The Northman Perfectly Broke A Historical Epic Screenwriting Rule
Warning! Spoilers ahead for The Northman.
One scene in The Northman breaks a classic trope of historical epics, subverting audience expectations near the end of the movie. Robert Eggers's truth-based third feature, which depicts Scandinavian legend Amleth (Alexander Skarsgård) wreaking bloody vengeance on his treacherous uncle, at times feels more like a fantasy or horror film than a grounded depiction of a real-life story from centuries past. However, compared to the indie hit The Green Knight, which was a trippy vision quest from start to finish, The Northman eventually contains some unexpectedly believable details that make its tone hard to pin down.
The best example of realistic events in The Northman is the scene that follows Amleth's reveal of his true intentions. After spending a punishing amount of time posing as a slave to gain the trust of his uncle, Fjölnir (Claes Bang), Amleth finally exclaims his identity to save the life of his love interest, Olga (Anya Taylor-Joy), when Fjölnir realizes he has been betrayed from within. In the next scene, Amleth fights off four of his uncle’s henchmen at once like the tough warrior he is — only to be immediately subdued once Fjölnir's minions get back up and attack him again.
Related: Every Alexander Skarsgård Horror Movie Ranked Worst To Best
Surprisingly, Amleth’s strength isn’t absurdly unrealistic inThe Northman, nor arehis uncle’s henchmen idiots. Most historical epics, like Ridley Scott’s Gladiator, have their almost-super-heroic main character fell their attackers — who approach one by one — to show off their fighting prowess. It is rare for this type of action movie to depict multiple henchmen swarming their attacker all together and repeatedly hitting him until he
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