Outlander

Warner Brothers

R1 DVD

Outlander is a very eccentric and unusual film; it is essentially Beowulf meets science fiction, a sort of Vikings versus Alien tale. Now at first this sounds utterly ridiculous and it would seem hard to take the idea seriously. Indeed I wonder just how the director sold the concept to a studio, especially considering the obviously high budget special effects and nature of the plot. Yet Outlander works and works extra-ordinarily well.

It is 750 C.E and Kainan, a soldier from another world (and perhaps another time) crash lands in the middle of Norway. The local villages have been attacked by an unknown enemy which leaves them razed to the ground and takes all the bodies. Kainan is found near one of the villages and taken prisoner and brutally interrogated. It becomes obvious, however, that he is not the source of the destruction and he tells a tale of a creature called a Moorwen which has followed him from another world. Later in the film this story is further refined with a strong environmental message as we find that Kainan’s people, needing extra living space, raided the Moorwen’s home world, massacring the creatures and taking possession of the planet. Unbeknown to the settlers a small number of the creature’s survived in caverns under the planet’s surface and at the right moment took their revenge killing the occupants of the settlement. It also seems some of the Moorwen have escaped to a new world on-board Kainan’s spaceship.

On earth, the Moorwen has now found a new territory and begins collecting the local Vikings to add to its food larder. The battle against the creature is complicated by inter-tribal feuds and personality clashes within the tribe. As they lay a trap for the creature, soon it becomes apparent that there is a family group of Moorwen and with the tribe safely away, Kainan, Freya and the warriors of the tribe must face off against the monster once and for all.

This is a truly inventive mixture of myth and science fiction. It takes the Beowulf tale and combines it with religious and speculative themes in a way that is quite compelling. As would be expected there is lots of yelling, fighting, brawling and drinking; the portrayal of the Vikings is evocative and playful. There are some great set pieces which really set the tribal mood ranging from the “shield walk” to some powerful battle scenes. The cinematography is excellent using the natural environment to create a great sense of the world of the Vikings which works to even further emphasize the alien nature of the creature.

The acting is solid with a great performance from John Hurt and James Caviezel, the plot is complex and includes a range of interesting themes. I especially liked the way that the Moorwen’s rage is explained in terms of ecological genocide by Kainan’s people. The movement between the Norse Viking elements and the science fiction aspects of the tale are handled well; this is especially notable with the very high quality special effects.

Surprisingly the Beowulf plot is told in a relatively traditional manner simply transforming the nature of the Outlander and the creature. The scenes in the volcanic underworld which combine semi religious underworld like imagery with mythological and science fiction motifs is very innovative. The plot develops well with a superbly climatic extended final battle scene leading to a traditional Viking funeral and conclusion. This really is an unusual and creative re-invention of a classic tale and offers an excellent dose of Viking science fiction entertainment !

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