Kull the Conqueror (1997)

A barbarian warrior becomes a king when he defeats a king in armed combat and the king's heir conspire to overthrow him and reclaim the throne by resurrecting an evil sorceress.

Director:

John Nicolella

Writers:

Robert E. Howard (worlds and characters), Charles Edward Pogue (screenplay)

Stars:

Kevin Sorbo, Tia Carrere, Thomas Ian Griffith

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Kevin Sorbo	...	Kull
Tia Carrere	...	Akivasha
Thomas Ian Griffith	...	General Taligaro
Litefoot	...	Ascalante
Roy Brocksmith	...	Tu
Harvey Fierstein	...	Juba
Karina Lombard	...	Zareta
Edward Tudor-Pole	...	Enaros
Douglas Henshall	...	Ducalon
Joe Shaw	...	Dalgar
Sven-Ole Thorsen	...	King Borna (as Sven Ole Thorsen)
Terry O'Neill	...	Ship Captain
Pat Roach	...	Zulcki
John Hallam	...	Mandara
Peter Petruna	...	Slave

Storyline

A barbarian named Kull unexpectedly becomes a king after an old king (whom Kull has just killed in a battle) gives his crown to him. But direct heirs of a killed king, trying to topple Kull and regain the throne, bring an old witch-queen Akivasha back to life. Their plan backfires, however, as Akivasha is going to allow their lords - demons - to rule the kingdom. The only thing that can stop her now is a breath of the god Volka.

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Plot Keywords:

king | barbarian | demon | warrior | battle | 

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Taglines:

Courage Conquerors All.

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Genres:

Fantasy | Action | Adventure

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for fantasy action violence and sensuality

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

29 August 1997 (USA)

Also Known As:

Conan the Conqueror

Filming Locations:

Bratislava, Slovakia

Box Office

Budget:

$20,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$3,450,145, 1 September 1997, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$6,086,891, 5 October 1997

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Pictures, Raffaella De Laurentiis Productions, Korsala Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

95 min

Sound Mix:

DTS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Originally meant to be "Conan the Conqueror", the script was rewritten as "Kull" for Kevin Sorbo when Arnold Schwarzenegger refused to reprise his Conan character.

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Goofs

When Juba rips off Zareta's accessories, the right shoulder strap of her dress falls down. It is back up in the next shot, then down again later.

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Quotes

Tu: You see, m'lord, every noble has brought the prize of his house. Fanara, from the House of Balin. As pure as virgin snow.
Kull: [Kull looks closely at her] We've met.
[walks away]
Kull: She's not that pure.
Tu: Shh.

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Alternate Versions

Although the cinema release was uncut 5 seconds was cut from the video release by the BBFC.

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Connections

Referenced in The Cinema Snob: Let There Be Light (2018)

User Reviews

Enjoyable Fantasy Flick

On the scale of sword and sorcery flicks, this ranks below 'Conan The Barbarian', above the dreary 'Red Sonja', about on par with 'Conan The Destroyer'; which is to say that it's an energetic fantasy film that doesn't take itself seriously and can be a lot of fun if you let it be.

Kull of Atlantis seeks to join the army of Velusia, but instead, through an unexpected turn of events, he finds himself proclaimed king of the empire instead. Holding onto his new throne will be much harder than taking it, as the blood heirs to the empire make a deal with a wizard to revive a 3000 year-old demon who seeks to kill King Kull and claim the empire for herself.

'Kull the Conqueror' originally started out as 'Conan the Conqueror', but after Arnold refused to reprise the role, the script was changed to accommodate Howard's other barbarian hero, Kull. As such, much of the story is actually taken from the Conan stories ('The Hour of the Dragon' in particular). Interestingly, the first Conan movie took most of it's story material from the Kull tales. A little bit of irony for you.

As for the film itself, it does enough things right to entertain; Sorbo fits Kull role perfectly (actually truer to the source character than Arnold ever was), Griffith is an effectively grim villain and Tia Carrere hams it up nicely as the evil Akiavasia. The locations and sets have a wonderfully fantasy feel to them and the assorted fight scenes are well choreographed and fast paced. Given their age, the FX and make are good without ever looking terribly real. One thing I found very enjoyable in the film was the liberal dose of humor; not lame one-liners or goofy antics, but some solid humor that compliments the scenes rather than ruining them.

The biggest problem the movie has is the damn PG-13 rating; it keeps the movie from really delving into adult fantasy the way you want it too. Both 'Red Sonja' and 'Conan the Destroyer' suffered the same problem. Another issue is the generic butt-rock music that accompanies the fight scenes; the music for the rest of the film is epic and fits the period nature of the film, but the lame guitar riffs that get churned out during every fight is just annoying. Also, many of the supporting actors just aren't any damn good at acting and tend to injure many of the scenes. Lastly, the script is a little lean for an epic adventure film, clocking in at just 90 minutes, almost no time is spent getting to know the characters any better than is necessary to drive the plot.

All told, this is a fun, fast, fantasy film meant to be enjoyed rather than analyzed. It makes a decent entry in the Howard film canon (the best way to watch it is part 4 of a Howard marathon; Conan 1 & 2, Red Sonja, Kull). The film made no money in theaters, which is too bad, as we aren't likely to see any more of these any time soon.

Energetic, humorous, and full of action (though not without some issues), a solid sword and sorcery flick.

7/10