Film Review: In Praise of Robert Eggers’ Bold Old Norse Religion-Saturated Spectacle, “The Northman” (2022)

Apr 25

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I am hoping to see this movie at some point this week if I can break from study long enough. It looks fantastic and to see a movie that takes Heathen cosmology and religion seriously is just a breath of fresh air. I could do without any romance but there doesn’t seem to be too much of that in “The Northman”, at least not from this review. I can’t wait to see it. Anyway, there might be spoilers ahead folks. You have been warned.

amor et mortem

You know that a newly released film has made quite an impact on you when, hours after you’ve left the theater, you obsessively muse upon its indelible imagery and the effect of the moviegoing experience is all you seem capable of discussing with family and friends. In fact, you’re filled with missionary-level zeal in urging people you care about to go see the film as a matter of vital importance.

I had the immense pleasure of seeing Robert Eggers’ The Northman (Focus Features, 2022) yesterday and I’m still very much enthralled by it. I greatly encourage anyone with even the slightest interest in Old Norse Religion–whether that interest is based in academia or in a lived personal spiritual tradition or both–to see this film at once. Let it transport you to 9th century Northern Europe, from the desolate coasts of the Orkney Islands to the lushness of the Dnieper River…

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About ganglerisgrove

Galina Krasskova has been a Heathen priest since 1995. She holds a Masters in Religious Studies (2009), a Masters in Medieval Studies (2019), has done extensive graduate work in Classics including teaching Latin, Roman History, and Greek and Roman Literature for the better part of a decade, and is currently pursuing a PhD in Theology. She is the managing editor of Walking the Worlds journal and has written over thirty books on Heathenry and Polytheism including "A Modern Guide to Heathenry" and "He is Frenzy: Collected Writings about Odin." In addition to her religious work, she is an accomplished artist who has shown all over the world and she currently runs a prayer card project available at wyrdcuriosities.etsy.com.

Posted on April 25, 2022, in Uncategorized. Bookmark the permalink. 4 Comments.

  1. Emma | April 25, 2022 at 2:05 PM

    I’m sitting here in the theater waiting for The North man to start, as we speak

    Liked by 1 person

  2. barefootwisdom | April 25, 2022 at 6:28 PM

    Thanks for calling attention to this. This sounds like it’s worth a trip to the cinema… and I say that as someone who goes to the movies only once or twice in a decade!

    My last in-theatre film, They Shall Not Grow Old, was also, in its own way, a spiritual encounter. It may be time for another, quite different one.

    Like

  3. Dver | May 3, 2022 at 7:47 PM

    I just saw this today and was blown away. Definitely go see it in the theatre. Especially if it’s a theatre that serves alcohol. Even though it was only noon I felt compelled to buy a glass of wine, and felt that I should wait to take a sip until the movie began, and then drink a toast. Unbeknownst to me the very first line is a call to Odin! So I was ready. Odin permeates the whole movie intensely.

    I loved it and especially (of course) the various depictions of sorcery, shamanism, oracles, etc.

    My only factual quibble – no way a few caps of amanita in a couple gallons of stew are going to drive a whole band of big warrior guys totally bonkers. I wish it was that potent! But other than that, they did an incredible job.

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