Conan - Part 1

[rogue trooper]

- He said that he is familiar with the REH works, and the comics, but has not watched the Arnie film yet, as he wants to see his own film first.

...and the Frank Frazetta paintings. He's constantly stated that for his portrayal of Conan, the renditions by Frazetta were a big inspiration.

 

[rogue trooper]

Coverage at the L.A. premiere of the film yesterday: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xkiaed_conan-the-barbarian-premieres-in-los-angeles_news

 

[rogue trooper]

Some early reviews:

A positive one:

http://www.mymosaik.lu/index.php?op...78:conan-the-barbarian-film-review&Itemid=152

"Rarely is a remake better than the original, but in the case of Conan the Barbarian which premiered yesterday evening at Utopolis, the remake is streets ahead of the original Arnold Schwarzenegger 1982 effort."


A mixed one:

http://uk.babelfish.yahoo.com/trans...an-le-barbare.htm&lp=fr_en&btnTrUrl=Translate


"Conan 3D is not the MTV Zack Snyder version of the Cimmerian as foreshadowed in the trailers, very reassuring, and made between a mixture of shows like Rome, Spartacus: Blood and Sand and The Iron Throne (which also starred Jason Momoa) with the pure B movie exploitation (combat violence, gore, sex …). Marcus Nispel new offer of cinema popcorn is well done, excessively generous, but also a bit disembodied (still missing a little something in his films). It is frankly fun, at least if we take the film for what it is and not for what it could have been, and what was once the movie Conan. Conan is 3D carnage, rather fun and very diverting, but too hollow to qualify as a successor to the Conan of John Milius and Schwarzenegger (which remains the best incarnation of the character)."

 

[ChewySoup]

Some early reviews:

A positive one:

http://www.mymosaik.lu/index.php?op...78:conan-the-barbarian-film-review&Itemid=152

"Rarely is a remake better than the original, but in the case of Conan the Barbarian which premiered yesterday evening at Utopolis, the remake is streets ahead of the original Arnold Schwarzenegger 1982 effort."

Just what I was hoping to hear! Can't wait to see it.. Only a week away now

 

[TX85]

Nice!

 

[rogue trooper]

Another interesting article: http://www.gazettenet.com/2011/08/11/northampton-lawyer-son-aid-new-039conan039

Some quotes from the article:


-"Daniel Fierst said Paradox wanted a "Conan" that was true to Howard's stories from pulp magazines of the 1930s. He said the Conan played by Arnold Schwarzenegger in a 1982 film was a "hodgepodge bastardization," borrowing a villain from a different Howard series, "Kull of Atlantis," and making the hero a slave."


-"That was outrageous to fanboys," Daniel Fierst said. "They'd say Conan would die before he became a slave."
Indeed, in a trailer for the new film, Momoa's Conan says, "No man should live in chains."


-"Frederick Fierst said Paradox went out of its way to make peace with Conan purists, donating to the fan-run Robert E. Howard Foundation. He said part of the new movie was screened at the group's recent convention in Texas, and it was well received."

 

[Wolvieboy17]

Nice

 

[MOVIELORD101]

Glad to hear this isn't gonna suck after all! I was a little worried from some of the other reviews I've heard of that say it's HORRIBLE!

 

[Thebumwhowalks]

The Uk's ch5 is having a 'Swords and Sorcery' night starting at 8pm tonight(sponsored by 'Conan the Barbarian 3D!!'), it begins with a doc on Gladiators, then '300', then.....'Red Sonja' ! presumably as ITV have the rights to the two Arnie Conan movies.

man, i have not seen RS in over a decade, Arnie basically plays a Conan type in it eh? I recall reading that RS was the reason he didn't do another Conan flick. The producer told him he'd just be billed in a supporting role for RS, he filmed for 3 weeks, basically as a favour, and then the posters came out with Arnie taking up about 70% of the poster space, giving him star billing along with BN. So, he was pissed about that, and felt his contract to do 3 films had been fulfilled.

anyway, I'm gonna tape it, I have the other sh** sub-Conan sequel Kull the Conqueror recorded as well, so if I can get some enjoyment out of that, i might enjoy something of this piece of nonsense too.

 

[MOVIELORD101]

The Uk's ch5 is having a 'Swords and Sorcery' night starting at 8pm tonight(sponsored by 'Conan the Barbarian 3D!!'), it begins with a doc on Gladiators, then '300', then.....'Red Sonja' ! presumably as ITV have the rights to the two Arnie Conan movies.

man, i have not seen RS in over a decade, Arnie basically plays a Conan type in it eh? I recall reading that RS was the reason he didn't do another Conan flick. The producer told him he'd just be billed in a supporting role for RS, he filmed for 3 weeks, basically as a favour, and then the posters came out with Arnie taking up about 70% of the poster space, giving him star billing along with BN. So, he was pissed about that, and felt his contract to do 3 films had been fulfilled.

anyway, I'm gonna tape it, I have the other sh** sub-Conan sequel Kull the Conqueror recorded as well, so if I can get some enjoyment out of that, i might enjoy something of this piece of nonsense too.

Dude, NO! Red Sonja is, by far, the WORST thing to ever come out of the Conan films! Don't believe me? Here's proof in the form of the WORST LINE FROM THE FILM!

[YT]lrhhvRwqXYY[/YT]

Laugh all you want as to how hammy it is, but keep in mind that it's supposed to be a SERIOUS FILM!

 

[Thebumwhowalks]

Dude, NO! Red Sonja is, by far, the WORST thing to ever come out of the Conan films! Don't believe me? Here's proof in the form of the WORST LINE FROM THE FILM!

[YT]lrhhvRwqXYY[/YT]

Laugh all you want as to how hammy it is, but keep in mind that it's supposed to be a SERIOUS FILM!

hahaha, that just makes me want to watch it more, the last time I saw it was back in 98/99, I remember cause i recorded it over one of my flatmates old vhs tapes, I don't remember it well though, we had a bong in that flat, overdoing those things can make you zone out a bit too much, lol.

thanks for posting the vid, but I'm gonna run myself a little competition and try and guess what you consider to be the worst line in the movie, come back here and see if I'm right, so no spoilers on that vid please folks.

 

[MOVIELORD101]

hahaha, that just makes me want to watch it more, the last time I saw it was back in 98/99, I remember cause i recorded it over one of my flatmates old vhs tapes, I don't remember it well though, we had a bong in that flat, overdoing those things can make you zone out a bit too much, lol.

thanks for posting the vid, but I'm gonna run myself a little competition and try and guess what you consider to be the worst line in the movie, come back here and see if I'm right, so no spoilers on that vid please folks.

I'm telling you! It's NOT worth re-watching!

 

[Thebumwhowalks]

I'm telling you! It's NOT worth re-watching!

hahahahaha....I will probably watch it twice now, if it is that bad, hahahahaha...I know it will be crap, that is why I am watching it, for laughs, and y'know, i might get some kind of action adventure enjoyment as well, hell, I have Gymkata on dvd for those very same reasons, no way this is as funny as that flick, but as you have highlighted that worst line ever, I have a wee guessing competition to be getting on with during the movie as well, you have increased my viewing pleasure of this movie tenfold, thank you sir.

 

[Rac]

Red Sonja was better than Destroyer.

 

[Thebumwhowalks]

Ah, ok, I'm interested now to see what opinion I agree with.
I did enjoy CtD last year when I got it on dvd, that was the first time I'd watched it in over a decade as well. I was really wanting to see another Conan S&S type action flick, as i was ploughing through the Savage Sword of Conan collections then, so got a kick out of the flick.
so, i might enjoy RS on first viewing in donkey's years as well, when i get round to watching it, gonna set the video timer tonight, on too late for this wee willie winkie.

 

[Rac]

Ah, ok, I'm interested now to see what opinion I agree with.
I did enjoy CtD last year when I got it on dvd, that was the first time I'd watched it in over a decade as well. I was really wanting to see another Conan S&S type action flick, as i was ploughing through the Savage Sword of Conan collections then, so got a kick out of the flick.
so, i might enjoy RS on first viewing in donkey's years as well, when i get round to watching it, gonna set the video timer tonight, on too late for this wee willie winkie.

I pretty much hate Destroyer, and Red Sonja was only a bit better than that. Meaning I didn't hate it, it was just meh.

 

[regwec]

Mock Red Sonja all you will, but the girl has the best thighs ever to appear in a movie.

I saw 20 minutes of "Kull the Conqueror" on TV last night. Not quite the worst movie I have ever seen, but that is only because I have watched some of "Ultraviolet".

 

[TX85]

I loved CTB&CTD,Mostly cause I was(still am)a HUGE Arnold fan and now yeah I think it was BS cause of the potential of the source material&all But as films on there own I still think there pretty decent!!!

I proudly have the two-pack on DVD!

 

[Rac]

I loved CTB&CTD,Mostly cause I was(still am)a HUGE Arnold fan and now yeah I think it was BS cause of the potential of the source material&all But as films on there own I still think there pretty decent!!!

I proudly have the two-pack on DVD!

Destroyer ****ed it up by being a PG children's adventure movie...

Milius flick is a glorious masterpiece.

 

[ChickenScratch]

You know what, I really do hope this movie does well. Not only as a Conan fan, but as a fan of sword and sorcery, or sword and sandal movies as a whole. I love the whole thing, the old Steve Reeves, Reg Park, Alan Steel, etc peplums back in the day. Those movies need to make a comeback, low budget, musclemen, hot chicks, battles. What more do you want in a movie? A smart studio would jump on this and start pumping them out straight to DVD.

 

[lespaul59]

The thing about Conan the Destroyer being PG is that it's pretty bloody and violent. Do you guys think CTD would get an R rating today? I think as it is yes. If it was filmed today then no, because you know they would exclude the blood and tone the violence down.

As for Red Sonja I actually like the movie and it's mostly because of Arnold. If he wasn't in it I probaly wouldn't have watched it since I was younger like most other sword and sorcery movies from back in the day.

I also like Kull the Conqueror but when compaired to CTB, CTD and even RS it's missing something. One of the main things I think is great in CTB, CTD and RS are the locations used in the movie. Where KTC has no locations that stand out and I just watched the movie a few days ago. And there is something about the story that seems lacking.

I would gladly buy RS on Blu Ray and I would buy KTC also but it would have to be at a lower price point.

As for the new Conan if you would have told me it would take seven years for a new Conan movie to come out after Return of the Ring come out and LOTR as a whole came out and show that sword and sorcery type movies can make money I would have said you where stupid. I'm counting the days down and can't wait to go see a Conan movie in a theater. And unlessthe local theater I go to doesn't offer the 3D I'm going to watch it in 3D.

 

[Rowsdower!]

I have a soft spot for Conan the Destroyer. Don't get me wrong, it's a terrible movie... but I liked how they attempted to add more magical elements to it. The battle at the end with the horned demigod thing was kinda cool, and "Ursa" was a decent villain. Plus, I could watch Olivia D'Abo in anything. There were plenty of bad parts, sure (Wilt Chamberlain, the annoying thief character, and the Nipple Monster in the crystal palace) but I still enjoy that movie, even though it's incredibly silly.

 

[maenalus]

I hope Conan is portrayed with his extreme and different moods. The trailers have me worried that he'll be too tense and bitter all around, rather than a gruff, but basically amicable guy with a ferocious temper. For example, when he says "I am content" the last thing he looks is content. He looks not just angry, but rather pouty.

 

[Rac]

Empire Big Screen ‘11 Review: By Crom, ‘Conan The Barbarian’ Is Unbelievably Awful

The director doesn’t bring any of his music video chops here: it’s thoroughly workmanlike stuff, and could have been made by anyone—at least the original came from the barking mad John Milius, making it feel like something close to a passion project, rather than the paycheck gig this so obviously is for Nispel.

There are been plenty of bad movies this year, but at least you feel that people were trying with, say, “Battle: Los Angeles” or “Sucker Punch”—they didn’t actually set out to make a bad movie. “Conan The Barbarian” just comes across as half-assed; a quick, cheap, cash-grab with nothing but contempt for its audience, something that would look shoddy even if it were the direct-to-DVD movie it so often resembles. And you should stay away from it like it was a horde of bandits coming to burn down your village.

http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplayl...crom_conan_the_barbarian_is_unbelievably_awf/

 

[rogue trooper]

At RT, so far, one Fresh, and one Rotten: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/conan_the_barbarian_2011/

Fresh(from Urban Cinefile by Louise Keller): "There is brutal violence with fountains of blood as heads and limbs are dismembered by swords, arrows, axes and scythes in this reworking of the 1982 fantasy adventure Conan The Barbarian. This was the tailor-made role that propelled Arnold Schwarzenegger, muscles rippling, from body building fame to the screen, and here there is an equally impressively developed body which embodies Conan the protagonist. Former Baywatch heartthrob Jason Momoa is the child born of battle who lives in order to revenge the death of his father.
It's an extravagant spectacle with a suitably dark production design, a non-too subtle score and an action-packed narrative filled with expensive stunts, visual effects and exotic settings. There are two striking women, too: one is the pure-blood heroine, the other, the evil sorceress. The story is complicated but predictable and the young male target audience won't care if they miss the nuances. After all, it's about the heroic alpha male that lives and dies by the sword; besides, this is show and tell for the muscle-seeking crowd that flocks to Fitness First every night to work on those abs and glutes."

Rotten(from Urban Cinefile by Andrew L. Urban): "Primitive cinema it is, set in primitive fantasy times, when people and places had strange (yet somehow familiar) names, battles were brutal and bloody, everyone wore rags and big, clunky bling. A touch of the supernatural mingles with the superstitious; slaves are mercilessly whipped, while heroes strike down evil rulers after saving women (or usually one attractive woman) against impossible odds. I almost forgot the monster - in this case an underwater beast with the tentacles of an octopus and the bad temper of a bear with toothache.

In the 1982 adaptation of stories by Robert E. Howard, Arnie plays Conan, and it's a whole different movie. I say this to point out that it's not a remake. And Jason Momoa is not an Arnie 'clonan'. He's a likeable guy, and handles himself well in this physically demanding role.

This 2011 Conan is a film that could and possible already has, morphed into a video game. The lead actors are human, but much else is computer generated, from the fantasy lands where the action takes place to the structures on it, like old stone castles and temples and palaces and such."