Arnold Schwarzenegger remains, in most audience’s minds, the definitive take on Robert E. Howard‘s Conan the Barbarian, despite the 1982 film’s dated elements. There’s good enough reason for that, including the star’s almost monosyllabic performance and Mr. Universe physique, but a lot of it also comes down to the film’s bloody single-mindedness and John Milius‘ sturdy direction. Far less heralded is Marcus Nispel’s (director of the underrated 2003 The Texas Chainsaw Massacre) 2011 take on the character, starring Jason Momoa. Critics savaged the long-gestating remake and audiences similarly rejected it, earning the film a paltry $64 million against a $90-million budget.
However, there’s plenty to recommend in the slick, gory attempt at a sword-and-sorcery revival, from the faithful interpretation of the Conan character to the charming (albeit a tad nu-metal) 2011 special effects. The remake’s magic comes from three primary sources: the supernaturally charismatic Momoa, a furious approach to bloodletting, and second unit direction and stunt coordination by David Leitch, who would go on to co-helm the John Wick franchise. After 15 years, Nispel’s Conan has taken enough punishment for its meager crimes, and is well worth another look.
Jason Momoa Hated ‘Conan the Barbarian,’ but His Performance Is Perfect
More than a decade after its release, Momoa revealed his true feelings about the Conan the Barbarian remake, having at the time called it an incredible experience and praised both Nispel’s direction and the film’s incredible stunt and effects team. Studio interference, he said, ended up ruining what he hoped would be a fresh and faithful take on the character. “I’ve been a part of a lot of things that really sucked, and movies where it’s out of your hands. Conan was one of them. It’s one of the best experiences I had and it [was] taken over and turned into a big pile of shit,” he said in an interview with British GQ.
Momoa gave the role his all, though, and his casting was a real coup for a creative team looking to honor both the appearance and spirit of Howard’s original creation. Momoa sports the build, dark hair, devilish handsomeness, and — most importantly — wry smarts of Conan, arguably besting Schwarzenegger’s massively muscled take, which was more inspired by Frank Frazetta’s iconic paintings.
Jason Momoa’s $90 Million Failed Fantasy Invades New Streaming Home
The film flopped with critics and audiences.
It helps that he faces a pair of villains with performers absolutely playing to the rafters, in Stephen Lang‘s Khalar Zym and Rose McGowan‘s unforgettably wicked sorceress Marique. The father-daughter duo bellows, spits, and stalks across the screen in a way that makes it clear both actors completely understood the assignment. McGowan in particular, with her bizarre hair and makeup work that make her resemble almost an alien and set of golden talon-like nails, pulls off abject villainy so well that one argued she deserved both an Oscar and a Razzie for her work. When Marique is slicing women’s faces with her talons, tasting their blood, and screaming, “None of them are pure,” it’s trash cinema nirvana.
The Action and Effects in Jason Momoa’s Fantasy Movie Are Catnip for Sword-and-Sorcery Fans
If there was one thing Nispel had to nail in Conan the Barbarian, it was the action — and he succeeded with flying colors. Aided by incredible stunt work and choreography by a pre-John Wick David Leitch, his battles sing, even when Momoa is fighting a coterie of sand men that were largely created using CGI. Every slicing, bludgeoning, and impalement is lovingly rendered with no PG-13 concessions, and it’s easy to follow each fight spatially.
Every cent of the film’s $90-million budget is seen in Nispel’s admirable dedication to physical sets and stunts, with some truly incredible, lived-in constructions, all filmed in Bulgaria. From a humble village decimated by Zym’s army to a massive land ship being carried by elephants, Nispel’s eye for composition makes it hard to see where the real ends and the effects begin, much more than in today’s many green screen-heavy action spectacles. Some of its establishing shots and action scenes even approach those of Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy in pure fantasy splash-panel gorgeousness. Conan 2011 is not a perfect film, but it’s a near-perfect vision of the character and world. Sword-and-sorcery fans in 2026 could do far worse than its loud, bloody, and beautiful 113 minutes.
- Release Date
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August 17, 2011
- Runtime
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113 minutes
- Director
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Marcus Nispel
