The Northman
Short description
The Northman is a Viking revenge story directed by Robert Eggers, following The Witch and The Lighthouse in his filmography and preceding Nosferatu and Werwulf. Set around the turn of the tenth century, it centres on Amleth, a Norse prince whose father, King Aurvandil, is killed by his brother Fjölnir, who seizes both the throne and Amleth's mother, Gudrún. The boy escapes and grows into a hardened warrior. Years later, hearing that Fjölnir has settled in Iceland, Amleth travels there among a group of slaves, intending to rescue his mother and take his revenge. On the journey he meets Olga of the Birch Forest, who becomes his ally.
Eggers wrote the screenplay with the Icelandic author Sjón. Alexander Skarsgård plays Amleth and also produced; Nicole Kidman appears as Gudrún, Claes Bang as Fjölnir, Ethan Hawke as Aurvandil, and Anya Taylor-Joy as Olga. The large supporting company includes Gustav Lindh as Thórir the Proud; the production credits 59 cast members and 135 crew overall.
Made for about 70 million USD, the film returned roughly the same amount worldwide, so it did not turn a profit at the box office. Audiences rate it 7/10 on IMDb from around 297,000 votes and 7/10 on TMDB from about 5,300 votes, while the film critics' rating stands at 7.7/10 from 384 reviews, slightly above the audience scores.
What's left behind the scenes
- Filming took place from August to December 2020 in Northern Ireland and Iceland.
- The valkyrie's tooth markings are based on bodies discovered in Viking burial sites with horizontal striations on the tooth remains. This practice was widespread on the island of Gotland. It is believed that the horizontal grooves on the teeth were filled with colored pigment.
- Queen Gudrun wears a Finnish headdress that Orvandill brought back from another raid.
- In preparation for filming, director Robert Eggers worked extensively with historians and meticulously studied the corresponding historical period to make the sets, costumes, and props look as authentic as possible. He also seriously studied the historical period preceding the emergence of Christian elements in Viking culture.
- Filming was supposed to begin in March 2020, but it had to be postponed for several months due to the pandemic. When a break in work on the film became necessary for this reason, all the actors were already on location and rehearsing. The only consolation was that the postponement allowed the sets to age a bit and not look brand new, and the beards of the actors playing Vikings grew even longer.
- Filming was supposed to begin in March 2020, but it had to be postponed for several months due to the coronavirus pandemic, even though the actors were already on location and rehearsing. However, as a result of the postponement, the sets aged and didn't look brand new, and the beards of the actors playing Vikings grew even longer.
- According to director Robert Eggers, he wanted all the dialogue in the film to be in the languages of the 10th century – Old Church Slavonic and Old Norse. However, these languages are used in the film only during rituals, as a film entirely in unknown languages would not have been able to secure production funding.
- While preparing for filming, director Robert Eggers consulted with historians and studied the relevant historical period to make the sets, costumes, and props look as authentic as possible.
- According to director Robert Eggers, although the creators tried to maintain historical accuracy when making the film, only items found in burials are known about Viking clothing. It is possible that real Vikings would consider the characters in the film to be dressed like the dead.
- The Valkyrie's tooth appearance is based on bodies discovered in Viking burial sites with horizontal stripes on their teeth. This practice was widespread on the island of Gotland.
- The film's plot is based on the medieval Scandinavian legend of Prince Amleth, who also served as the prototype for the main character in William Shakespeare's tragedy "Hamlet, Prince of Denmark".
Auditions in India
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