Hammer of the Gods (2013 film): Difference between revisions
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==Plot== |
==Plot== |
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Britain 871 AD. Steiner; a young Viking prince, leads a compliment of 500 reserve warriors to England, following a Saxon uprising that has inflicted heavy losses on the already occupying |
Britain 871 AD. Steiner; a young Viking prince, leads a compliment of 500 reserve warriors to England, following a Saxon uprising that has inflicted heavy losses on the already occupying forces led by his father; King Bagsecg. Arriving at his father's camp, Steiner attends a family meeting with both his father, his older brother Harold; Bagsecg second born. And their younger half brother Vali, who is treated as the black sheep of the lot for being half Saxon. |
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Bagsecg who is bed ridden and dying names Steiner his successor, as opposed to Harold who's loyalty has come in to question. However Steiner must prove himself worthy to lead their people by executing Vali for cowardliness in battle. He refuses and even warns |
Bagsecg who is bed ridden and dying names Steiner his successor, as opposed to Harold who's loyalty has come in to question. However Steiner must prove himself worthy to lead their people by executing Vali for cowardliness in battle. He refuses and even warns off Harold who attempts to do so to gain favour with their father. Furious with the lot, Bagsecg dismisses Harold and Vali from his tent and charges Steiner with the near impossible task to venture deep in to the English lands and find the only other he feels suitable to assume the throne; Steiner's eldest brother Hakan, who has not been for over a decade due to Bagsecg banishing him for reasons unknown to Steiner. |
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Steiner departs with his closest comrades: his childhood friend Hagen, a Berserker named Grim, and Jokul; a superstitious believer in omens. They attempt to locate Ivar, a Viking warrior whose sexual appetite for young boys have made him an outcast, yet is the last person to see Hakan alive. Later they are joined by Vali who tells them he has witnessed Harold secretly meeting with the Saxon King. Despite this urgency to return, Steiner pushes forward. |
Steiner departs with his closest comrades: his childhood friend Hagen, a Berserker named Grim, and Jokul; a superstitious believer in omens. They attempt to locate Ivar, a Viking warrior whose sexual appetite for young boys have made him an outcast, yet is the last person to see Hakan alive. Later they are joined by Vali who tells them he has witnessed Harold secretly meeting with the Saxon King. Despite this urgency to return, Steiner pushes forward. |
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Steiner notes that their attackers were too well equipped and too well trained to be ordinary Saxons and theorises they are soldiers of the Saxon king, sent to kill him as part of a deal made with Harold. Hagen suspects Vali to be in league with them; having seen him drop a Saxon coin he believes is a trail he is leaving. Though Steiner feels there may be truth to this, he instead gives Vali the benefit of the doubt. But pretty soon their pursuers ambush and capture them. |
Steiner notes that their attackers were too well equipped and too well trained to be ordinary Saxons and theorises they are soldiers of the Saxon king, sent to kill him as part of a deal made with Harold. Hagen suspects Vali to be in league with them; having seen him drop a Saxon coin he believes is a trail he is leaving. Though Steiner feels there may be truth to this, he instead gives Vali the benefit of the doubt. But pretty soon their pursuers ambush and capture them. |
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Revealed to be soldiers of the Christian faith, their captain confirms that Harold has been secretly negotiating a surrender, provided he remain in power over his people. |
Revealed to be soldiers of the Christian faith, their captain confirms that Harold has been secretly negotiating a surrender, provided he still remain in power over his people. But the captain then proposes to Steiner that he could instead be king, if he agrees to submit to Christianity. Steiner refuses; knowing that under Christian rule his people would be kept in constant fear. However Vali does so to save his own neck and is taken to a nearby church, while Ivar is castrated for his perversions and foul talk. |
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Agnes who had evaded capture frees Steiner who then frees Hagen and Jokul. Irah |
Agnes who had evaded capture frees Steiner who then frees Hagen and Jokul. Irah dies from blood loss but tells Steiner where he may find Hakan. They then rescue Vali from the church and seal both the knights and thr monks inside. Then Hagen and Jokul in an act of callousness set it alight with everyone trapped inside, and demand that Vali be killed. Forcing Steiner to kill Hagen instead to protect his brother. |
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Now down to just four, they head in to an eerie forest and are captured again; this time by a tribe who dwell deep within a nearby cave. Taken there, Steiner is brought before their chief; his brother Hakan, who the tribe worship as a god. A delusion he himself beliefs. |
Now down to just four, they head in to an eerie forest and are captured again; this time by a tribe who dwell deep within a nearby cave. Taken there, Steiner is brought before their chief; his brother Hakan, who the tribe worship as a god. A delusion he himself beliefs. |
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Further shocking revelations are made to Steiner as he learns finally the truth behind Hakan's exile. Too his disgust his mother and brother openly share a passionate kiss, revealing both to be in an incestuous relationship. Hakan then kills Vali to further his dominance over the tribe, causing Steiner to deny him as his god. |
Further shocking revelations are made to Steiner as he learns finally the truth behind Hakan's exile. Too his disgust his mother and brother openly share a passionate kiss, revealing both to be in an incestuous relationship. Hakan then kills Vali to further his dominance over the tribe, causing Steiner to deny him as his god. |
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This causes Astrid who having earlier expressed regret at leaving Steiner, suddenly hold him in content and revel in Hakan destroying him. The two brothers are lowered in to a dark pit to fight to the death, but despite Astrid fixing the match by secretly handing Hakan a knife, it is Steiner who emerges the victor. The tribe then bow in submission while Astrid; furious at Hakan's death attempts to kill him. |
This causes Astrid who having earlier expressed regret at leaving Steiner all those years ago, suddenly hold him in content and revel in Hakan destroying him. The two brothers are lowered in to a dark pit to fight to the death, but despite Astrid fixing the match by secretly handing Hakan a knife, it is Steiner who emerges the victor. The tribe then bow in submission while Astrid; furious at Hakan's death attempts to kill him. |
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He easily overpowers her and casts her in to the pit, along with her locket he rips from his neck; a sign that he is done with her. |
He easily overpowers her and casts her in to the pit, along with her locket he rips from his neck; a sign that he is done with her. |
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Revision as of 16:21, 7 July 2014
| Hammer of the Gods | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical poster | |
| Directed by | Farren Blackburn |
| Written by | Matthew Read |
| Produced by | Rupert Preston Huberta Von Liel |
| Starring | Charlie Bewley Clive Standen James Cosmo |
| Cinematography | Stephan Pehrsson |
| Edited by | Sam Williams |
| Music by | Benjamin Wallfisch |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Magnet Releasing |
Release date |
|
Running time | 103 min |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Box office | $641[2] |
Hammer of the Gods is a 2013 British action film directed by Farren Blackburn and released on 5 July 2013. In it, a dying Viking king sends his son on a quest to seek out his older brother, the clan's only hope for defeating an approaching enemy horde.
Plot
Britain 871 AD. Steiner; a young Viking prince, leads a compliment of 500 reserve warriors to England, following a Saxon uprising that has inflicted heavy losses on the already occupying forces led by his father; King Bagsecg. Arriving at his father's camp, Steiner attends a family meeting with both his father, his older brother Harold; Bagsecg second born. And their younger half brother Vali, who is treated as the black sheep of the lot for being half Saxon.
Bagsecg who is bed ridden and dying names Steiner his successor, as opposed to Harold who's loyalty has come in to question. However Steiner must prove himself worthy to lead their people by executing Vali for cowardliness in battle. He refuses and even warns off Harold who attempts to do so to gain favour with their father. Furious with the lot, Bagsecg dismisses Harold and Vali from his tent and charges Steiner with the near impossible task to venture deep in to the English lands and find the only other he feels suitable to assume the throne; Steiner's eldest brother Hakan, who has not been for over a decade due to Bagsecg banishing him for reasons unknown to Steiner.
Steiner departs with his closest comrades: his childhood friend Hagen, a Berserker named Grim, and Jokul; a superstitious believer in omens. They attempt to locate Ivar, a Viking warrior whose sexual appetite for young boys have made him an outcast, yet is the last person to see Hakan alive. Later they are joined by Vali who tells them he has witnessed Harold secretly meeting with the Saxon King. Despite this urgency to return, Steiner pushes forward.
In a pointless scene, the five intervene in the torture of a woman at the hands of Saxons who belief her a witch. She however turns on them due to trauma and is bludgeoned in the gut by Grim. The five move on and soon arrive at the entrance of a valley where Ivar is thought to dwell within. Leaving Vali to watch their horses, they enter and find Ivar living with a young Saxon slave girl named Agnes, and a young mute catamite.
Ivar agrees to lead them to where Hakan is believed to be, provided however Steiner can beat him in one of three rounds of arm wrestling, otherwise he is Ivar's for the night. Tricking Ivar with a serpent shaped belt he believes is a real snake attacking his crotch, Steiner wins the third round by throwing Ivar off his game.
They depart along with Agnes while leaving behind Ivah's catamite. But upon exiting the valley, find that their horses are gone and one has had its head severed and left dangling from a tree. Vali who had hidden; much to the anger of Steiner's company, tells that the horses were stolen by hooded men dressed in black. They proceed on foot and while camping for the night in a wood are attacked by the same men who slay Grim before being slain themselves.
Steiner notes that their attackers were too well equipped and too well trained to be ordinary Saxons and theorises they are soldiers of the Saxon king, sent to kill him as part of a deal made with Harold. Hagen suspects Vali to be in league with them; having seen him drop a Saxon coin he believes is a trail he is leaving. Though Steiner feels there may be truth to this, he instead gives Vali the benefit of the doubt. But pretty soon their pursuers ambush and capture them.
Revealed to be soldiers of the Christian faith, their captain confirms that Harold has been secretly negotiating a surrender, provided he still remain in power over his people. But the captain then proposes to Steiner that he could instead be king, if he agrees to submit to Christianity. Steiner refuses; knowing that under Christian rule his people would be kept in constant fear. However Vali does so to save his own neck and is taken to a nearby church, while Ivar is castrated for his perversions and foul talk.
Agnes who had evaded capture frees Steiner who then frees Hagen and Jokul. Irah dies from blood loss but tells Steiner where he may find Hakan. They then rescue Vali from the church and seal both the knights and thr monks inside. Then Hagen and Jokul in an act of callousness set it alight with everyone trapped inside, and demand that Vali be killed. Forcing Steiner to kill Hagen instead to protect his brother.
Now down to just four, they head in to an eerie forest and are captured again; this time by a tribe who dwell deep within a nearby cave. Taken there, Steiner is brought before their chief; his brother Hakan, who the tribe worship as a god. A delusion he himself beliefs.
During the tribal festivities, Steiner sees that Vali has again switched sides, Agnes has been claimed by Hakan and forced to sit by his side. And Jokul who is nowhere to be seen is really the festival meal the tribe are eating. It is revealed also that Astrid; their mother whom Steiner believed dead and who's locket he wears around his neck is also present in the cave, and she too is deluded by Hakan's megalomania.
Further shocking revelations are made to Steiner as he learns finally the truth behind Hakan's exile. Too his disgust his mother and brother openly share a passionate kiss, revealing both to be in an incestuous relationship. Hakan then kills Vali to further his dominance over the tribe, causing Steiner to deny him as his god.
This causes Astrid who having earlier expressed regret at leaving Steiner all those years ago, suddenly hold him in content and revel in Hakan destroying him. The two brothers are lowered in to a dark pit to fight to the death, but despite Astrid fixing the match by secretly handing Hakan a knife, it is Steiner who emerges the victor. The tribe then bow in submission while Astrid; furious at Hakan's death attempts to kill him.
He easily overpowers her and casts her in to the pit, along with her locket he rips from his neck; a sign that he is done with her.
Later he returns to Bagsecg's camp with Agnes, and presents Hakan's head to his father. Harold attempts to undermine him by stating he was supposed to bring Hakan back alive. Bagsecg merely responds “He was sent to find a king” seeing that Steiner is now ready to lead their people.
Steiner then forces Harold to swallow the coin Vali dropped and then kills him for his treachery; much to Bagsech's applause. Later with Agnes by his side Steiner musters his army to confront the approaching Saxon forces.
Cast
- Charlie Bewley as Prince Steinar
- Clive Standen as Hagen
- Michael Jibson as Grim
- James Cosmo as King Bagsecg
- Elliot Cowan as Hakan
- Guy Flanagan as Jokul
- Glynis Barber as Astrid
- Ivan Kaye as Ivar
- Alexandra Dowling as Agnes
- Finlay Robertson as Prince Harold
- Frances Magee as Ulric The Chronicler
- Salomon Thomson as Wilfred
- Michael Lindall as Leader Saxon
- Laura Sibbick as Woman Saxon
- Theo Barklem-Biggs as Prince Vali
- Daniel Stephen Price as the ginger king from hertford
References
- ^ "Hammer of the Gods Trailer, News, Videos, and Reviews". ComingSoon.net. 2013-07-05. Retrieved 2013-09-09.
- ^ "Hammer of the Gods (2013)". Box Office Mojo. 2013-07-18. Retrieved 2013-09-09.