The Vikings

The timing is good for this Blu-ray debut of the splashy 1958 Hollywood adventure The Vikings, given the popularity of the History Channel series Vikings and BBC America's The Last Kingdom, both centered on the infamous Norsemen. Set in the middle ages, when the Vikings pillaged the English coast, The Vikings is pure barbarian fantasy, with Kirk Douglas playing the lusty Viking Prince Einar, the “only son in wedlock” of King Ragnar (a cackling, wild-eyed Ernest Borgnine) and Tony Curtis as his defiant slave Eric, who is in reality the long-lost heir to the British throne. When the Vikings kidnap a Welsh princess (Janet Leigh) betrothed to the King of England, Eric rescues her from the Viking clutches and falls in love with her. This is, of course, pure Hollywood hokum, with the Vikings reduced to pagan cartoon barbarians who make sport of terrorizing and ravishing women and take pride in torture and murder, but it is spectacular-looking hokum. The great cinematographer Jack Cardiff turns the Norway locations into a lush Valhalla on Earth. And faced with an absurd story, journeyman director Richard Fleischer goes for the gusto, serving up brawling Viking parties, furious sieges, and clanging broadsword battles. The sexual politics are also decidedly retro, but this colorful, energetic, and hearty epic featuring star power to burn was an enormous hit in its day and spawned a huge wave of Viking movies. Recommended. (S. Axmaker)