Karry Best movie of this year hands down!

Bluebell Alcock Ok... Let's be honest. It cannot be the best movie but is quite enjoyable. The movie has the potential to develop a great plot for future movies

Griff Lees Very good movie overall, highly recommended. Most of the negative reviews don't have any merit and are all pollitically based. Give this movie a chance at least, and it might give you a different perspective.

Matylda Swan It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties.

Myriam Nys 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.

david-sarkies This is an adaptation of the German epic poem the Nibelungenleid. The story is about Sigfried, the heir to a kingdom who watched his kingdom destroyed as a boy by the twin kings of Saxony, but was saved by being put on a raft were he was found by a kindly weapon smith. As he grew up he became a swordsman of no uncertain skill, and then one day, after a meteor crashes near his house, he travels out to see what caused the explosion and meets the Queen of Iceland, and after a long battle he subdues her and they fall in love.Later he travels with his adopted father to the local city, the capital of the Kingdom of Burgandy. He learns that they are being terrorised by a dragon who sits on a horde of treasure. He goes out and kills the dragon, and after killing it, bathes in its blood, and thus becomes invulnerable, with the exception of a section of his back where a leaf landed. When he discovers the treasure, he learns that it belongs to the dead, the Nibelungs, and that it is subject to a curse, but he lays claim to it, and takes it with him back to Burgund.This is only the first half of the film, and as you can see the plot is very complex. Not only is there this treasure (which is cursed) there is also a love triangle, deception, betrayal, and innocent murder. This story is a tragedy, and Sigfried is the tragic hero. However, Brunhild, the queen of Iceland is also tragic in her own right, however she never did anything wrong. It was because the sister of the King of Burgundy fell in love with Sigfried and used magic to take his love for herself.Tolkien took a lot of ideas for his story and his realm from this (and other) tales, but the main theme of Lord of the Rings, that is the cursed ring and the desire to possess it, comes directly from this tale. The desire is the possess the treasure for oneself, but possession of this treasure breeds envy and jealousy. When the Twin Kings learn of the location of this treasure, they raise an army and travel to Burgundy to forcefully take it for themselves.This film is divided into two sections, but then again it was originally released as a mini-series, which is not surprising because the movie is three hours long. However, it seems that the first half is about Sigfried's rise, while the second half is about his fall, and his fall is bad and hard indeed. It turns out that the King of Burgundy is also in love with Brunhild, but he is nowhere near as skilled in battle as Sigfried. By this time Sigfried is no longer in love with Brunhild (witchcraft has turned his heart away from her) and Sigfried agrees to disguise himself so that first he might defeat her so that the king may marry her, and then he does it again to get her into bed. She knows that something is up, but it is not until she is mocked before the church by Sigfried's wife when she realises that she has been betrayed.However, it is not Sigfried that betrayed her, but his wife. She has poisoned him so that he may no longer love Brunhild, and in her guilt, she withdraws from the world and dies a lonely woman. However, by the time that everything has been revealed, it is too late to do anything about it. Sigfried has been murdered and the damage has been done, so in a tragic set of circumstances, the show comes to an end, while the treasure is thrown into the Rhine, never to be seen from again.When I first saw this film I wasn't all that sure about it, but as soon as I discovered that it was the Nibelungenleid I really came to appreciate it. In a way I first thought that it was simply another Lord of the Rings rip off, but it is not. In fact, the story that this film ripped off (a lot of the story has been left out) is the same story that Lord of the Rings ripped off. That does not mean that Lord of the Rings was a bad book, it was not, but then neither was this a bad movie.

fearfulofspiders This two-part made-for-TV film claims to be the inspiration for Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, when in fact, Tolkien has proclaimed many times that the only similarity between the two is that both have a ring. Just to get to that before heading further on. Tolkien's inspirations came from all over the place, and for this trash to claim it is the main source (though not declaring itself the main, only implying) is entirely dribble.Now, Dark Kingdom is a very lackluster production, though it's easy to watch, and it makes for something good to watch when nothing else is on. I recommend watching it on TV, but if it gets to you that much that you HAVE to have it, then buy the DVD -- but be warned, the cut for the DVD is shorter than the one televised; much of the scenes that actually made this film deeper is now edited to seem more rushed, a h-u-g-e mistake on whomever the choice came from.As for the acting, Dark Kingdom is full of bad accents and monotone deliveries. From the poor job by Benno Furmann as the main hero to the ever-crying performance of Alicia Witt. Everyone else tries and tries, but all it eventually adds up to is... dull and lack of enthusiasm. Kristana Loken is okay, but she has too deep a voice to play some parts -- though she may be a barbaric queen in this film, she needs to work on her tone.The music is really overbearing at points. It takes our focus off of events so many times, that it doesn't add to the mood, but just distracts. The themes work here and there, even if it gets redundant and with little, if any, evolution in sound or composition.The ending is pathetic in terms of faithful to the source material. The story has actually been cut in half... all the deaths of everyone is fit into about 6-minutes of yelling and sword fighting. The further mishaps that occur in the writings is basically thrown out the window, so that the budget could fit in with a four-hour slot. Then why bother making it? Also, Benno Furmann's portrayal of Siegfried as he is killed by Hagan is so laughable, my sides were splitting -- which I'm hoping is the opposite affect they were going for with their audience.Overall, there's a lot that works and doesn't work in Dark Kingdom. While the film has some nice visual effects, the story as a whole is too rushed and trimmed to provide any satisfaction as to what this truly could've achieved in terms of being better. This is really a film worth watching when nothing else is on or as background noise, so I'd only recommend it to you under those conditions.

TdSmth5 I was absolutely mesmerized by this movie- despite the unnecessarily distracting hair cut given to the male lead that makes him look just too girly. In any case, I was not familiar with the works that inspired this movie but was completely captivated by the story of love, the fulfillment of anticipation, and deceit. I would have like to have seen more of the conflict between the old Norse religion and the new Christianity since that seems to be the important background for the story and is mentioned in the final two lines of the movie. Kristanna Loken is always a pleasure to watch and I wish the movie would have focused a little bit more on her and the lives of Icelanders. I was expecting some below B level movie but the it's well realized. This is a great epic with a great story and good performances. I did not want it to end. I wish there were more movies about the pre-Christian European peoples.