Ring of the Nibelungs (2004)

Sadly, the movie does not wholly succeed : it would like to be a window on a far distant, far different time (mostly pre-Christian or not- Christian), but both its knowledge and its imagination fall short. When and where it tries to fill the gaps, it veers too much in the direction of, say, renaissance fairs, cosplay or sword and sorcery. On the plus side, this is a pleasantly clear and understandable introduction to the Nibelungen saga. It whets the appetite and invites the viewers to go on their own voyage of discovery into a world of poetry, myth and history. It also works on its own merits, as a reflection on the difference between real accomplishment and genuine merit on the one hand and pretend heroics on the other hand. It's also a pretty watchable tale of love, treachery and calculation. (By the way, you're not human if you don't want to kick Kriemhilde in the behind.)The music, I suppose, isn't too bad, but it is used too liberally. There are things in our world which have a deeply evocative sound of their own - such as, for instance, a sailing ship moving at considerable speed or a wood filled with eager hunters and hounds - and it's both annoying and redundant to cover such sounds with layers of music.

Released to TV in 2004 at 184 minutes and originally titled "Curse of the Ring" or "Ring of the Nibelungs," "Dark Kingdom: The Dragon King" runs 132 minutes on the shortened DVD, meaning its cut by 48 minutes. This is an ancient European tale going back 700-1500 years about a Scandinavian child of noble birth who is reared anonymously by a noble blacksmith (Max Von Sydow) and names him Eric (Benno Fürmann). Eric miraculously meets and falls in love with the Queen of Iceland (Kristanna Loken) before slaying a dragon and becoming a king. Unfortunately, he can't marry his first love because a rival king and blood brother (Samuel West) manipulates him into marrying his beautiful sister (Alicia Witt). O what a tangled web we weave when at first we practice to deceive! For a movie that originally aired on Sci-Fi (now SyFy), this is an impressive film. The casting, locations (South Africa), CGI, score and numerous sword-fighting scenes are all top-notch, especially for a TV movie, which explains that it was released theatrically in some areas. Although this is a fantasy sword & sorcery flick the tone is serious and realistic beyond the magical elements. Witt is likable and winsome while Loken is stunning and tough in a warrioress sense. Fürmann is solid as the main protagonist, Eric/Siegfried, having the requisite noble looks. His fight with the dragon is outstanding and the creature looks formidable and frightening, to say the least.The story struck me as very unique, but only moderately interesting. It could've been more compelling IMHO but, then again, I've only seen the shortened version. The cut scenes include: (1.) the Saxons at the smithy, (2.) Siegfried bringing the Dragon carcass back to Burgund, (3.) the lady saying she would be a pagan again just for tonight, and (4.) Kriemhild confessing her love for Siegfried (Eric) to Hagen, the house villain, played by Julian Sands. It's hard to believe that peripheral scenes like these could turn the movie into a captivating powerhouse, but I could be wrong. Nevertheless, the positives outweigh the negatives and this is a worth seeing if you have a taste for sword & sorcery.GRADE: B

As I was flicking through the FoxTel menu I noticed that this was on at 4am in the morning and so decided to record it and wasn't disappointed!I Loved this film... deserves better than to be reserved for the early hours of the morning!!!Did anyone else notice the huge similarities between the character outfits and Arthur Rackham's (1867 - 1939) original drawings? See: www.nibelungs.net Shouldn't they have put him in the credits or something?The costumes were not on par with LOTR but they were certainly close...Either way nice work ;-)

I am truly amazed at how little publicity this film has received in the background of attention that has been directed towards the Lord of the Rings trilogy in recent years. The casting and acting is absolutely superb and there is not one character that is under-represented in any fashion. The movie begins with very strong undertones and tells the story of a young boy having to grow up quite suddenly in a world of nobility entangled with treachery, deceit and ulterior motives. This movie has something for everyone, expertly combining plenty of action, fantasy and magic with excellent story telling, romance, humor and revenge. You'll be a "tough nut to crack" if you are disappointed by this masterpiece which unfolds superbly throughout it's 164 minutes of length (yes, that's right, just over two and half hours that flies by without even realizing). Do not miss out on this!!