Conan the Barbarian (2011) Jason Momoa, Stephen Lang, Rachel Nichols, Ron Perlman Movie Review

Conan the Barbarian (2011)   3/53/53/53/53/5


Jason Momoa in Conan the Barbarian (2011)

And Here's Conan

Having been born during battle it is little surprise that Conan (Jason Momoa), son of Corin (Ron Perlman) shows signs of being a great warrior from an early age. When Conan is forced to watch his father being killed and his village being burned it leads to him becoming a wanderer, doing battle where ever his journey takes him be it fighting monsters or sorcerers. Eventually his journey brings him to Khalar Zym (Stephen Lang) the man responsible for the death of his father and now giving Conan a chance to avenge his death.

To be brutal I didn't care much for the original "Conan the Barbarian", the storyline never engaged me but appreciated it on a production level. It is why when almost 30 years later we got a new version with Jason Momoa stepping in to the, I expect, large shoes of Arnold Schwarzenegger I wasn't convinced that it would work any better than the original. And it doesn't start well as whilst Morgan Freeman may be the go to man for narration work the smoothness of his voice does not work for a movie which wants to be action packed, quite simply they needed to go for some one more along the lines of Liam Neeson.

Rachel Nichols in Conan the Barbarian (2011)

Anyway once again I find the storyline to "Conan the Barbarian" less than enthralling as in this simple tale of revenge there is little in the way of depth. To be brutal again the storyline is weak and is little more than a rickety chariot for plenty of action and shots of Momoa's muscular physique. I suppose technically it works because it is clear that this "Conan the Barbarian" is made for a young audience who lack the attention span and require plenty of graphic entertainment to hold their attention or at least grab it once in a while. But maybe I am getting old but once you see one person die in a creatively graphic fashion you've seen them all and so "Conan the Barbarian" ends up a bit of a one trick pony of action & effects.

There is of course the not so little aspect of Jason Momoa and his muscular physique which yes considering he is steeping in to a role which Schwarzenegger played he certainly has the frame whilst having the looks to appeal to a more modern audience. But I am sorry as whilst Momoa looks the part he lacks charisma which makes his performance one level and monotonous. And sadly whilst Momoa is surrounded by some well known names such as Stephen Lang and Rose McGowan they end up anonymous and forgettable.

What this all boils down to is that this 2011 take on "Conan the Barbarian" might entertain a young audience just seeking visual entertainment but it doesn't offer a great deal for anyone else and again it is a case of nice production but nothing else.


LATEST REVIEWS