Valhalla Rising (2009)

Forced for some time to be a fighting slave, a pagan warrior escapes his captors with a boy and joins a group of Crusaders on their quest to the Holy Land.

Director:

Nicolas Winding Refn

Writers:

Nicolas Winding Refn, Roy Jacobsen

Stars:

Mads Mikkelsen, Maarten Stevenson, Alexander Morton

4 wins & 9 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Mads Mikkelsen	...	One Eye
Alexander Morton	...	Barde - Pagan
Stewart Porter	...	Kenneth - Pagan
Maarten Stevenson	...	The Boy - Pagan
Matthew Zajac	...	Malkolm - Pagan (as Mathew Zajac)
Gordon Brown	...	Hagen - Christian Viking
Gary McCormack	...	Hauk - Christian Viking
Andrew Flanagan	...	Gudmond - Christian Viking
James Ramsey	...	Gudmund - Christian Viking
Gary Lewis	...	Kare - Christian Viking
Jamie Sives	...	Gorm - Christian Viking
Ewan Stewart	...	Eirik - Christian Viking
Rony Bridges	...	Magnus - Christian Viking
Robert Harrison	...	Roger - Christian Viking
Andy Nicolson	...	Christian Viking

Storyline

1000 AD, for years, One Eye, a mute warrior of supernatural strength, has been held prisoner by the Norse chieftain Barde. Aided by Are, a boy slave, One Eye slays his captor and together he and Are escape, beginning a journey into the heart of darkness. On their flight, One Eye and Are board a Viking vessel, but the ship is soon engulfed by an endless fog that clears only as the crew sights an unknown land. As the new world reveals its secrets and the Vikings confront their terrible and bloody fate, One Eye discovers his true self.

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Plot Keywords:

viking | axe | fog | mute | mud | 

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Taglines:

Slave. Warrior.

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Drama | Fantasy

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Trivia

The idea of One-Eye being a mute came to Nicolas Winding Refn in a dream where One-Eye could not talk. Once he woke up he phoned Roy Jacobsen and told him about the idea.

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Goofs

When the General stabs the Priest in the back, his dagger and sword have changed hands when the shot switches to behind the General.

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Quotes

Eirik: God brought us out of that mist for a reason. We claim this land in His name.
Kare: How do we do that? We're half starved. Three men dead, one missing.

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Crazy Credits

"In the beginning there was only man and nature. Men came bearing crosses and drove the heathen to the fringes of the earth."

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Connections

Referenced in Viande d'origine française (2009)

User Reviews

A strangely captivating movie

"Valhalla Rising" is a strange movie that will split the audience into lovers and haters like you can see in the comments here. To me its these movies that are most interesting. If a movie goer sees a movie like this with breathtakingly beautiful and artistic cinematography on a low budget and still rates it with one or two stars, its either pure ignorance or something was struck that resonated in a negative way.

I already loved the previous movies of director Winding Refn but this one goes into a totally different direction. Its hard to explain the plot because most of it happens in the viewers head. What you see is mostly mythological and religious symbolism all revolving around the main character "One eye". A warrior who fights with a raw power of which we never know its human or not because he is mute and keeps the same empty expression in his face throughout the movie (only in some scenes it seems like hints of a smile shine through).

The movie starts with "One eye" held captive and has to fight battles to the death in which he always prevails. This first part of the movie has some raw violence in it and could be viewed as the "most entertaining" part because after this "Valhalla Rising" turns into a slow moving journey to an unknown place with barely any dialog and a droning ambient soundtrack.

Its hard to say what really happens in the several segments the movie is split into but the religious tone ("Hell", "Sacrifice") already show this is not a movie on a more existential level. And as I am still trying to piece the impressions of "Valhalla Rising" together I find that its a movie that sticks with you long after watching if you let yourself dive into the dense atmosphere. The imagery is stunning throughout, the most simple shots like a close up of knifes being washed in a river look like a beautiful painting and the constant difference between the beauty of the cinematography and the cold colors, raw violence and the dark droning soundtrack are as captivating as Mads MIkkelsen playing the cold expressionless "One Eye" like a force of nature.

I can't put my finger on what sucked me into this movie but "Valhalla Rising" is an experience open minded movie fans should not miss and I am looking forward to future projects from this promising director.

Details

Country:

Denmark UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

31 March 2010 (Denmark)

Also Known As:

Valhalla Rising

Filming Locations:

UK

Box Office

Budget:

GBP4,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$7,905, 18 July 2010

Gross USA:

$30,638

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$282,737

Company Credits

Production Co:

BBC Films, Belle Allee Productions, La, La Belle Allee

Technical Specs

Runtime:

93 min 90 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1