Beautiful cinematography when showing rivers and forests, and even some sea-scenes of dragon-boats. Otherwise, a stupid plot, with a comic over-acting villain. The actor, someone named Bloor, I think, behaves like Alan Rickman if a director had told Rickman to ham up his Sherriff of Nottingham.
The battle scenes are OK and the good guys (and gals) win. They rally to defend their land against a crusading army of about 30 or 40 who never speak except to shout "argh" and "glug" as they are stabbed. We know they are crusaders because they wear the same helmets and each has a white cloak with a cross.
The heroic boy-king faces sneaky tribal leaders ready to pledge loyalty and then to betray him and to betray their homeland. They go over to the villain's side, but, of course, the hero finds a way to defeat them all.
All of it has something to do with a Pope, father of the villain, who kills anyone who fails. Every now and again, another papal son pops up to rattle off some Latin and to beg people to follow the way of peace. At what looks like a climax, the priestly son throws himself between the crusading army and the good villagers, crying "Stop" (more or less). Ah, I thought, now he converts the pagan villagers and Latvians live happily ever after. Nope. The crusaders shoot him with about a dozen arrows, and the conversion sub-plot evaporates.
Nearly everything about this movie is painfully stupid.
The battle scenes are OK and the good guys (and gals) win. They rally to defend their land against a crusading army of about 30 or 40 who never speak except to shout "argh" and "glug" as they are stabbed. We know they are crusaders because they wear the same helmets and each has a white cloak with a cross.
The heroic boy-king faces sneaky tribal leaders ready to pledge loyalty and then to betray him and to betray their homeland. They go over to the villain's side, but, of course, the hero finds a way to defeat them all.
All of it has something to do with a Pope, father of the villain, who kills anyone who fails. Every now and again, another papal son pops up to rattle off some Latin and to beg people to follow the way of peace. At what looks like a climax, the priestly son throws himself between the crusading army and the good villagers, crying "Stop" (more or less). Ah, I thought, now he converts the pagan villagers and Latvians live happily ever after. Nope. The crusaders shoot him with about a dozen arrows, and the conversion sub-plot evaporates.
Nearly everything about this movie is painfully stupid.