To all those who have watched it: I hope you enjoyed it as much as I do.

There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

It is encouraging that the film ends so strongly.Otherwise, it wouldn't have been a particularly memorable film

The 13th Warrior is a conflicted film of jaw dropping set pieces, profound detail, & stunning cinematography, which has a "lets fight the savages" story & a "Don't talk; fight" narrative. The men are too tough for tears, the women too scarce for encouragement & strength, the children are just props & the meaning is lost upon the project as though any soul would dirty the film. I can't believe so much money would be ploughed into a film without a solid script first! So much effort was clearly & painstakingly put into every frame of these frenetic battle sequences. And yet the shots are kept deliberately low which creates an even more uninspired experience than that purloined from the script itself! There is an appreciation to realism not found in Hollywood or any surviving studios who may have the kind of money to make films of this disappearing & under-appreciated genre, which makes it all the more disappointing. If only this demonstrated the level of love both men & women had for each other, it may translate to the passions adverse to love on the battlefield.Little effort is made to define the geography of this battleground either. I presume they are Greeks? As they were speaking the Greek tongue at the start of the film, but then what origins are the natives from? To make things worse, the Arab isn't even played … BY AN ARAB!! I hate how there is always an absence of darker skinned cast members in film. Bruce Lee had a vision where peoples of ALL cultural background worked together, but this seems to be lost upon both studios & audiences now. It's so embarrassing to have to watch hour after hour.. film after film of passive racist predilection.Anyway, it has moments of strategy but don't expect much more. This came & went like the weather seemed to do so in this flick! A wasted opportunity!

This movie is difficult to fully dive into without rewriting the story Michael Crichton original wrote to begin with. I'll say this to start, Michael Crichton's Eaters Of The Dead was better. That doesn't denigrate this film, but I do feel it sets the bar beyond what this film achieved. Antonio Banderas was... both good and bad in this. He seemed to hop back and forth from motivated to bored. The supporting cast however was on from start to finish. The Northmen in this film were great. Their portrayals were fiercely accurate and their emotions were well balanced based on the source characters. Of all those featured in this film Dennis Storhøi gave the best performance by far. Clearly he embraced the role and his dedication makes up for much of the lackluster sequences of the movie. Omar Sharif made a brief appearance but did an excellent job setting the stories path. Praise aside there were clear problems. The pace is incredibly uneven with certain scenes dragging on and others being over too quickly. I excuse the battle sequences being too quick at times as in reality most historic battles are fought in five minutes followed by a lot of battle statistics, tactical planning, and contingency planning. If I go into the film anymore I'll ruin it for those who haven't seen it or only saw it in passing so here's the breakdown.Audio Experience: 6.7 Reason: The score was alright, it was kind of forced whimsy (meaning over-the-top for the sole purposes of appearing mystical). It didn't ruin the film or counter the scene setting but it came across a bit lame at times.Visual Experience: 7.0 Reason: It was somewhat gritty and realistic but not to the point it advertised which makes some less entertained. I'm not saying it needed more violence, but it certainly advertised itself as having more.Emotional Experience: 7.0 Reason: It really isn't about that. It's a journey tale but the main protagonist's self-discover isn't rewarding in this format. The book better utilized character building than the film but the film, due to format, didn't really need to.Overall: Fair. It wasn't as good as it could (or probably should) have been but it was at the least watchable.Recommendation: If you enjoy action films, war films, period pieces, or even realistic fantasy I feel you would enjoy this film or at least find it worth seeing once. If you're looking for something profound or life changing, I'd continue searching.

The story is based on Eaters of the Dead, by Michael Crichton, who intended it as a revisualization of Beowulf. Indeed, I can easily imagine it as an intermediate legend from which Beowulf sprang. (Crichton actually took a hand in directing some of the film.) This is one of the few movies that is much better than the book.The adventure aspect of the film is a lushly photographed north land, an unspecified region of Scandinavia, actually shot in British Columbia. Not the travelogue of many adventure movies, here the weather varies rapidly from brilliant sunshine on verdant forests to gloomy, drenching rain to haunting mist, which becomes a major plot element.For action, imagine an Arabian poet, exiled as Ambassador, having to join a band of warriors led by Buliwyf, i.e., Beowulf, in defending King Hrothgar against a large army of "Wendol", the "eaters of the dead", which the Northmen fear are demons. (The suggestion from the book that the Wendol might be Neanderthal is never mentioned in the movie except through the casting of the extras that portray them.) What makes this movie riveting is the acting of the ensemble. Antonio Banderas gives one of his best performances as the Arabian poet. Vladimir Kulich makes Buliwyf, i.e., Beowulf, a brooding but powerful leader. And Dennis Storhøi delivers an Oscar-worthy supporting performance as the Northman who befriends the Arab. Throughout the movie, the viewer sees not mere characters, but people, men who depend on one another, who live and fight together with all their bravado and superstitions, fears and faiths. Together the actors enable us to witness the birth of myth.

A famous box office bomb, this Michael Crichton adaptation is better than its reputation - as far as non-supernatural versions of mythological sagas go (Beowulf in this case), it definitely beats Petersen's Troy and Fuqua's King Arthur.Directed with a deft hand by veteran John McTiernan (Die Hard, Predator), the movie boasts solid action scenes and a compelling premise: Arabian traveler Ahmed (Banderas) reluctantly joins a band of Vikings facing the mysterious Wendol, a savage horde of raiders with a beast-like appearance. Fine battles aside, there are a few neat moments: for example, a clever and effective "character slowly overcomes a language barrier" montage.The biggest flaw is how, Banderas aside, nearly all fellowship members remain underdeveloped - with the exceptions of leader Buliwyf and Ahmed's pal Herger, everyone else is a bearded, grim cypher. They should have reduced the group, developed every character and called it The Seventh Warrior instead.7/10