Solomon Kane
"There are many paths to redemption...not all of them peaceful." - priest
release year: 2009
genre: dark fantasy
viewing setting: home Bluray 11/9/13
synopsis: Solomon Kane, once a ruthless and evil bandit chief, is marked by the Devil and changes his ways...until events push him to fight once more.
impressions: This was some dark fantasy...with meaningless violence and much bloodletting. Basically the forces of evil are spreading through the land and this guy ends up fighting them, but not for noble reasons. The atmosphere was grim and there was very little positive in the world, just a lack of negative. It reminded me of all the evil parts of Lord of the Rings without any of the good (merry, hopeful, etc.) parts. As a reader of Robert E. Howard's source material from the 1930s, I have to say that perhaps Solomon didn't need to be integral to the story as he was in this film - I liked him better as a random wandering guy who'd made his own decisions. But it wasn't a huge deal here.
body count: dozens, but counting was impossible
activation point: around 44:00, when Solomon finally decides he's had enough and renounces his vow of non-violence so he can deal with the bad guys
acting: James Purefoy is great as a tormented ex-warrior who must find his way again. Pete Postlethwaite is the father of a traveling Puritan family who befriends the wandering Solomon. Jason Flemyng has a brief but memorable appearance as the evil sorceror.
final word: Interesting, with a tone much like the original work.
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