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Conan the Barbarian

Conan the Barbarian

List Price: $24.98
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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A Great movie.
Review: Schwarzenegger's best in my opinion. This movie is well written with great action. And the icing on the cake is the powerful music by Basil Poledouris which sets the mood of each scene. I recommend the widescreen version. There's just so much you don't see in a full screen version.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Conan questions himself?
Review: Great story for starters, well written with excellent performances from the cast...looks great in the wide-screen format. Some added scenes, very nice...like King Osric's daughter
leading Conan back to Thulsa doom for Conan to get his revenge
however, the last scene in the ending with Conan carrying Osric's daughter off into the sunset seemed a bit cliche'. And the new scene in which Conan questions the last 20 years of his life, was obviously a rehersal. Not only that but, Gerry Lopez sounds like,.. Gerry Lopez in the scene and not his character, Subotai.
I had to laugh. Here we have Conan talking of the sweet smelling air as they prepare for Thulsa Doom's attack after stealing Doom's 'queen to be', Osric's daughter. This film however, has something that not every movie has,.. a wonderful soundtrack! Basil Poledouris' music could not be more fitting for the movie. It does a most excellent job in complimenting the over all emotion and feel of such a great story. The only thing that bothered me about the soundtrack was, that it was transfered in awful 'mono', even for the dvd release. I don't know what John Milius was thinking, obviously too wrapped up in Conan's talk of wasting the past 20 years of his life. I still however, have to give this release a 4 star rating based upon the story and choice of cast. Conan The Barbarian is still a great dvd to have.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: By Crom, a great edition of a great movie!
Review: I first thought I wouldn't like this kind of movie, but my friends convinced me to go with them to see the movie when it was first out in the theaters and I left the movie suprised at how much I enjoyed this movie. I became a Conan and a Schwarzenegger fan that day.

I just watched this DVD last night. I had the theater version on tape, and loved it, but the DVD is even better. A few restored scenes that the director always wanted but was made to cut by the suits, the added scenes added depth and further complexity to Conan's character. And I always thought the ending seemed a bit choppy to me, the original ending took a bit for me to get used to, it was odd to now have the princess there as well, but it made sense afterwards, and especially after listening to the director's and Arnold's commentary. I wish there was just a bit more "extras" but that's a lot to ask of for a movie that was made many years before DVD's. With that in mind, they did a great job. A great movie that stands the test of time, a movie that not only can be enjoyed on the surface, but has a script with suprising depth, with great characters and characterization.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Slash 'Em Conan!!
Review: One of Arnie's earlier movies, where he portrays Conan, and he does it well, given his strength and build. And he certainly looks the part. This is not a film for the kiddies, as it has violence galore, but what would you expect from Robert Howard's hero? It's what made the movie such a smash hit. Conan doesn't take any prisoners. He is King!! May we never meet an enemy like this one.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: this dune, star wars empire, hellraiser 2 my top 4 all time
Review: LIKE GUYS GETTING HEAD CHOPPED OFF? BUY IT!

man MANY MEMORABLE SCENES
"CONAN--WHAT IS BEST IN LIFE?" CLASSIC--THIS ALONE WORTH PRICE OF FILM

"NOT MAN NOT BEAST NOT WOMAN CAN U TRUST; BUT---THIS" [POINTING AT STEEL SWORD] "THISS YOU CAN TRUST"

WISH MY DAD TOLD ME THIS AT AGE 5!

snake wizard
boy dad n mom killed age 5
grows big[arnold] escapes slavery
starts thieving
starts trcking wizard who had the dog eat his dad in scene 1
she-warrior
archer
giant snake
old king---also wants get rid wizard
sh--t hits fan

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Great movie and DVD. The best sword/sorcery flick ever!
Review: For me, Conan the Barbarian was the first movie to have the decent amount of plot elements, action, and character devlopment to be the first real sword/sorcery movie for me. After being disappointed by many other attempts and the genre, I finally gave this one a try. The results were in for me before the movie even ended. It was great. It was one of those kinds of movies where you would pause it after key moments just to say, "Man, that was TIGHT!"

Conan the Barbarian chronicals the early life of Conan the Cimmerian in oustanding detail. From the brutal attack on his childhood village, to his freedom from slavery, to his meeting of his first love Valeria, and to the defeat of his first great enemy, this movie has everything you're looking for in a movie like this.

Everything is top-notch: The cinemetograhy is beautiful, the production design is fantastic... even the acting isn't half-bad! But what realy deserves recognition is the music. The score is the best I've ever heard and I believe it was nominated for "Best Original Score" in the 1981 academy awards. The cast is also great. It inludes James Earl Jones, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Max Von Sydow.

The direction (by John Millius of "Dillinger" fame) is great. There isn't one moment where something doesn't make sense in the movie. Also, the action is wonderful. Although there ins't much actual swordfighting, there is a lot of hacking/slashing/gore, which is pretty cool but it makes the movie a good one to keep away from the kids. (read below for more details)

The DVD is pretty good, boasting some good picture and sound quality, a 55 minute doumentary on the making of the film, a hilarious commentary with director Millius and actor Schwarzenegger, some deleted scenes, storyboards/conceptual art, and more. For special-features lovers, this DVD is sure to please.

All in all, this is a perfect movie. There is decent enough acting, great action, wonderful cinemetography and production desgin, awesome music, and an overall "epic" feel. The overall verdict is that it's a great purchase.

1981; 129 minutes; Rated R for many intense sequences of strong violence, some disturbing images, 3 brief but strong scenes of sexuality, gratuitous nudity, and some mild language.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Now they will know why they are afraid of the dark...
Review: Back in 1982, when this film first came out I remember being absolutely spellbound by the production. It was as if Conan had stepped right out of Robert E. Howard's books. I remember some grumbling, because the script was not perfectly true to the original books. But, frankly, I did not give a darn. Valeria (Sandahl Bergman) was the perfect warrior maiden, Thulsa Doom (James Earl Jones) was the snake worshipper from hell, and Arnold Schwarzenegger was totally out of sight as the nearly inarticulate Conan. What a glare he had!

I don't mean to slight the rest of the cast, all the actors are great. Garry Lopez as Conan's sidekick and Mako as the wizard provide comic relief. And who can forget Max Von Sydow as King Osric. In a world that expected science fiction and fantasy movies to be hokey, grade B schlock, 'Conan the Barbarian' proved that it didn't have to be that way. No small part of what makes the film work are the elaborate sets and cinematography. Director John Milius strove to give the film something of the flavor of a history that could have happened, and succeeded. In addition, he makes up for the lack of dialog by presenting a continuous flow of carefully orchestrated and framed film sequences.

I was struck while watching it this time how much the dialog and action work to build the thematic structure. Often events or dialog will foreshadow action to come. In Valeria's death scene, she asks Conan to keep her warm. And in the next scene we find him building and lighting a funeral pyre where no fire had burnt before. In the background, the mound with its sacred stones echoes similar shapes seen throughout the film. This kind of thoughtful work is only to be expected of Milius and De Laurentis, but in 1982, it was far beyond the norm for this genre.

Two features are added for the DVD. The first is a running film analysis by Schwarzenegger and Milius, which is every bit as good as the movie itself. A the second is a feature on the film's production done 20 years after the fact. It is quite interesting to hear what the acting and production teams thin about the film in retrospect.

Violent and sexy, the film's core is built of constant action and spectacle, with very little dialog. Sudden moments of filmic stillness act to emphasize the intense and often gory fight scenes. This and several moments when there is apparent mistreatment of animals give the film its R rating. Of course, the controversy only added to the film's popularity at the time. Even today, this manages to be a surprising film. By all means make and effort to seek it out.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: For once Universal gets one of their movies right!...
Review: Unlike "Fast Times" this Universal Collector's Edition DVD is done right, Conan finally looks good, it literally sucked on VHS, but now it shines, thanks to DVD technology, This was the movie that put Arnold Schwarzenegger on the map, it starts off with Conan as a child that witnesses the brutal slaughter of his people, as his mother & father fight off their attackers they too are killed, James Earl Jones is seen here as Thulsa Doom, a warrior that is wiping out anyone & everyone who he sees fit, he spares Conan & literally takes his father's sword, he even decapitates his mother next to him, Conan is soon sold into child slaverly, where he endures hard labor, years of this labor eventually build him up into Arnold who is then freed only to serve his master in gladiator-like competition, soon he is freed permanantly, what follows is Conan's sense of self where he discovers a tomb centuries old, it is here that he takes his trademark sword & begins a quest for revenge, along the way he encounters a seductive woman who knows the whereabouts of Thulsa Doom, but Conan has to offer her sex in return for information, which she gladly gives before changing into what appears to be a vampire, Conan soon disposes of her in a rather comical if not bizarre moment, he soon meets up with Subi-Ti(Gerry Lopez) as they steal their way from one palce to another, they soon meet up with Valeria(Sandahl Bergman) who comes off as a Xena-type warrior, who helps them take a diamond from Doom's castle of death, they are soon captured & brought before King Osaric(Max Von Sydow)who at first seems appalled by their actions, but soon commends them for their bravery & gives them all the wealth in return for one favor: steal his daughter back, who has fallen for Thulsa Doom as his slave, despite the sudden wealth Conan is obsessed with revenge, even Valeria who becomes his lover can't even shake his obsession, soon Conan is on a lonely quest, & is soon captured by Doom's thugs, they beat him to a blooby pulp, soon we see Doom, this is where Jones' Doom comes to life, as he rants & raves about his generosity in letting Conan live, Conan is later crusified on a tree, soon Subi-Ti finds him & he & Valeria along with a Wizard(Mako in a memorable role) nurse Conan back to health, once done they set out to get the daughter which they do, which results in Conan -vs- Thulsa Doom's men, the highlight of this movie is the very end after Conan has wiped out his men, his confrontation with Doom is the best as Conan finally gets payback, the Collector's Edition has a slight different ending surrounding this scene, but it works very well, one wonders why it wasn't left in, this is one of Arnold's better movies, better than "Terminator" I think, the audio commetary by Arnold & director John Milius is cool, you can tell these guys had fun making this movie, they even hint at doing another, which would be cool, "Conan-vs-The Scorpion King", that would be cool, possible, they are both owned by Universal.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Loved the movie, but was disappointed by the DVD
Review: Conan the Barbarian's one of my all time fave movies. However the DVD was so sorry. The picture was grainy and had a pulsing in the background. You'd think they would've done a digital transfer, but no. The soundtrack was in mono! Give me a break! Couldn't they have at least remastered it to a 2.0 soundtrack if not 5.1? And yes it can be done, because the original Terminator was in mono, but was remastered to Dolby Digital 5.1. I really wish the same care would've been taken with Conan the Barbarian.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The best movie ever made by Arnold!
Review: This is a good fantasy movie. The entire trilogy, (Which unfortunately is only two movies, Darned it) Is a very good one and plus it keeps you on the edge of your seat. I had first watched this movie I think when I was two years old. A pretty graphic movie for a two year old, yes, but I was hooked since then... I only liked a couple of movies as a kid, but it was movies by Arnold and the Conan trilogy which was my favorite.
... If your into real fantasy epics,...then you'll like this movie. In this movie, as one of the main characters in Conan said, "You must reach out and grab it!" Do that! Reach out and grab this movie!


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