“That which does not kill us makes us stronger,” reads the Nietzschean maxim that serves as epigraph for writer-director John Milius’s 1982 adaptation of Conan the Barbarian, thereby encouraging viewers to plumb the philosophical depths of this rousing sword-and-sorcery epic starring Arnold Schwarzenegger from the get-go. So it’s sort of ironic to consider that, given the film’s commercial success and subsequent cult status, Milius no doubt contributed to the seemingly endless proliferation of this slogan across multiple platforms, emblazoned on everything from motivational posters to coffee mugs.
Milius’s seriousness of intent is signaled from the opening scene when Conan’s father (William Smith) advises his young son (Jorge Sanz) to trust nothing in this world but his sword. Critics at the time believed this solipsistic bit of paternal advice to reflect the ruthless individualism of Reagan’s America. But things are a bit more complicated than that,...
Milius’s seriousness of intent is signaled from the opening scene when Conan’s father (William Smith) advises his young son (Jorge Sanz) to trust nothing in this world but his sword. Critics at the time believed this solipsistic bit of paternal advice to reflect the ruthless individualism of Reagan’s America. But things are a bit more complicated than that,...
- 1/30/2024
- by Budd Wilkins
- Slant Magazine
Stars: Chelsea Jurkiewicz, Cory C. Dangerfield, Tanner Gillman, Halem Medina, Ariana Bagley, Monica Moore Smith | Written by Rob York, Scott Baird, R.H. Grimly | Directed by Rob York
Based on a story by R.H. Grimly, co-writer/director Rob York opens his feature with the image of an autumnal neighbourhood. Amidst the everyday settings, high-school student Mary (Chelsea Jurkiewicz) works hard to earn money by making deliveries. Her night ends with a strange encounter involving her grouchy neighbour, Mr. Murphy (Cory C. Dangerfield), as he instructs that his Chinese food delivery is left on the doorstep with the containers open.
Tensions have risen at home between the student and her father, resulting in him declining to help pay for Mary’s college tuition. This leaves her to sacrifice any spare time in order to pay for her education, with her absence noticed by her best friend, Harvey (Tanner Gillman). The rising...
Based on a story by R.H. Grimly, co-writer/director Rob York opens his feature with the image of an autumnal neighbourhood. Amidst the everyday settings, high-school student Mary (Chelsea Jurkiewicz) works hard to earn money by making deliveries. Her night ends with a strange encounter involving her grouchy neighbour, Mr. Murphy (Cory C. Dangerfield), as he instructs that his Chinese food delivery is left on the doorstep with the containers open.
Tensions have risen at home between the student and her father, resulting in him declining to help pay for Mary’s college tuition. This leaves her to sacrifice any spare time in order to pay for her education, with her absence noticed by her best friend, Harvey (Tanner Gillman). The rising...
- 5/24/2023
- by James Rodrigues
- Nerdly
The 1982 fantasy epic "Conan the Barbarian" is a silly but fun flick filled with swords, sorcery, and sandals, and it signaled the beginning of star Arnold Schwarzenegger's decades-long career as an action star. The movie received mixed reviews at the time but has gone on to be a bit of a cult classic, in part because of the love for the overall "Conan" franchise, which started with Robert E. Howard's "Conan" stories. Schwarzenegger plays the title character, a barbarian out for revenge after the deaths of his parents, and he would reprise the role in the 1984 sequel, "Conan the Destroyer." The role is kind of perfect for Schwarzenegger, playing a buff and brutal warrior with natural charisma but not a lot of dialogue, putting him on the map and introducing audiences everywhere to the Hyborian Age.
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter while promoting his upcoming Netflix series,...
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter while promoting his upcoming Netflix series,...
- 5/16/2023
- by Danielle Ryan
- Slash Film
Twenty-eight years after Kevin Smith made his film debut with the foul-mouthed low-budget comedy "Clerks" and 16 years after the sweet and silly sequel, "Clerks II," the director returns to the Quick Stop to bring the story full circle in "Clerks III." Clerks Dante Hicks (Brian O'Halloran) and Randal Graves (Jeff Anderson) own the convenience store that brought them together, but they aren't sure if they've achieved their dreams or just fallen into their same old routines. Then Randal has a heart attack and realizes life is too short to waste, so he wants to make a movie.
This is Smith at his most deeply personal: Randal's heart attack is clearly based on Smith's own, and the creation of his film at the Quick Stop is a metacommentary on the making of the first "Clerks." Fans in search of the mile-a-minute crass comedy of some of his earlier work, including the...
This is Smith at his most deeply personal: Randal's heart attack is clearly based on Smith's own, and the creation of his film at the Quick Stop is a metacommentary on the making of the first "Clerks." Fans in search of the mile-a-minute crass comedy of some of his earlier work, including the...
- 9/8/2022
- by Danielle Ryan
- Slash Film
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Like an ouroboros that has tired of sucking his own tail and moved on to another body part, Kevin Smith’s Clerks III is about as pure an exercise in self-referential self-gratification as you get on a movie screen, and if your understandable response is, “who the hell asked for this,” well, you’re just not paying attention.
More entrepreneur and raconteur than filmmaker (an assessment he might agree with), Smith knows he has enough loyal followers to justify multiple returns to nearly every well he has dug, at least those related to his “View Askewniverse.” But while some of his many spinoffs and sequels have smelled of near-desperation and little more, this one’s also personal: Inspired by the heart attack that nearly killed him in 2018, it’s a story about valuing those you love and trying to keep living until you’re dead.
Like an ouroboros that has tired of sucking his own tail and moved on to another body part, Kevin Smith’s Clerks III is about as pure an exercise in self-referential self-gratification as you get on a movie screen, and if your understandable response is, “who the hell asked for this,” well, you’re just not paying attention.
More entrepreneur and raconteur than filmmaker (an assessment he might agree with), Smith knows he has enough loyal followers to justify multiple returns to nearly every well he has dug, at least those related to his “View Askewniverse.” But while some of his many spinoffs and sequels have smelled of near-desperation and little more, this one’s also personal: Inspired by the heart attack that nearly killed him in 2018, it’s a story about valuing those you love and trying to keep living until you’re dead.
- 9/8/2022
- by John DeFore
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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