The 411 Movies Top 5 4.02.10: Week 211 - Top 5 Sword & Sorcery Movies

Posted by Trevor Snyder on 04.02.2010

In honor of the new Clash of the Titans, the 411 crew looks at their favorite sword and sorcery movies of the past.



In honor of this week's Clash of the Titans remake, I thought it would be a good time for us here at 411 to RELEASE THE KRAKEN!!

No, wait, sorry, that's not right. You gotta admit, though...that sure is catchy. What I meant to say is that it's a perfect time for us to take a look at some of our favorite films in the Sword & Sorcery (or Sword & Sandal) genre, as a testament to the strong works this new Clash will be trying to live up to.

NOTE = for the purposes of this column, I didn't limit the lists to ONLY those films that actually deal in magic, or ONLY those that don't. Instead, the criteria were any epic action films with a gladiatorial, biblical or mythological bend.

THE TOP 5 SWORD & SORCERY MOVIES

TREVOR SNYDER

HONORABLE MENTIONS: Dragonslayer (1981), Clash of the Titans (1981), and the Lord of the Rings Trilogy (given an Honorable Mention just so that it doesn't take up three spots in the Top 5)

5. Legend (1985)



Although mostly ignored during its initial release, time has been kind to Ridley Scott's fantasy epic, and the film has built quite the cult following. Maybe that's mostly due to the fact that it stars Tom Cruise, but it is a very entertaining film. Don't be put off by its silly sounding plot (a young hero must save the last two unicorns from the Lord of Darkness). As one might expect from Ridley Scott, this film is a treat for the eyes, full of beautiful visuals (not the least of which is the very hot Mia Sara). And Tim Curry as the Lord of Darkness remains one of the best villains in fantasy history. A complicated release history (the American release suffered from massive cuts and a new score) didn't do the film's popularity any favors, but thankfully the restored director's cut is available on an excellent Ultimate Edition DVD that should be required viewing for any fantasy genre fans.

4. Excalibur (1981)



I'm a sucker for Arthurian legend, and director John Boorman's 1981 telling still remains the standard bearer for all filmed versions of the tale. Like the original Clash of the Titans, it can seem a little corny at times, but comes across stronger when looked at as a product of its time. This film only happened because Boorman's planned Lord of the Rings adaptation fell through. From what I've heard about the liberties Boorman's LOTR< script took, I'm glad it worked out this way. Excalibur may have been something of a consolation prize for the director, but he still brought his all to the project, fashioning a surprisingly violent and sexual take on the story of King Arthur. Guy Ritchie is apparently attached to an upcoming remake, and while I wish him the best and will look forward to seeing his take, it's gonna be tough for him to match the pure visceral impact of Boorman's film.

3. The 7th Voyage of Sinbad (1958)



This is the first of the Ray Harryhausen Sinbad trilogy – any of the three could have made the list, but I'm giving this one the nod for kicking the series off. Plus, I think Kerwin Matthews was the best of the three Sinbad actors. And if those aren't good enough reasons, how about the fact that the movie ends with a freakin' Cyclops vs. dragon fight! How cool is that? This series is just such fun, and even in today's CGI-dominated world, it's easy to get swept up in the magic of Harryhausen's stop-motion effects. I can't believe there haven't been any recent Sinbad films (a Rob Cohen directed remake of this film – to star Keanu Reeves – was in development, but never went anywhere), but it's not like anyone is going to have an easy time matching the quality of these films, anyway.

2. Conan the Barbarian (1982)



"What is best in life?"

"To crush your enemies, to see them driven before you, and to hear the lamentations of their women."

Need I say more?

1. Jason and the Argonauts (1963)



More Harryhausen awesomeness. This one involves the famous Greek myth about Jason and the quest for the Golden Fleece. If you're ever looking to get your children into mythology and/or fantasy, show this them movie. It sure as heck worked for me, as I watched this numerous times in my youth. Thankfully, it still holds up today, thanks to excellent monsters like the Hydra and Talos. And, of course, the spectacular four-minute battle between the Argonauts and the stop-motion skeletons (which is still cooler than nearly any computer effect in recent memory). If the Clash of the Titans remake is a hit, you can bet a re-do of this will quick to follow.

BRYAN KRISTOPOWITZ

HONORABLE MENTIONS: Deathstalker (1983), Deathstalker II (1987), & Gladiator (2000)

5. Red Sonja (1985)



When I first saw Red Sonja I thought it was the third Conan the Barbarian movie, as Ahnold Schwarzenegger appears in it as a big ass dude that kills people with a big ass sword. But then Ahnold wasn't playing Conan, he was playing some other guy named Kalidor. No, the real star of Red Sonja is the person actually playing the title character, and that would be Brigitte Nielson. And Nielson is pretty dang decent here. She looks great (Nielson was hot back in the 1980's) and she proves to be more than capable in the flick's abundant action and sword fighting scenes. She also has good good guy/bad guy chemistry with the movie's villain as played by Sandahl Bergman (Queen Gedron). And how about Ernie Reyes as the little kid kung fu fighter Prince Tarn? There was nothing cooler when you were a kid seeing a kid doing kung fu (it was also pretty dang cool having a fat guy follow you around threatening to beat the crap out of people with a giant bone). I need to watch this again. I haven't seen it in a good long while. Isn't there a remake in the future?

4. Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger (1977)



This, of course, is the third Sinbad movie that the great Ray Harryhausen was involved in for Columbia Pictures. The flick also starred John Wayne's son Patrick as Sinbad. I haven't seen this movie in years so I'm not sure on the specific details of the flick's plot (I think it had something to do with breaking an evil curse or something like that), but back when this was a weekend fixture on Cinemax and TBS (back when TBS was known for showing old movies) it was worth watching for however long it had left. Why? Because it was just ridiculous fun. There were the Harryhausen created monsters that Sinbad and his men had to fight (a mechanical Minotaur, those giant cavemen type things, and I believe there was a giant walrus in there), there was Patrick Wayne trying to act (he was okay but he wasn't a good out and out actor. He was a better performer if you know what I mean), and there was both Taryn Power and Jane Seymour to ogle. They just don't make movies like this one anymore.

3. Conan the Destroyer (1984)



Lots of people prefer Conan the Barbarian to the sequel Destroyer because, I assume, it's Rated R and is much more brutal in terms of its violence (James Earl Jones gets decapitated). Or maybe it has something to do with that whole "the sequel is never better than the original" thing. Well, I like Destroyer better because it's much more fun. It's got Ahnold kicking ass again as Conan, Wilt Chamberlain acting, the great Mako as the same wizard guy he played in the first movie, Grace Jones as an incredibly freaky female warrior, and the immortal Sarah Douglas as Queen Taramis, the person that gets Conan to go on the movie's adventure. And how about that score by Basil Poledouris? You don't get much more epic than that.



Try not humming that theme.

And the ending is pretty dang neat, too, with the tease that there could be a third Conan adventure in the future. That never happened, but the idea that there could be a third adventure is just, well, cool. Inspiring, even.

2. Clash of the Titans (1981)



I'm sure that the remake, which is apparently a remake in name only, will make oodles of money and whatnot, but what I hope is that the remake interests people that have never seen the original movie to seek it out. It's got Harry Hamlin as Perseus, Burgess Meredith as Ammon (sort of a Yoda type character. He gives Perseus his sword), Sir Laurence freaking Olivier as Zeus, Maggie Smith as the vengeful Thetis, the goddess that just hates Perseus (am I the only one who got freaked out as a kid when that statue of Smith started talking?). And, of course, it's got special effects by the Ray Harryhausen. The nasty Kraken monster, Medusa, that little robotic owl that follows Perseus around. Just awesome, awesome stuff. I can already guarantee that the creatures in the remake will, yeah, probably look cool but they won't have the personality that the Harryhausen creatures have. The new Kraken just isn't as cool as the old one.

1. The Beastmaster (1982)



Oh, I'm fairly certain that everyone in the world has seen this Don Coscarelli directed fantasy flick at least once (it used to be on cable all of the time, both basic and premium). The great Marc Singer is Dar, the wandering Beastmaster. He's got that big ass sword, that boomerang blade thing, and, of course, the ability to talk with and control animals. There's the falcon that Dar uses to recon stuff, the tiger that, well, was a tiger, and the two ferrets, Kodo and Podo, that are cute and sneaky. The flick also has John "James Evans Sr" Amos as a staff wielding warrior guy, Tanya Roberts looking hot, and a totally whacked out Rip Torn throwing babies into a pit of fire, among other things. Oh, and the flick also has those flying creatures that eat people, yet another movie monster that scared the crap out of me as a child. The sequels were fun in their own ways (part 2 involves Dar time traveling to the future to fight Wings Hauser) but the first one was the best. It's too bad that Singer never made another fantasy movie as good as The Beastmaster.

SHAWN S. LEALOS

HONORABLE MENTIONS: Kingdom of Heaven (Director's Cut), Lord of the Rings Trilogy, 300

5. Clash of the Titans (1981)



I guess since this Top 5 is in honor of this weekend's 3D remake Clash of the Titans, I will go ahead and list the original movie here. Is it a great movie? No. Does it hold a special place in my heart for anyway? Hell, yeah. I remember watching this movie on VHS when I was a kid (I was 11 when it was released in theaters) and Medusa haunted my nightmares for quite a while after that. What makes this movie spectacular though is the work of Ray Harryhausen, a God among special effects artists.

4. Conan the Barbarian (1982)



While the movie takes a huge departure from the Robert E. Howard character it portrayed, the movie was still a violent, bloody action-fest starring the future Governor of California in his breakthrough role. It is quite possibly the perfect Sword & Sorcery movie for teenagers (despite its R-Rating) with a young man set off on a breathtaking adventure to avenge the death of his parents and, eventually rule the world. A star was born in this movie and it is one the antithesis to Titans, yet brilliant in its own way.

3. Gladiator (2000)



While Ridley Scott and Russell Crowe have become BFF's over the years, this movie, their first collaboration, remains their best. Crowe was Maximus, a warrior turned slave by the new evil ruler. His family was murdered and he was forced to fight as a Gladiator, where he was able to stand up and fight for his people. While based closely on Spartacus, Gladiator was able to carve out its own notch in cinema history, remaining one of the best films of the past decade. It was a huge financial ($269 million) and critical (five Oscars) success. It deserved every accolade it earned.

2. Ben-Hur (1959)



My top two movies could be interchangeable. William Wyler's Ben-Hur needs no introduction. Ben-Hur was part of the revitalized Biblical epic, which had laid dormant since Cecil B. DeMille in the ‘20s and ‘30s. It followed the immensely popular The Ten Commandments, continued the rise of star of both movies in Charlton Heston and trumped the critical success of that movie in spades. It won a record of eleven Academy Awards, a feat only matched by Titanic and Return of the King. The one thing that stands out in this movie, and makes it so memorable is the chariot race, maybe the most amazing action sequences ever filmed. That alone guarantees it a spot on my list.

1. Spartacus (1960)



When trying to decide on Ben-Hur or Spartacus for my top spot, one name secured my decision - Stanley Kubrick. The wunderkind was a thirty year old director when he was hired to direct this film after original choice, David Lean turned it down. Kirk Douglas helped spearhead the movie, based on his anger at not winning the title role in Ben-Hur. Kubrick had directed Douglas in the fantastic war movie Paths of Glory and the actor helped Kubrick get the job believing he could control the young director and the production of the movie vicariously. It didn't happen. Kubrick came in and was a mature director, knowing how he wanted the film to look, going so far as firing the cinematographer and taking over that job himself. Kubrick complained about the script, which was the best part of the film, saying Spartacus had no faults and therefore was a boring character. However, the film remains the crème of the crop of Swords and Sandal epic films, one that most of the films made after it owe their existence to.