Gorgeous, brutal, violent, and created with a primal, feral ferocity: the film is at its best when embracing the psychedelic madness of classic Norse myths: a drug trip with Aruvandil, Amleth and his fool (Willem Dafoe), or the life tree beneath the Northern Lights. Director Robert Eggers has sought to simply recreate a Norse myth and absolutely nails it. His folk horror influences are on full display, recreating the "greatest hits" of Viking culture and not shying away from cruelty and brutality; and the themes of feral beasthood and animalistic fury weave themselves through this tale of revenge with clarity and frankness. There are frequently gorgeous shots belonging in a painting, and the production design is top tier stuff. This has been a labour of love for all involved: it rises above the slurry of product and profiteering shittiness of the movie industry, that even when personally not clicking with the film (I'm just not big on Viking stuff, personal preference) I adored that it was made, the technical craft on display, and how much of a visceral experience the film was. There's a purity to its film making.
Ethan Hawke, despite brief screentime, embraces the Shakespearean dialogue at the start, Sarsgard seems to have been chomping at the bit to play a Viking all his life and does so with a furious intensity; Anya Taylor Joy is always a delight; and Bjork steals the show in her single scene as an intoxicating witch threading Amleth into the tapestry of destiny.
Defintely not for everybody, this nevertheless needs to be watched by anybody who enjoys cinema, just for how original it is in the sea of artless swill.
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