cartoon. All two episodes of it before it gets cancelled.

I do hope they release a better trailer soon though. The teaser was okay, but it felt a little direct-to-DVD to me. Not exactly sure why. I guess just because they showed so little in it and what they did show really wasn't that interesting. I did like Conan's lines though. I really hope Momoa does a good job because it's tough to step into a role that is so tied to another actor. The sad thing is that it's not even tied to a GOOD actor.

Get to the chopahhhhhhhhhhhhh.

[Doctor Jones]

You philistines. Arnold is a thespian at whatever he does. The range, the emotion, encompasses everything an actor wishes they could do with their so-called "abilities."

[regwec]

Arnie is a good screen presence. He looks and sounds extremely distinctive, which prevents him really acting in a meaningful sense, but he isn't bad at plausibly conveying different attitudes and emotions. In my opinion he is a better performer than the Jean Claude Van Damme or Dolph Lundgren's of this world. Making a character like Conan tolerably likeable, or the T800 sympathetic, isn't all that easy.

All the same, I am really looking forward to a different spin on the Howard stories. I really enjoyed the Solomon Kane movie, and hope this can be a good counterpart.

[Doctor Jones]

Man, I'm aching to watch Solomon Kane. It's on youtube, but it doesn't deserve to be watched on there.

[Shon]

Look, the Howard purists have actually gone from being negative to neutral towards the film. It seems as more has been shown(like the Empire magazine pics), the more at ease they've become, so far.

It's really the Arnold aficionados(whom most of em' probably haven't read a Howard book) who are at odds. They hate that Momoa doesn't look like the Governator.

The ones who seem to be more excited at how this film is looking so far are the fans of the Marvel and Dark Horse Conan comics.

Basing your comments on your opinion is pointless.

I got my start on Conan from the Marvel comics - then the first film - then the horrible second - then the novels.

I still enjoy the old Marvel comics, Savage Sword Magazines and the new Dark Horse issues as well as the books and yes I still enjoy the classic film. The second film I can leave behind and not miss, whatever.

I will be there for this film - opening night - and have low expectations based on the film makers involved. I think Momoa is a good choice for the character but wish that he would not have been so rushed into the the filming process. Give the guy more time to work out! Otherwise he has the right height, hair color and such, just too skinny.

Arnold had the right build, just wrong hair (should have been colored but whatever) and at 6 foot 2 a tad on the short side.

Arnold had the classic Buscema/Chan body that most of the other artists interpret Conan to look like from the source material.

[Whiskey Tango]

I have the first couple volumes of Essential Savage Sword of Conan, it's pretty badass. AMAZING art. :up:

[rogue trooper]

Basing your comments on your opinion is pointless.

I got my start on Conan from the Marvel comics - then the first film - then the horrible second - then the novels.

I will be there for this film - opening night - and have low expectations based on the film makers involved. I think Momoa is a good choice for the character but wish that he would not have been so rushed into the the filming process. Give the guy more time to work out! Otherwise he has the right height, hair color and such, just too skinny.

Arnold had the right build, just wrong hair (should have been colored but whatever) and at 6 foot 2 a tad on the short side.

Arnold had the classic Buscema/Chan body that most of the other artists interpret Conan to look like from the source material.

Well, for that matter, yours is pointless, too.:cwink:

Yes, Arnold looked like Buscema's rendition. Well, Momoa looks like Barry W. Smith's, as well as Mark Schultz's renditions in the The Coming of Conan TPB(specifically The Tower of The Elephant). Your whole "skinny" argument can be easily dissmisable(not to mention a tired one).



As screenwriter Sean Hood stated: "To perfectly cast REH's Conan, you would have to find an actor with the body of Arnold, the athleticism and flexibility of baryshnikov, the fighting skill of a world-class martial artist, the charisma of a cult idol, and the acting chops of a Royal Shakespeare Company Thespian. No such actor exists in the real world."

[rogue trooper]

This is funny. Conan vs Thor vs Green Lantern(Ryan, Conan is not Mongolian:cwink:): http://www.conanmovieblog.com/2011/04/02/conan-vs-thor-vs-green-lantern-at-omg-com/#more-1730

[Wolvieboy17]

REH's Conan is never described as that big anyway, he's described as more 'panther-like'. Also he's frequently encountering human enemies who are bigger than him (and obviously cleaving their skulls in twain :P) so to find people decently bigger than anyone Arnie sized would be ridiculous.

I think he looks great, 10 times better than Arnie as a representation of the REH Conan. The quality of the film will not live or die on how much he does or doesn't look like Arnie, however, it will fall on the script, director and acting. It's funny how little that stuff has come into question in this thread, no, it's all about ethnicity and muscle mass.

[Shon]

REH's Conan is never described as that big anyway, he's described as more 'panther-like'. Also he's frequently encountering human enemies who are bigger than him (and obviously cleaving their skulls in twain :P) so to find people decently bigger than anyone Arnie sized would be ridiculous.

I think he looks great, 10 times better than Arnie as a representation of the REH Conan. The quality of the film will not live or die on how much he does or doesn't look like Arnie, however, it will fall on the script, director and acting. It's funny how little that stuff has come into question in this thread, no, it's all about ethnicity and muscle mass.

Howard describes Conan's movement as panther like, not his build. Keep reading.

Howard describes Conan as being giant and deep of chest. Yes he describes people bigger than Conan, but to me deep of chest is someone of somewhat bulky muscular build. Momoa is not this, as stated before - he could be a perfect young Conan with the current build if he wasn't as old as he is.

Well, for that matter, yours is pointless, too.:cwink:

Yes, Arnold looked like Buscema's rendition. Well, Momoa looks like Barry W. Smith's, as well as Mark Schultz's renditions in the The Coming of Conan TPB(specifically The Tower of The Elephant). Your whole "skinny" argument can be easily dissmisable(not to mention a tired one).

Windsor Smith's Conan was young and fresh out of the hills of Cimmeria, late teens - not fully developed physically.

I hope this movie is good and makes money so a sequel is made, expectations are low but hoping it happens, so Momoa has time to develop a proper frame and grow into the character. I think he can take this into a good direction if this works out. Doubt we will ever see it however.

[Wolvieboy17]

But isn't Momoa's Conan fresh out of the hills too? This is a reboot, yes?

You are so fixated on the body type, this is exactly like the Captain America thread before casting. There is more to Conan than his muscle, so much more.

Guess what, Arnie had all the muscle but had zero presence. Conan is the kind of character who just captures a room the moment he enters it. It's the whole picture, his statue, build, eyes, voice etc. Same with how Captain America is so much more than buff and blonde, Conan is so much more than 'arnie build'. If from reading those comics and Conan tales, you came away feeling his muscle mass is the most important part of him, then I feel you are perhaps missing out on the more imporatant parts of the character.

Also, you say his movement is panther like but not his build? Have you ever seen a Rhino move with the speed of a panther? He's supposed to be agile and limber, which is not a body builder's build. To be honest, knowing something about muscle mass building, it would not make sense for Conan to have a body builder's muscle mass anyway, from the lifestyle he leads.

http://images.darkhorse.com/covers/300/10/10921.jpg

http://www.brokenfrontier.com/img/2005/may/DH/CONAN19-FC.jpg

http://www.conanmovieblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/conan2m_altered.jpg

[Wolvieboy17]

To me, all those are perfect Conan.

[rogue trooper]

Windsor Smith's Conan was young and fresh out of the hills of Cimmeria, late teens - not fully developed physically.

I hope this movie is good and makes money so a sequel is made, expectations are low but hoping it happens, so Momoa has time to develop a proper frame and grow into the character. I think he can take this into a good direction if this works out. Doubt we will ever see it however.

Windsor-Smith also drew the "Red Nails" adaptation, which takes place in Conan's more mature years, and he drew Conan with very much the same physique he had done previously.

Also, Christian Bale at his 30's effectively played a "Batman:Year One"-young Bruce Wayne/Batman in "Batman Begins". I don't see why Momoa shouldn't be able to pass for a young Conan.


I've no doubt Momoa will bulk even more for a sequel. Hey, Arnold got even more jacked-up for "Conan The Destroyer". Hugh Jackman got even bigger for Wolverine in "Origins" than he was in X2 & 3. That doesn't mean, though, that Jackman looked significantly less impressive in X2. Same with Momoa in this Conan film.

[LongDong]

I've no doubt Momoa will bulk even more for a sequel. Hey, Arnold got even more jacked-up for "Conan The Destroyer". Hugh Jackman got even bigger for Wolverine in "Origins" than he was in X2 & 3. That doesn't mean, though, that Jackman looked significantly less impressive in X2. Same with Momoa in this Conan film.
Actually Shwarzenegger was smaller for Destroyer. He had lost mass for the original movie and lost even more mass for Destroyer, he was no longer body building. Thankfully, at he height of his BBuilding days, he would have been way too big to play Conan or any character other than the Hulk. Go check out pics of him when he was actually building, he was HUGE.

Fact - the only time Shwarzenegger ever lost anything to Lou Ferrigno (or anything for that matter) was when he tried out for the role of the Incredible Hulk. They said he was not tall enough.

[Wolvieboy17]

I just watched Arnie's Conan again, and honestly, the only thing in any of those films that feels even vaguely Conan is the locations. Everything else just feels so generic fantasy, with Arnie as a generic barbarian. I think it's such a shame, that for some many people, that is the definitive version of Conan. I think he is just as poorly portrayed as Bane is in Batman Forever.

Why do strong characters like Conan always just get distilled down to brutish and muscly? They do the same thing with The Punisher, distill him to some guy who just kills people. No effort at exploring the depth of torment behind him, in the same way they ignore the intelligence and cunning of Conan. But it doesn't matter, right? As long as he's as muscly as Arnie.

[Whiskey Tango]

A lot of Conan fans feel like the first Schwarzenegger movie is a terrible Conan film but an awesome Hyborian Age one.

[Wolvieboy17]

Yeah, I can dig that. I just wish it wasn't 'Conan'. It could have been anyone. He certainly wasn't a Cimmerian, that's for sure.

You know what bugged me about Arnie the most? In almost every REH Conan tale, some 'civilised' person see's Conan and says something like "What will you do, you're just another stupid, ignorant Barbarian" and then Conan would gut him and say "Fool, i'm a Cimmerian!". With the REH Conan, it was always awesome to see how underestimated he was, but with the Arnie Conan, that would pretty much be an accurate summary. He's not even a skilled fighter, he just seems to have raw strength. Arnie Conan is just the kind of enemy that REH Conan would fight circles around.

[rogue trooper]

A lot of Conan fans feel like the first Schwarzenegger movie is a terrible Conan film but an awesome Hyborian Age one.

Some would say it is a better Kull-like movie than a Conan movie.

[Thundarr]

Why does everyone on this thread assume that being big and muscular = being slow and clumsy? Has anyone here ever watched a pro wrestling match? Has anyone here ever seen the amazing feats of athleticism performed by people like The Undertaker? The Rock? Mike Awesome? Bill Goldberg? I've seen The Undertaker, at 6'10" and 300 lbs, dive over the top rope onto his opponent on the floor. I've seen The Rock, at 6'6" and 275 lbs, do a nip up. Same for the 6'6", 300 lbs Bill Goldberg. Mike Awesome was 6'4", weighed 280 lbs, and was often described as "a superheavyweight who flew like a cruiserweight". So why must Conan be either a skinny gymnast in a fur loincloth or a clumsy bodybuilder in a fur loincloth? Why can't he be a bodybuilder with the speed and agility of a gymnast in a fur loincloth? That's what Conan is supposed to be anyway.

I also don't get the hate for the Arnold movie. I thought he did a great job in the role. In fact, that movie is what got me interested in the comics and, later, the novels. And when I read those comics and novels? In my mind, all of Conan's dialogue is in an Austrian accent. And who says that Arnold's Conan was just a mountain of muscle who didn't know how to fight. I mean, did you actually WATCH the movie? Conan was taken east, "where the War Masters taught him the deepest secrets". And Arnold himself had to study for months with a master swordsman from Japan in order to prepare for the role. He may even have adopted kendo training into his regular exercise regemine. Try watching the movie with the feature length commentary, and the special features on the DVD. And do so with an open mind, not a preset "this is the Arnold version so this is gonna suck" mindset.

[afan]

The Arnold movie is not Conan's story, and the Arnold Conan is not REH's character. It's that simple. Not a hate for what the movie is, but a disappointment for what it is not.

[ChickenScratch]

There's a huge gulf between REH's Conan and Milius's Conan, not the same guy at all.

As for using the wrestlers as examples of athleticism. I'm not a wrestling fan so I'll have to defer to your judgment. But Conan is not going to have the bodybuilder/wrestler physique with all perfect proportions throughout his build. He doesn't have a gym with a huge mirror to check his development and a nautilus machine to work on being symmetrical.

Conan should be big and built. But he shouldn't look like he could walk onto a Pro bodybuilding stage and win a trophy. His build would reflect a physique developed in the hills of Cimmeria climbing rocks and stuff like that, functional fitness. I hate to bring myself into my posts, but I was on my college swim team and I teach karate so my physique reflects that, I've got huge legs.

[Thundarr]

There's a huge gulf between REH's Conan and Milius's Conan, not the same guy at all.

As for using the wrestlers as examples of athleticism. I'm not a wrestling fan so I'll have to defer to your judgment. But Conan is not going to have the bodybuilder/wrestler physique with all perfect proportions throughout his build. He doesn't have a gym with a huge mirror to check his development and a nautilus machine to work on being symmetrical.

Conan should be big and built. But he shouldn't look like he could walk onto a Pro bodybuilding stage and win a trophy. His build would reflect a physique developed in the hills of Cimmeria climbing rocks and stuff like that, functional fitness. I hate to bring myself into my posts, but I was on my college swim team and I teach karate so my physique reflects that, I've got huge legs.

Ah, but in Milius' movie he doesn't spend his life in the hills of Cimmeria climbing rocks and chasing deer. He spends years chained to The Wheel Of Pain, grinding grain into flour for the Vaniir.

Sure, technically that kind of labour wouldn't give you the full body workout you'd need to get a bodybuilder/pro-wrestler physique, but it's implied in the film that it does. Then there's Conan's time as a pit fighter. Swinging those swords and battle axes was hard work. And his downtime wasn't just spent reading scrolls of poetry and phylosophy, and having sex with beautiful women. He also trained with the more experienced pit fighters, so that he would win his fights on more than just brute strength and courage. The novelization of the movie goes into far more detail than what they were able to show in the movie.

So choosing a bodybuilder to play Conan is a logical choice.

And I know Milius' Conan isn't REH's Conan. Frank Frazetta's illustrations of Conan aren't REH's Conan either. Stan Lee's Conan isn't REH's Conan. The 1982 Conan The Barbarian is John Milius' interpretation of REH's, Stan Lee's, and Frank Frazetta's contributions to who Conan is. And I think he did a damn fine job.

[Wolvieboy17]

So many things wrong with that post. It's too late and too tired to go through it all, maybe i'll update it when I wake up.

Firstly, equating wrestlers movement and fighting style to Conans is wrong. That is the exact opposite... Also, slow, orchestrated and rehearsed fighting coreography is not the same as an agile, ferocious warrior born in battle.

Also, I did watch the movie, and guess what? Conan wasn't 'taken east and taught', he learnt from experience himself. He learnt pure, ruthless efficiency in combat from a very early age by Cimmerians, unique fighters and warriors.

Also, if in all your readings, Conan's voice is in an Austrian accent for you, then the character has already been ruined for you and you'll never be able to enjoy him the way REH intended, because you're just picturing Arnie, a vastly dumed down version of the character.

I don't hate the movie just because I hate Arnie, I love Arnie, and I like the movie as a film. I just hate it as a Conan film, because that is not Conan.

[Shon]

Yeah, I can dig that. I just wish it wasn't 'Conan'. It could have been anyone. He certainly wasn't a Cimmerian, that's for sure.

You know what bugged me about Arnie the most? In almost every REH Conan tale, some 'civilised' person see's Conan and says something like "What will you do, you're just another stupid, ignorant Barbarian" and then Conan would gut him and say "Fool, i'm a Cimmerian!". With the REH Conan, it was always awesome to see how underestimated he was, but with the Arnie Conan, that would pretty much be an accurate summary. He's not even a skilled fighter, he just seems to have raw strength. Arnie Conan is just the kind of enemy that REH Conan would fight circles around.

I do not want to come across as getting down on you for this, but you should also take into consideration the time this movie came out. The sword fighting in this film was fantastic for it's time. Does it compare to modern films? No, but does anything from that era? No, but someone your age would not understand this as you did not live through these eras of film. In 25 years when films are different and pepople are picking apart movies made in 2002, you will understand.

For instance, look at the difference in the lightsaber duals in the Star Wars films made in the late 70's early 80's compared to the ones made in the late 90's and early 00. completely different as film evolves, stunts evolve and the demands on the filmmakers evolve to what the audience expects from them.

Having been alive and old enough to see Conan in the theater, I can assure you the fighting in that movie was state of the art. Does it still hold up today? yeah it is still enjoyable but not what a modern audience would expect in an R rated film. Having been alive and old to see both Star Wars and Empire Strikes Back, again they were great but those fights are crap nowadays.

You will be saying the same thing about films nowadays in 30 years. Trust me.

[Wolvieboy17]

Shon, you really don't need to condescend me, I understand exactly how to look at a film within the context of when it was made. Besides the fact that I only missed the film release by a few years, it doesn't matter WHEN it was made if you're comparing it to the source material. I'm not saying he wasn't convincincly Conan because there were no cutting edge costumes or special effects, nothing about his performance was the REH Conan at all.

I loved the Arnie movies when I first saw them when I was about 8 (it was the first violent movie I ever saw with my big brother :P) then years later I read REH as a teenager and loved the character. When I went back to the movies, I still loved them as a fun, 80's Arnie Snakes n' Swords flick, but hated them as a Conan film.

I'm not talking about is a failure of a film, since it clearly did well and is held very dearly in the hears of many film nerds, myself included. I'm merely calling it a failure of an adaptation.

This isn't exclusive to Conan for me. The Tomas Jane Punisher movie is another one. I love that as a fun, revenge flick but hate it as a Punisher movie.

[Thundarr]

So many things wrong with that post. It's too late and too tired to go through it all, maybe i'll update it when I wake up.

Firstly, equating wrestlers movement and fighting style to Conans is wrong. That is the exact opposite... Also, slow, orchestrated and rehearsed fighting choreography is not the same as an agile, ferocious warrior born in battle.

My point was that people posting on this thread seem to be of the mindset that in order for Conan to be as agile as a panther that they need to cast someone slim but a well defined physique. Others, like myself, are of the mindset that Conan should look like one of Frank Frazetta's paintings, which pretty much means casting a bodybuilder or a pro wrestler. What people are neglecting to realize is that YOU CAN HAVE IT BOTH WAYS. There are big, muscular, near 300 pounders who can move around (and sword fight) like people half their size. YOU JUST HAVE TO LOOK FOR THEM. Look at The Rock in The Scorpion King for example. If he were caucasion, he'd be a great Conan.

Also, I did watch the movie, and guess what? Conan wasn't 'taken east and taught', he learnt from experience himself. He learnt pure, ruthless efficiency in combat from a very early age by Cimmerians, unique fighters and warriors.

Really? Are you sure you were watching Conan? That's not how I remember the movie (note I'm talking about the movie, not the original stories or the comics). As I recall, he was chained to The Wheel Of Pain when he was 10, and stayed chained to it for 20 years. Then he was sold off as a pit fighter. Then after several victories (and this is a direct quote from the movie)

"Soon his victories could not easily be counted. He was taken to the east, a GREAT prize, where the war masters taught him the deepest secrets."

(It's at this point the sensei corrects Conan's stance with the sword and slaps his face for getting it wrong. Then he karate kicks the other student in the nads for pitching a tent in his shorts while looking at Conan's ass)

Do you want me to continue? I have the whole movie committed to memory. I can write out the whole script for you if you like.

Also, if in all your readings, Conan's voice is in an Austrian accent for you, then the character has already been ruined for you and you'll never be able to enjoy him the way REH intended, because you're just picturing Arnie, a vastly dumed down version of the character.

Well that's your opinion, and you're entitled to it.

I don't hate the movie just because I hate Arnie, I love Arnie, and I like the movie as a film. I just hate it as a Conan film, because that is not Conan.

Well, in order to make a Conan movie to your expectations, the animators from the Conan The Adventurer animated series would have to team up with the animators from Heavy Metal and do an animated feature film which directly translates the original stories onto the screen.

But thanks for at least admitting that Conan The Barbarian was an awesome movie, even if you don't think it was a good Conan movie.

[Wolvieboy17]

My point was that people posting on this thread seem to be of the mindset that in order for Conan to be as agile as a panther that they need to cast someone slim but a well defined physique. Others, like myself, are of the mindset that Conan should look like one of Frank Frazetta's paintings, which pretty much means casting a bodybuilder or a pro wrestler. What people are neglecting to realize is that YOU CAN HAVE IT BOTH WAYS. There are big, muscular, near 300 pounders who can move around (and sword fight) like people half their size. YOU JUST HAVE TO LOOK FOR THEM. Look at The Rock in The Scorpion King for example. If he were caucasion, he'd be a great Conan.


This right here is why I will never take anything you say seriously. The moment you've admitted to thinking the aesthetic and build of the character is more important about the way he's portrayed as a PERSON by an actor, or the aspects of his character you want to see fleshed out, is the moment I see you really don't give a **** about the character himself. What you want basically is big, pretty MTV video of hulking people dressed as Conan fighting things. Saying the Rock would make a good Conan? There is nothing earthy, or raw or gutteral about him. He looks like a tough guy. Which is all wrestling is, getting paid to act like a 'fighter'.

Really? Are you sure you were watching Conan? That's not how I remember the movie (note I'm talking about the movie, not the original stories or the comics). As I recall, he was chained to The Wheel Of Pain when he was 10, and stayed chained to it for 20 years. Then he was sold off as a pit fighter. Then after several victories (and this is a direct quote from the movie)

"Soon his victories could not easily be counted. He was taken to the east, a GREAT prize, where the war masters taught him the deepest secrets."

(It's at this point the sensei corrects Conan's stance with the sword and slaps his face for getting it wrong. Then he karate kicks the other student in the nads for pitching a tent in his shorts while looking at Conan's ass)

Do you want me to continue? I have the whole movie committed to memory. I can write out the whole script for you if you like.

Yeah, I have seen the movie. I was talking about the REAL Conan. He didn't need to be taught by magical fighters of the east, he was born a fighter. That's what sets Cimmerians apart from others. If he needs to be trained in the east by someone else, it immediately stops him from being 'unique' as a lone Cimmerian against other races. That is a very strong angle to his character. He's not just some tough guy.

Well that's your opinion, and you're entitled to it.


No, that is actually fact. If you had read all of REH's original stories as well as his essays on the Hyperboria and Conan, you would know fully well what Howards vision of the character was, how he represented society at the time and how the Arnie version is nothing like that. You keep professing to love 'Conan' yet you've shown no complexities of understanding him fundemntally as a fictional character other than physical attributes.

Well, in order to make a Conan movie to your expectations, the animators from the Conan The Adventurer animated series would have to team up with the animators from Heavy Metal and do an animated feature film which directly translates the original stories onto the screen.

But thanks for at least admitting that Conan The Barbarian was an awesome movie, even if you don't think it was a good Conan movie.

I've never claimed to not like the Arnie Conan films, I love em, I just have to tell myself it's not actually THE Conan when I watch them, because as adaptations they are horrible, but as a fun 80's fantasy flick, they rule. I mean, Arnie punches a camel in the face! Who couldn't love that?

Also...

So choosing a bodybuilder to play Conan is a logical choice.

I would have thought since it's a film, choosing an actor would be a logical choice?

[Wolvieboy17]

The other thing is, those fantasy comics, especially art by Frazetta, are a different type of fantasy. They're designed to be over the top and heavily stylised, like 300 or something. It's not a realistic, literal translation. There was nothing that over the top about REH's Conan, he was very much an exceptional person living in a world of ordinary people. To use a stylised fantasy artwork as what Conan should realistically look like is preposterous.

We're talking about adapting REH's character, which is what we know are the film makers intentions, so why are you so intent on actually ignoring the original source material in aid of your sources that all came AFTERWARDS?

[Whiskey Tango]

I get the feeling there are a lot of so-called Conan fans who haven't bothered to read the original stories.

[C. Lee]

Just a reminder to everyone.......even if you disagree with someone's opinion during your discussion....be civil.

[C. Lee]

I get the feeling there are a lot of so-called Conan fans who haven't bothered to read the original stories.

I've read all of REHs works....the Brekinridge Elkins stories are hilarious. Just putting that out there for those who think he was all serious all the time.

[rogue trooper]

At a recent blog at http://www.conanmovieblog.com/2011/04/06/new-howard-collections-ties-in-to-upcoming-film/ , in the comments, "Conan The Barbarian" screenwriter Sean Hood mentions the Howard stories he had beside him when writing the script; "Red Nails", "Tower of The Elephant", and "The Frost-Giant's Daughter".

Nice!!:yay:

[Whiskey Tango]

I've read all of REHs works....the Brekinridge Elkins stories are hilarious. Just putting that out there for those who think he was all serious all the time.

I bought a collection of his western stories that I haven't yet read but it's not the humorous ones. I'm taking my sweet time with the Conan tales because once I finish them there won't be any more.:csad:

edit: This one - http://www.amazon.com/End-Trail-Western-Stories-Robert/dp/0803273568/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1302755224&sr=8-1

[Wolvieboy17]

The best thing about when they end is that you can read them again! :P

[Whiskey Tango]

Aye, but it's never the same.

[C. Lee]

I bought a collection of his western stories that I haven't yet read but it's not the humorous ones. I'm taking my sweet time with the Conan tales because once I finish them there won't be any more.:csad:

edit: This one - http://www.amazon.com/End-Trail-Western-Stories-Robert/dp/0803273568/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1302755224&sr=8-1

The last time I read an actual REH story was about 30 years ago. I still have all of those paperbacks. I'm thinking of re-reading them soon.

[Wolvieboy17]

I got the nice big hardcover collection, including all his drafts and unfinished Conan stories and collected essays. So good!

[ChickenScratch]

I get the feeling there are a lot of so-called Conan fans who haven't bothered to read the original stories.

I get that feeling too. But what ya gonna do, iconic actor in an iconic movie. There is a gulf that exists between that and REH's man and the man in that movie.

But then most people also have very clear ideas of who James Bond, Sherlock Holmes, Tarzan, Jason Bourne etc. Are without cracking the books open.

[TheVileOne]

Conan is serious business. What about the videogames made based on the literature that had Ron Perlman as Conan?

Unfortunately Red Nails never got finished/released. That had Ron Perlman voicing Conan in an animated movie that was meant to be a faithful adaptation of the Red Nails novella.

[Wolvieboy17]

That game felt loads more REH Conan to me than the Arnie movies. I even thought for a time the only good way to do a Conan movie would be in a Beowulf style cgi movie, but perhaps with a cool, cel shaded kind of look to it (Basically i'm picturing a cool, old timey yellowed parchment effect). I always thought that would look cool.

But then most people also have very clear ideas of who James Bond, Sherlock Holmes, Tarzan, Jason Bourne etc. Are without cracking the books open.

To be fair though, a lot of those characters are represented fairly faithfully across their various representations, and Craigs Bond is very similar to the literary Bond.

I think it's worse with Conan because the differences between iterations are so profound and the number of people who view Arnie as the definitive Conan are so many.

[Whiskey Tango]

mZHoHaAYHq8

[C. Lee]

I get that feeling too. But what ya gonna do, iconic actor in an iconic movie. There is a gulf that exists between that and REH's man and the man in that movie.

But then most people also have very clear ideas of who James Bond, Sherlock Holmes, Tarzan, Jason Bourne etc. Are without cracking the books open.

To be fair though, a lot of those characters are represented fairly faithfully across their various representations, and Craigs Bond is very similar to the literary Bond.

I think it's worse with Conan because the differences between iterations are so profound and the number of people who view Arnie as the definitive Conan are so many.
The Tarzan of the novels is so far removed from most movie interpretations it makes the Arnold movie and the pulp stories look like a perfect match.

[afan]

The Tarzan of the novels is so far removed from most movie interpretations it makes the Arnold movie and the pulp stories look like a perfect match.


Beat me to it.

[Wolvieboy17]

Really? I'm pretty sure there were a couple of great BBC versions.