Fish-out-of-water, high action adventure w/ an interesting take on Vikings

Rating: 9/10 (6 January 2006)

This is one of my favorite films. I'm no lover of Bandaris, but his portrayal of an elite Arab aristocrat, put through a series of odd circumstances that force him to join Vikings to travel across the world and fight an ancient evil, is well shot, well-acted and intriguing. Other than star Bandaris, its an ensemble cast of mostly unknowns who do an excellent job of portraying Vikings as something other than berserking brutes. You truly identify with the "fish-out-of-water" Bandaris character and get engrossed in the story (based on Criten's Eaters of the Dead, which gives away the major plot twist and was logically changed). Several things conspired to make this film less than successful (an Arabic lead character and cast of unknowns probably didn't help). Old school style, swash-buckling story which is a great lost treasure.