Conan the Barbarian (2011)

When it’s over, this was a “cut & paste” film.  A little story here + some action there + lots of blood and gore + some nudity + more action + add some dialogue, and the film goes on and on in this manner.  This was a shoddy attempt to update the 1982 film starring Arnold Schwarzenegger.  Jason Momoa doesn’t look bad as Conan.  In fact, he looked in good form to play the Cimmerian barbarian who goes on a quest to avenge his father’s murder and the destruction of his village.  Without a story that offered much in character development, there was nowhere for Momoa to go with his character except to fill the screen time with action sequences.  There’s nothing engaging about Conan or any of the other characters.  Like Conan said in the film, “I live. I love. I slay.”  The characters are so one dimensional and meaningless, that they live, they fight, they die, without the slightest tug at one's heartstrings.  As the lead, Conan needed to stand out, not only in stature, but also in presence. The film needed scenes which would bring out the human qualities that emulated from within Conan, the qualities that separates the man from the barbarian.


My rating:  1.5 out of 5