My dad took me to see this movie when I was 10, changed my life! I was depressed for weeks because I didn’t live in a world where I could fight with swords and use magic. It started my love for all fantasy and I read every fantasy novel I could get my hands on, still do at 55!
My dad loved this movie too, I wasn't born yet when it came out, but this was one of the first movies I can remember sitting down with him and watching. Then when my little brothers came along, I made them sit down and watch it with me lol. My dad also had the Conan the Barbarian comics too! He was a big fan of the character. He's no longer with us, but I still have his comics and those memories of sitting down and watching the movies together.
Between the time when the oceans drank Atlantis, and the rise of the sons of Aryas, there was an age undreamed-of. And onto this, Conan! destined to wear the jeweled crown of Aquilonia upon a troubled brow. It is I, his chronicler, who alone can tell thee of his saga. Let me tell you of the days of high adventure!
The original film is so under-rated, it visualised fantasy and made stuff like skyrim and Neverwinter nights possible and it gave them the look of the rugged violent fantasy land :D
Conan's Father: "Fire and wind come from the sky, from the gods of the sky. But Crom is your god, Crom and he lives in the earth. Once, giants lived in the Earth, Conan. And in the darkness of chaos, they fooled Crom, and they took from him the enigma of steel. Crom was angered. And the Earth shook. Fire and wind struck down these giants, and they threw their bodies into the waters, but in their rage, the gods forgot the secret of steel and left it on the battlefield. We who found it are just men. Not gods. Not giants. Just men. The secret of steel has always carried with it a mystery. You must learn its riddle, Conan. You must learn its discipline. For no one - no one in this world can you trust. Not men, not women, not beasts..." [Points to sword] "This you can trust."
@Duckie Alexander That's because they were both wrong. Conans father and Thulsa Doom. Will, will is the power to merge the two. To see your thoughts made manifest. To bring your desire through all adversity into fruition.
Love that my kid got to enjoy Mako thru his Samurai Jack voice work. If your unfamiliar the intro to that cartoon is pretty much a homage to this movie.I also loved Thundarr the Barbarian
Crom, I have never prayed to you before. I have no tongue for it. No one, not even you, will remember if we were good men or bad. Why we fought, or why we died. All that matters is that two stood against many. That's what's important! Valor pleases you, Crom... so grant me one request. Grant me revenge! And if you do not listen, then to HELL with you!
@@prigual2901 Yes and there are white congolese too. As a proud white skinned bantu warrior of the congo I stand up against prejudice against people-of-no-color in my african homeland. I'm glad that my black bantu brothers are understanding allies like you who don't blacksplain against me. After all, I was born in the jungle with an AK in hand. No racist black privileged patriarchy is going to define who I am based on my skin color.
Basil Poledouris created the greatest soundtrack of all time with this. I very much believe without this OST the movie wouldn't be nearly as good. In fact, it might just be another corn ball 80's flick without it.
The music definitely added a lot. It probably would have only been a decent fantasy film without it. But really, the best movies are just mediocre to decent if you strip out any elements of what makes them what they are.
Hither came Conan, dark hair, sullen eyed; A Thief, A Reaver, A Slayer. With Gigantic meloncalies and great mirth, sword in hand to tread the throats of the earth beneath his sandals feet.
Youre right, Arnold didnt need 10 words in the film to act it out. He didnt need anything. Arnold WAS Conan. All he needed to do was look at the camera.
how did they get everything in this movie so right? the world of the story feels connected and makes sense. not a thing feels out of place. they got a fairly limited arnold to fit in the role almost perfectly. they cast a hulking nfl brute, two bodybuilders and in JEJ, a pretty classical actor and blended them all together and it WORKED great translation of source material to screen. this movie deserves far more props, as does this soundtrack. By Crom, i got chills at 1:05! HIGH ADVENTURE! gaaaaahhhhh......straight into my f****ckin veins please!
It helped that John Milius was a really good writer/director, with a genuine philosophical bent, and a respect for the source material -- it meant he treated the film and story with respect, and wanted to tell an actually meaningful story and not just produce a mindless, if enjoyable popcorn movie. So the resulting movie, while it might not be Citizen Kane, _is_ a genuinely artistic film, and not just another fantasy movie. Compare it with its contemporaries "The Sword and the Sorcerer" and "The Beastmaster" and you'll see what I mean; both those movies are fun and fairly entertaining, but nowhere near as good as "Conan the Barbarian" is. Also, while Milius recognized that Arnold Schwarzenegger was the perfect guy at that time to play the role, he really couldn't act. Arnold actually did eventually learn to act, within a limited range. He could never play Shakespeare, but for the kind of action or comedy roles he was good at, he _did_ become good. But in 1980, when filming started on this movie at England's Shepperton Studios, Arnold hadn't learned to do any of that yet. He still couldn't act. So Milius very wisely chose to make Conan a stoic character, who was a man of action, and not words, and limited his dialogue. Consequently, Arnold doesn't have all that many lines in the picture. To carry the film's acting, Milius hired great actors like James Earl Jones, Max von Sydow, and Mako, and you'll note that all of those supporting actors have more lines of dialogue than any of the three actors playing the main characters in the movie. That was a deliberate directorial choice, and a very, very good one. Finally, Milius hired Ron Cobb, a brilliant production designer, who helped give the film its absolutely gorgeous visuals, and Basil Poledouris to compose what is certainly one of the most perfectly tailored film scores in movie history. John Williams' soundtracks or "Star Wars," "Raiders of the Lost Ark," and especially "Superman: the Movie" are about on the same level, as far as being perfectly suited to their respective films' subject matter, themes, and overall mood. Basically, Milius was a gifted director who recognized the limitations of the actor who had to carry the film, and realized he had to build up everything _around_ that novice, limited actor to make the film work, _and_ that he had the opportunity to make a serious, thoughtful film, instead of just a mindless fantasy/action romp. So he used incredible visuals, a _magnificent_ score, and the best supporting actors to make the film work. The result is a film that is now considered a classic of the genre. By contrast, look at Richard Fleischer's sequel movie. He reversed a lot of Milius' directorial decisions, and basically just didn't get it. The result was a totally forgettable, mediocrity of a sequel, that killed any possibility of a franchise dead.
As a kid watching this in the movie theater I was touched beyond words. I would forever hold this film in the upper echelons of my Spirit, Soul and Heart.
*_Queen of the Black Coast_* by Robert E. Howard _"[The] chief [of the gods of Cimmeria] is Crom. He dwells on a great mountain. What use to call on him? Little he cares if men live or die. Better to be silent than to call his attention to you; he will send you dooms, not fortune! He is grim and loveless, but at birth he breathes power to strive and slay into a man's soul. What else shall men ask of the gods?"_
Mako's deep voice and inflection perfectly prologued the driving Timpani's. The Brass accents the rhythm, as the base strings give color to the drums. It's incredible then that it all yields to the melody. It's as if you've been taken from Akiro's tent to a horse running across the open Hybrian plains only to suddenly take flight over the Mountains of the West. We're brought back to earth as a new theme is born and gets passed around the orchestra. This heroic conflict between the sections sits us next to Conan as if we too will fight in the grand battles that won him Aquilonia or cleaving Gromel's helmet. Basil Poledouris accomplished exactly what needed to be done for this film's score.
"The strength in your body... the desire in your heart... I GAVE THIS TO YOU!!" (condescending look of contempt, hurt & disapointment) "Contemplate this on the Tree of Woe. Crucify him!!". Only James Earl Jones is bad-ass enough to patronize, lecture and make Ahhnold look like a girly-man and make him like it.
Between the time when the oceans drank Atlantis, and the rise of the sons of Aryas, there was an age undreamed of. And unto this, Conan, destined to wear the jeweled crown of Aquilonia upon a troubled brow. It is I, his chronicler, who alone can tell thee of his saga. Let me tell you of the days of high adventure!
Conan is one the of the greatest movies I’ve ever watched in my life. The acting may have not been all that great but the raw emotions and scenes depicted are very life-like and real. In it, Conan has some great analogies as well. In today’s times, I could see Conan as a young kid with his family in his neighborhood and the police come riding into the community, beating and killing people. His father tries his best to defend his family from the onslaught of the police but is soon killed too. His mother then tries to defend her only son but is met with disdain by the police chief and his crew. The police captain then kills her in front of Conan with no regard. Conan is then left to fend for himself where he is sent into the foster care system that operates like a machine. He feels mentally, emotionally and physically like a slave there. Held against his will. He stays there in the system for years with no one to care for him, until one day a man comes to utilize his strength for brute and primitive ways. Conan becomes good at this and momentarily finds his worth in life. He eventually makes so much money he is able to buy his freedom and from there goes on numerous adventures. He goes into a sunken place and connects with his inner power and emerges forged a new man. He meets new friends, and the beautiful “Valeria”, who charges him to live life to the fullest. He continues on his hard quests until he reaches the police precinct, the “mountain of Power.” There are many followers at the Tower with the same sickening mindset brainwashed with hatred, prejudice, racism, bigotry, and greed and self sustainment. From there Conan demands charges be brought against the police chief and his crew for killing his family. They laugh and crucify him, to make an example out of him. They kill Valeria, the only woman he’s ever loved. But he doesn’t die. Conan returns, confronts the police chief, kills him, and throws his head in front of all of the followers. The followers realize the error of their wicked ways and throw down their torches into the water. Conan watches the entire system that senselessly killed his mother and father, the only woman that he loved, and his people, all burn down to the ground. He walks away and then rides off into the sunset for more adventures. In time, Conan becomes a mighty man by his own hands.
The problem of trying to make a new movie of this franchise, is that they'll never surpass the soundtrack and Arnold Schwarzenegger as Conan and of course the narrator 😊
If you look at Frazetta's Barbarian, it could simply be a portrait of Arnold. Done in 65 when Arnold was 18 still mucking around in Austria. Robert E Howard's Conan world was realized as deftly and ably as any world translation put to screen. This is the pinnacle of Swords and Sorcery style films.
Huge Conan fan since I was a kid!!! I play this classic epic song whenever I play either Dragon Age or Skyrim or The Witcher Trilogy :) I hope Arnold wastes no time getting Legend of Conan started cause I've been waiting for him to do the whole King Conan of Aqualonia scenario up on the big screen for forever!!! Seeing as how they are going to totally ignore the events of Destroyer, I really hope that the filmmakers re-introduce Thoth-Amon in LofC but in a way that is more faithful to the source material (Snake-obsessed Stygian dark sorcerer & High Priest of Set) than Destroyer's version!!! I also hope they introduce Conan's devoted harem girl turned wife & queen Zenobia in the movie as well!!! I hope that Arnold & Universal hire a solid proven director as equally passionate about Conan as the fans are to helm the film & not hire some no-name obscure hack with no imagination!!!
I've wanted a proper Conan for so long (Momoa movie was garbage) but I'm already setting myself up for disappointment...1 of the producers/writers for the Legend of Conan is a guy who did the Fast and the Furious and the screenplay writer is a woman (no offense ladies but this should be a testosterone tale from the testicles).
La introducción fílmica de BASIL POLEDOURIS como base de la excelente película llevada al cine es extraordinaria y universalmente reconocida. Toda la original sountrack que desarrolla Poledouris en esta obra es una producción colosal y magnífica. 🙏 Espero seguir escuchándola como soporte de innumerables e incontables incursiones en medios audiovisuales públicos de carácter internacional.
This is awesome!!! I love the original Conan the Barbarian. What the hell is the crap that is coming out in August? Arnold is & will always be Conan the Barbarian, period.
I just feel like playing MMORPG or even JRPG (or with myself), for endless days and for endless bandwidth. My Windows cries for a rest before I am done. Conan...
I used this for the background music in a boss battle for D&d where my group fought against a giant snake. The barbarian took out over half its hp in the first round and it didn't get an action because it died before its turn.
I LOVE the intro by Mako. Derived from the prologue to "The Phoenix on the Sword": "Know, oh prince, that between the years when the oceans drank Atlantis and the gleaming cities, and the years of the rise of the Sons of Aryas, there was an Age undreamed of, when shining kingdoms lay spread across the world like blue mantles beneath the stars - Nemedia, Ophir, Brythunia, Hyperborea, Zamora with its dark-haired women and towers of spider-haunted mystery, Zingara with its chivalry, Koth that bordered on the pastoral lands of Shem, Stygia with its shadow-guarded tombs, Hyrkania whose riders wore steel and silk and gold. But the proudest kingdom of the world was Aquilonia, reigning supreme in the dreaming west. Hither came Conan, the Cimmerian, black-haired, sullen-eyed, sword in hand, a thief, a reaver, a slayer, with gigantic melancholies and gigantic mirth, to tread the jeweled thrones of the Earth under his sandalled feet."
Destined to wear the jeweled crown of Aquilonia upon a troubled brow... As decades pass this quote becomes ever more important to me, ultimately it really doesn't matter across time and space and through different systems of government, a great leader will always be the first and last line of defense for any people, be it a small tribe of hunter-gatherers, a little farmer village, an international billion corporation or a worldwide alliance of nations, C.S. Lewis wrote no man has been born to be master, that is true, but some men grow up to become kings.
I am recovering from Cancer Now, lifting and trying to get my strength back, one of the best motivational soundtracks and movies when you are overcoming adversity.