I got a chance to see this in the theatres thanks to a friend of mine with a sharp eye. It was only released in a VERY limited engagement in my area, only one theatre ran it for a week. What a shame!This movie is a must-see for fans of sci-fi movies like the first Terminator, movies like Ice Pirates, or Pitch Black. It has its own wonderful mythology, and the casting is great. Could've seen more of Ron Pearlman, though.
Yes, there are a couple of cheesy moments, but the good stuff far outweighs the bad. Very very enjoyable film. Looking forward to a disc release, and hopefully an extended edition rumor has it that Weinstein and Co trimmed 15 min off the end to make the movie fit on one less reel, saving money.
We have inter-planetary travel, love, loss, awesome looking dragon creatures with firefly (glowing) capabilities, all intertwined within the Norse time period of our history. Caviezel has just the right look to be the believable yet fearless fighter that hunts these creatures across the universe.
The effects looked adequate, and excelled during any of the ship sequences off planet. I have read most of the criticisms about pacing, time period gaffs and such, but overall I think they made a solid film. The DVD has over 32 minutes of deleted scenes that help answer some of the questions raised while watching the theatrical cut (which runs 115 minutes itself). The alternate opening would have helped with the end but watching a space ship spiral towards Earth works better. The scenes with his Captain would have been nice to see in the main cut, as would most of the others but oh well. Some nice informative supplements for the special effects also.
Customers have been asking for this since last year, and playing it alone has generated quite a buzz. A worthwhile owner for fans of the film that would of course look beautiful on Blu.Rarely have I seen such attention to detail in a movie of this type. Rarely do I watch a movie without working on some craft project while it's on. Usually I love to pick movies apart for whatever ridiculous scenes, lines, and implausible situations are offered. Not this one!
Within the first ten minutes I'd set down the needlework to give my full attention to watching the story. Within an hour I knew I would need to own this DVD (not a common impulse for me). Vikings in a believable setting and not a horned helmet in sight. Architecture, clothing, homes, everyday items, all done with much care and it makes such a difference! The Outlander's past history works in giving him his new fate. A few events in the story might have been stretching things a bit, but the creature was beautifully done, the scenery was gorgeous, and the people suited their roles. It's a work of art and I totally enjoyed it from start to finish!! This is a movie I know I would enjoy watching more than once an all too rare occurrence these days.
Read Best Reviews of Outlander (2008) Here
The first I ever heard of Outlander was in an ad page in last month's Fangoria. It looked and sounded like typical straight to video B movie fair. This is sometimes a very good and fun thing, and other times absolutely dreadful. From sifting through some other Amazon reviews regarding this film I found that it had a very, VERY, limited theatrical run and apparently was bashed by critics. Well, I still haven't read any 'professional' reviews for Outlander and I'm here to tell you that it's totally worth two hours of your life, especially if you're a creature feature fan and, even better, a sword and sandels epic fan.Basically, the premise of this movie is if Army Of Darkness was taken seriously. We have a space man(from another dimension? The future? Antoher planet?) who crashes his space ship onto earth in the year 709 and brings a big monster with him, that of course escapes and starts problems for the local Viking villages and tribes. That's it. That's the story. Nothing monumental or groundbreaking but totally fun. Hell, this movie has the type of story I would have written myself when I was ten and wanted even more to see it in the multiplex.
Don't get mislead by the Sci-Fi sounding premise, this is nothing close to true Science Fiction. It's a big action/horror/ monster movie on the most base levels. There's no science or hypothesis of the future or past of man to be found. Sorry, it just doesn't reach that high above it's B movie roots, and that is not always a bad thing if it's done well. It's obviously one of those films that has many different producers, most of which are not from the states, but the budget and level of polish on the production could be matched to any of the big summer films coming out now. The sets are good and have the dirty lived in quality required for anything involving Vikings. The CGI creature is mostly convincing. There's a few shots where the beast looks less then stellar but not many. The filmmakers were even smart, considering budget and suspense, by not revealing the creature in full light until the center of the film. It reminded me of the old Roger Corman creature features, but he waited until the third act, well, because his monsters never looked that convincing and were always more convincing when off screen. This could've been a big summer film of 09. Of course it's not a remake, a film based on action figures, one of several sequels to 20 year old properties, and of course there's no car, fast food or toy tie-ins to speak of, but it still could've given me what I long for this summer, something NEW.
The cast is all on spot. Jim Caviezel(The Passion of the Christ, The Thin Red Line, Frequency) stars, and I've always found him to be an underrated actor. He's turning into the king of big films that don't get a shot theatrically but become fan favorites on home video thanks to this and Highwaymen(if you haven't seen it, check it out). The movie even throws us the usual respected older actor in the form of John Hurt to play the Viking king. He's good as always and brings that extra John Hurt-ness he always brings to his roles, big or small. If you've read Beouwulf you can figure out where the plot is going and what it's riffing on but the added Sci-Fi trope helps throw you off for a bit. This isn't going to go down as one of Caviezel's great performances, but he does lend dramatic gravity to what essentially is the typical monosyllobic hero with a past role. After about an hour his characters comes more into his own and leaves behind the usual action character cliche's thanks to him. Ron Perlman shows up late into the film as an opposing tribes leader. He's not give much to do, and I'm not sure why they cast an actor of his caliber for such an nothing part, but it's nice to see him anyway.
The DVD looks and sounds great. Plus, it's loaded with special features. We get some neat special effects tests and animatics of the action scenes, which there are plenty of, and while they're nothing ground breaking, they are done well and leave one feeling satisfied. There's also a great commentary track by the writers, director, producers and special effects technicians that covers so much ground there is no need for a making of doc. They also react to their critics and talk about the original forms of the script. Of course there's also 40 minutes worth of deleted scenes, all of which were rightfully ommitted from the final film. There is an intersting alternate opening that's worth a look though. Can't say the same for the alternate ending.
At least give this one a shot at a rental. You won't be disappointed. Sure, the man from outer space might turn some viewers off, but I emplore you to open your mind and just smile while the B movie ride takes you away. Don't be scared off by the lack of Happy Meals and Tom Cruise level of star power tie-ins. This is a quality B picture on the level of all the big budget B pictures you'll be plopping down 12 bucks to see this summer in theatres. Yes, I'm looking at you Transformers 2 and Terminator:Salvation.
Want Outlander (2008) Discount?
This is one of the better movies I've seen in a while (theatrical releases included). The characters are rich, not forced into stereotypes (e.g., the jealous rival). The extended backstory is revealed in manageable bits that add to rather than detract from the suspense. Plus, Jim Caveziel, Jack Huston, Sophia Miles, Ron Perlman, and John Hurt how bad can it really be? Take a risk and rent this you won't be disappointed.Save 57% Off
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