La furia de los vikings

Mario Bava's first credited viking movie (after he worked as an uncredited director on LAST OF THE VIKINGS, made in the same year and also starring Mitchell and Ardisson), is an above average entry for the genre enlivened by stylish direction from Bava which makes it a cut above the rest. The plot is different and involving and the characters fleshed out enough to make you interested in their actions. Primarily noted as a horror director, Bava can't resist inserting a scene involving a girl chained in a dank dungeon being terrorised by a tarantula held over her face in a glass tank towards the end of the movie, a macabre treat for his loyal horror fans. Elsewhere, he shoots imaginative scenes involving men climbing up ladders made out of freshly-shot arrows and the like which make for entertaining and surprising viewing.

Cameron Mitchell stars as Aaron, a just and noble viking warrior. George Ardisson is his younger brother Erik (after having also played Mitchell's brother in LAST OF THE VIKINGS), the film's real hero character, and is surprisingly good in the role. Meanwhile Andrea Checchi makes for a convincing but underused villain and the addition of real-life twins Alice and Ellen Kessler to the cast makes for novelty value. Bits parts come from the muscular Joe Robinson (TAUR THE MIGHTY) as a viking rival of Aaron's, and Tony Kendall - later a Euro action man appearing in all kinds of genres - amusingly showing up before he was famous, acting and looking very odd.

The photography is as good as ever, the movie is ambitiously made on a low budget and often cuts back and forth between England and Norway, and the music effective. What makes this film work, though, is the inventive plot - as involved as you're going to get with this viking sub-genre - and the characterisation, which combined with the strong cast helps to make an intelligent, straightforward, and largely entertaining action-adventure yarn, offering up just about everything you could want from the genre without ever resorting to silliness. Bava's final viking movie was 1965's KNIVES OF THE AVENGER, which throws a unique spaghetti western slant on the genre.

In the 9th Century, two Viking children, separated since their early childhood with one raised by the British and the other by Vikings, meet after nearly 20 years as rivals as war breaks out between Britain and the Vikings for control of England.

The film is a loose remake of the American film "The Vikings" (1958), starring Kirk Douglas. Credit was not given at the time, which really is not out of the ordinary for Italian productions. Just look at the endless string of "Jaws" ripoffs. Bava's film borrows the estranged twins idea, the duel alongside the castle, and the showing of a viking funeral. Interestingly, to get around his lack of budget, the biggest change is setting much of "Erik" underground because on-location (Norwegian) settings were just not possible. "Erik" also has a similar plot to Sergio Corbucci's "Duel of the Titans" (1961), though that setting was Rome rather than northern Europe. Most likely, Corbucci was ripping off the same source.

As far as casting goes, Cameron Mitchell is the definitive American "star" of Italian films. During the 1960s, Mitchell starred in numerous Italian sword and sandal, horror, fantasy and thriller films, several of which were directed by Mario Bava, including "Blood and Black Lace" (1964) and "Knives of the Avenger" (1966). He also participated in Spaghetti Westerns, like Corbucci's "Minnesota Clay". (In Hollywood lore, Mitchell's claim to fame was introducing Marilyn Monroe to Arthur Miller.)

Then we have the German-born Kessler Twins, who were big hits in Europe at the time. In the States, the Kessler Twins were not as popular as they were in Europe but soon appeared in Robert Aldrich's "Sodom and Gomorrah" (1962, while Aldrich was in exile) as dancers and appeared on the cover of Life Magazine in that year. Did "Erik" help get them the part in the Aldrich film?

Anyway, "Erik the Conqueror" is a fine film in its own right, even if we acknowledge its lack of originality. There is an epic ship battle that rivals anything in the more contemporary Disney "Pirates" franchise, for example, and the various techniques to create a big-looking film are admirable. Bava knew how to push the limits of budget, and this paid off. The film made back two or three times its production cost. Oddly, though we know Bava for his horror work, in Italy the horror genre was not terribly popular and the "sword and sandal" theme was a bigger draw. (Mitchell claims that Bava never had an unprofitable film. Whether this is true or not I don't know, but none come immediately to mind.)

The Arrow Video Blu-ray offers a brand new 2K restoration of the film from the original camera negative. Viewers are given the choice between the original Italian and dubbed English mono audio. There is a new audio commentary by Bava expert Tim Lucas, who reveals some of the interesting matte techniques used and declares this Bava's "most underrated film". Heck, we even get "Gli imitatori", a comparison between "Erik the Conqueror" and "The Vikings", as well as the film's original ending. This release is bursting with love.

Mario Bava, fresh from the overnight success of BLACK SUNDAY the previous year, emerges as a master of epic cinema in this Viking tale. Brilliant use of color hues and outstanding art direction distinguish this saga of twins separated as young boys during a battle between Anglo-Saxon hordes and Scandinavia's feared Viking tribes. Giorgio Ardisson portrays Erik and imbues his character with great nobility as he rises to fight against the Norsemen led by his brother Aaron (splendidly cast Cameron Mitchell). Andrea Checchi (Dr. Kruvajan in BLACK SUNDAY) is also tremendous as the evil Rutford, the scheming villain in this piece who wishes to use both forces to his own gain and place himself upon a throne he does not deserve. In an unforgettable interview with film historian David Del Valle commented that this film was made on a tiny budget but one would never surmise this from the rich texture and tenor of this major Bava opus. Macabre touches and phospherent Bava lighting place this work in a class by itself. The Kessler twins are used to superior advantage here and Francoise Christophe appears as the dignified and lovely Queen of the British Isles. A must-see for all lovers of The Maestro and for aficionados of epic cinema.

The first peplum to be officially directed by Bava (and his first collaboration with Hollywood actor Cameron Mitchell) is, as can be expected, a virtual clone of the classic spectacle THE VIKINGS (1958) – if, obviously, done on a much smaller budget. That said, unlike the later KNIVES OF THE AVENGER (1966), the film does feature a few sweeping action sequences (many of them replicated practically wholesale in the following year's ATTACK OF THE NORMANS [1962]; see above).

The plot concerns a couple of Viking brothers separated at birth during a vicious attack: one of them is raised by the British Queen and, therefore, becomes his sibling's sworn enemy. Also involved are a couple of identical vestal virgins – played by the then-popular singing duo, the Kessler Twins – who, obviously, both go against their vows (and thus risking death if caught) by falling for the brothers. The Viking community, largely confined to living as cave-dwellers, provides plenty of opportunity for Bava's trademark atmospherics and flair for composition and, as was the norm for him at this stage in his career, he officially acted as his own cinematographer!

The typically jovial, uncouth and heavy-set Viking leader is played here by Folco Lulli (though he is killed in the very opening sequence!), while Andrea Checchi – from Bava's own BLACK Sunday [1960] – fills in for the role of chief villain (his death via a succession of arrows may well have been inspired by the unforgettable demise of the "Macbeth" character in Akira Kurosawa's superb Shakespearean adaptation THRONE OF BLOOD [1957]). Though a decent actor, Mitchell comes across as a generally glum presence in these type of pictures; here, he ends up by sacrificing himself for his brother and, consequently, receives the requisite fiery viking burial (even if the film's budget apparently didn't afford this spectacular effect – since it cuts abruptly to a two-shot of the lifeless Mitchell and his grieving intended for the fade-out)! Curiously enough, while Mitchell is the nominal male lead, the English title of the film makes it sound like the younger brother is the conquering hero of the piece!

While I already owned the film, taped off Italian TV, this second viewing came via a rental of the bare-bones Italian DVD; given the picture's lack of exposure in R1 land, I wonder whether it will eventually be included in Anchor Bay's hopefully-not-long-in-coming "The Mario Bava Collection Vol. 2"...

Virtuoso filmmaker Mario Bava turns his attention to the Viking adventure genre with generally engaging results. It's set in the 9th century when Viking aggressors are bloodily invading Britain. Two Viking brothers are separated during a battle, and are raised by opposing forces. Eron (American star Cameron Mitchell) grows up to be a fierce Viking warrior, while Erik (George Ardisson) is adopted by a young British queen (Francoise Christophe). Eron loves a vestal virgin named Daya (Ellen Kessler), while Erik takes a shine to her twin sister Rama (Alice Kessler).

All in all, this is good fun, and worthy viewing for folks who enjoy a good period adventure. It's bloody, it's colourful (it ought to be - Bava photographed it himself), it benefits from obviously impressive production values, and it works as a combination of intense action, melodrama, sexiness (there are plenty of lovely ladies on hand), and even a little dose of humour. The action sequences are definitely well executed, and look especially good given that Bava actually shot this in the 2.35:1 aspect ratio, which he usually didn't do. One highlight is a wall scaling sequence that would make Spider-Man proud. The music helps immensely in making this a rousing bit of business.

The performances are solid right down the line. Mitchell does fine, even if he is dubbed, and embraces the physicality of his role. Hunky Ardisson is his match as his long-lost brother. The real-life Kessler twins are positively ravishing, and Andrea Checchi is an enjoyably odious villain as the devious Sir Rutford.

Fun to watch for Bava admirers, and the first of his three pictures with Mitchell - the others being "Blood and Black Lace" and "Knives of the Avenger".

Eight out of 10.