La ruée des Vikings

Erik the Conqueror (1961)

*** (out of 4)

Eron (Cameron Mitchell) and Erik (George Ardisson), as children, witness their father brutally murdered during a Viking massacre. After the massacre Erik is taken in by the Queen while Eron grows up as a viking. Twenty-years later the two are on a collision course.

ERIK THE CONQUEROR is quite the action picture as director Mario Bava certainly made the film look like a much bigger budget than I'm sure it had. There's no question that this film was riding on the success of THE VIKINGS but obviously the Italian production didn't have the big stars, the big budget or an unlimited amount of resources. That's what made Bava so special. He could take a small budget and make the picture look like something from a major studio.

I think the weakest thing here is the actual story since it's really nothing original and there's really nothing here that we haven't seen countless times before. Where the film succeeds is on every other level and we can start with the wonderful cinematography. This is certainly a beautiful picture to look at with the camera-work really bringing the settings to life. You've got the wonderful use of color that adds to the picture and just take a look at the camera work during the opening battle. This battle sequence was perfectly shot and it manages to grab you and throw you right into the action.

The action scenes are all handled with extreme craft and perfection. The movie certainly contains some rather violent moments to add to the fun and I'm sure the kiddies watching this during a matinée were quite shocked. The film also benefits from some nice performances with Mitchell leading the way. He was very strong in the lead role and managed to really sell the character. Ardisson isn't quite as good but he's at least fun as is Alice Kessler and Ellen Kessler as the love interest.

ERIK THE CONQUEROR isn't a masterpiece but it's certainly a highly entertaining action film.

ERIK THE CONQUEROR (aka THE INVADERS) was Mario Bava's second directorial assignment after his meteoric success with BLACK SUNDAY (aka MASK OF THE DEMON/LA MASCHERA DEL DEMONIO (1960). ERIK THE CONQUEROR is a tale of intrigue and treachery between Viking forces and the Anglo-Saxon defenders of the British Isles in the year 786 A.D. The story begins as two children are separated from each other during a fierce battle. One of the two is taken and raised by Queen Alice (the stately & beautiful Francoise Christophe) and the other child remains with his Viking people. Both bear tatoos which identify them as brothers. They grow up to face each other in battle but have been tricked by Rutford (a deliciously evil portrayal by Andrea Checchi), a scheming English noble who intends to take the throne he covets for himself. Art direction alone is dazzling with phospherescent hues of crimson, gold, emerald & cobalt blue. There are many macabre touches courtesy of Bava, and in an interview with noted film historian David Del Valle, Cameron Mitchell marvelled at Bava's mastery of trick photography and flawless cinematographic style. Mitchell gives one of his finest performances here as Aaron, the Viking and Giorgio Ardisson is splendid as Erik, his brother and King/defender of Britain. The golden, flaxen beauty of Alice & Ellen Kessler is used o good effect here as the eventual lovers of Erik and Aaron. A must-see for Bava worshippers and required viewing for epic aficionados!

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"...

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.

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.