The Northman Review: Visceral Visual Pleasure

Eggers’ latest is a visual triumph with an evolution on his visual style, which clashes with the story like two warriors refusing to submit.

Robert Eggers again fascinates and terrifies in his latest action adventure tale of revenge, but he does so in ways the filmmaker has yet to explore until this point. Following Prince Amleth on his quest to slay his father’s murderer, The Northman promises a tale of revenge that delivers on most fronts, but is sometimes stunted by Eggers patient style. However, the quiet moments of world building are usually displayed with such a beautiful ferocity it never becomes a bore to watch.

I would be remise to not begin this review by discussing the visuals, as it is easily the film’s greatest strength. In his previous films, Eggers has solidified himself as a filmmaker with a one of a kind eye for finding beauty in darkness. While not necessarily horror films, Eggers style is reminiscent of one, with a slow build to extreme outbursts usually captured in static shots within a grey world punctuated by hard shadows and flickering fire side lights. I’m happy to say Eggers has not only kept this aesthetic that is both hard to watch and impossible to look away from, but evolved it. His lighting is the most intense its ever been, with monstrous fires ferociously illuminating the characters faces, drenching them in sharp evocative shadows. His wide shots capture the awe of the nordic past, with stunning settings such as vast green fields, harsh ocean waves, and a volcanic battlefield that heightens the grandiosity of the final fight. Smoke is a tool consistently utilized to hide the characters, only revealing their silhouettes to shroud them in mystery and build an intense mood. However, the most impressive jump in Eggers’ visual style has to be in the camera movements. I was stunned to see multiple intricate long takes, tracking characters through villages, battles, and so much more. This is easily the most dynamic Eggers’ camera has ever been, and I believe this creates a form of world building that separates The Northman from his other films. While The Witch and The Lighthouse used static shots to present a rich world to the audience, The Northman uses a moving camera to place the audience in an already living universe. It became clear to me that this is the most invested I’ve been in one of his films as I felt apart of it. There was no setting that needed to be established, just one that the audience had to be thrown into. All of the other visual details in the film aid in this immersion, such as the costuming and production design clearly establishing a world deep with lore and history. Then there are the mystical elements of Norse mythology that are displayed with glorious special effects, another filmmaking tool Eggers has never used to this degree and quality. Essentially, Eggers has added new elements to his moody style that immerses the audience in a way far different than his previous outings, which distinguishes the film from his other works for its different approach at delving into yet another fascinating world.

While the visuals have clearly evolved in comparison to his filmography, I’m sad to say the narrative has done the opposite. Marketed as a tale for revenge, I believe some, including myself, may have gone in with some different expectations in comparison to Eggers’ previous films. While I was by no means expecting a strictly action packed showdown for two hours, I was hoping for some more nuance in a story that at this point has been done to death. A prince avenges his father’s murder because it is his fate and he must keep his honor in tact, but when finding a lover his beliefs are questioned. Sound familiar? It’s not a new story by any means, which is not an inherent disappointment, but it becomes a slog to sit through a film where every beat is predictable and chances at genuine depth are effaced. I found myself enjoying the story, but not feeling the weight of what should have been powerful moments as a result of the shallow characters and cliche plot. This is where I believe the film’s biggest problems are found, as I found significant pacing issues consequential of the blend between Eggers’ patient style with a story that benefits from consistent over the top action. The film begins on an explosive note where Amleth is clearly established and his goal is solidified after his father’s murder. The film then cuts to Amleth’s adulthood, where he is seemingly no longer interested in following his fate while being apart of a gang of vicious raiders. However, this is soon backtracked when he has a discussion with a mystical being who sets him on the correct course of action. This is typical storytelling with the protagonist refusing the call to action before reluctantly agreeing, but I felt it to be constrained, as if there wasn’t enough time allocated to strong character development. Rather, this time was spent building the world with long shots, patient stills, and other visual tangential’s that, while creating unique and rich locations, failed to keep the momentum going for a good portion of the movie. As a result, the characters felt flimsy, which is shocking for a filmmaker that places such emphasis on his character’s psyche. Character development feels bunched up into bite size segments where everything happens at once before twenty more minutes of methodical decision making by the protagonist and world building. While these portions of the film were always visually stunning, the actions taking place didn’t leave as much of an impact on me as I had hoped. The genre, narrative, and visual style seem to be at odds at some points, which makes for a movie that has far too many one star reviews for all of the viewers that expected an action adventure and were presented with, what I find to be more interesting, an attempt at a character study in the midst of an action adventure.

However, the narrative is focused enough to keep the audience interested, and with stunning moments that feel unequally dispersed, you may find yourself bored while watching, but never too far from something interesting taking place, wether that be visually or narratively. Despite its pacing issues and character failings, The Northman is Eggers’ greatest success at immersing the audience in a unique world. While I still find The Lighthouse to be still be his best film, there is no doubt that The Northman is an evolution on an already fantastic style that can only continue to improve.