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Conan the Barbarian
This odd film actually was enjoyable to watch, even with Arnold as the lead in the film. It doesn't always take itself seriously (or maybe that is just Arnold's accent) and it has some solid action and adventure to it. And the villain, Thulsa Doom, is a great villain for a film.
The story itself isn't anything spectacular, it is the basic revenge story, but it is entertainingly done with a lot of odd characters to run into in the film. Add in the fact that it touches a little bit on some of the masters of war and some into philosophy, it actually is an decent character story (and if it wasn't Arnold that the story was about, then it might have been even better). But it was still a fun adventure story, and the fact that it did have a little bit of depth, if a person wanted to look at it, was a bonus. It really doesn't try and develop that depth all that much, but it is there if someone wanted to take the time and see it.
The characters are very good as well. The people who Conan falls in with are generally quite odd, especially the fellow male theif and the mage. They were definitely odd characters, and while they weren't extremely great characters, combining them with Conan was a good idea. Arnold just can't be taken too seriously because of his accent. Thulsa Doom was a good character as well. Not really a great acting job, but his facial expressions just made him into a very strong villain.
Visually this is a pretty typical 80's film, there isn't anything great about the visuals, but they aren't too bad either. Nothing comes across as fake or over the top visually, so it is solid in that aspect. Add in a good scoring behind it, and it makes for a rather enjoyable film. It isn't extremely strong in either aspect, in my opinion, but they don't detract from the film, which is something that I've seen several films run into before.
Overall this is some good entertainment, and while you could read more into it if you wanted to, I wouldn't recommend doing so. This is mainly because it is so hard to take Arnold seriously because of his wonderful accent, and the film doesn't even take itself seriously the whole time because of the facial expressions that Arnold gives.
Overall Grade: B
Acting: C+
Story: B+
Audio/Visual: C+
This odd film actually was enjoyable to watch, even with Arnold as the lead in the film. It doesn't always take itself seriously (or maybe that is just Arnold's accent) and it has some solid action and adventure to it. And the villain, Thulsa Doom, is a great villain for a film.
The story itself isn't anything spectacular, it is the basic revenge story, but it is entertainingly done with a lot of odd characters to run into in the film. Add in the fact that it touches a little bit on some of the masters of war and some into philosophy, it actually is an decent character story (and if it wasn't Arnold that the story was about, then it might have been even better). But it was still a fun adventure story, and the fact that it did have a little bit of depth, if a person wanted to look at it, was a bonus. It really doesn't try and develop that depth all that much, but it is there if someone wanted to take the time and see it.
The characters are very good as well. The people who Conan falls in with are generally quite odd, especially the fellow male theif and the mage. They were definitely odd characters, and while they weren't extremely great characters, combining them with Conan was a good idea. Arnold just can't be taken too seriously because of his accent. Thulsa Doom was a good character as well. Not really a great acting job, but his facial expressions just made him into a very strong villain.
Visually this is a pretty typical 80's film, there isn't anything great about the visuals, but they aren't too bad either. Nothing comes across as fake or over the top visually, so it is solid in that aspect. Add in a good scoring behind it, and it makes for a rather enjoyable film. It isn't extremely strong in either aspect, in my opinion, but they don't detract from the film, which is something that I've seen several films run into before.
Overall this is some good entertainment, and while you could read more into it if you wanted to, I wouldn't recommend doing so. This is mainly because it is so hard to take Arnold seriously because of his wonderful accent, and the film doesn't even take itself seriously the whole time because of the facial expressions that Arnold gives.
Overall Grade: B
Acting: C+
Story: B+
Audio/Visual: C+