4 out of 5

Director: John McTiernan

The 13th warrior was horribly received. And I can understand it to a certain extent, with the studio delays known to the public allowing for focus on the director changes and budget-ballooning. At the same time, the 13th Warrior seems like such a well constructed, tightly knit action film that Im surprised someone beyond Michael Crichton didnt champion its themes, acting, and atmosphere. The story starts with an Arab poet who, after falling for the wrong girl, is sent on the unwanted errand of being an ambassador to the vikings. While ones acceptance of Antonio Banderas as Arab is questionable, his (to my eyes) commitment to the role made me constantly forget the regularly-suave actor in favor of the generally humble character he plays here. That the humbleness is not played outright for laughs when he – by some plotting magic – is drafted to be the 13th warrior in a band of vikings is a credit to the plotting and smooth handling of the movies tone, which is on a constant balance between quest and contemplation. The same goes for each member of this group and the vikings themselves: while its easy to spot the strongman, and the comedian, etc., both the Arab and viking mindset are woven into swallowable dialogue so that what occurs on screen seems neither rushed nor illogical. Which is important when our team starts going up against some cannibalistic marauders in some impressive and gritty battles. Admittedly, the leads all remain pretty clean-shaven and washed, and development outside of exactly whats going on is small, but much work was put into these environments and sets to capture the dank and heavy feel of the land. By no means an epic, the 13th warrior is still a very satisfying and good looking film, avoiding the falls of over-reaching by sticking to its story and its characters.