Erik the Conqueror
dir. Mario Bava · 1961
Feature
Cultural Dislocation
Mood
Adventurous / Romantic
Look
rich color palettes with dramatic lighting, evoking a mythic quality
Structure
dual perspectives converging in conflict
Plot
In the 9th century, two Viking children, separated since their early childhood with one raised by the British and the other by Vikings, meet after nearly 20 years as rivals when war breaks out between Britian and the Vikings for control of England.
Why watch
Two Viking children, raised in opposing cultures, find themselves on opposite sides of a war that will test their loyalties and identities. As they confront their shared past and the realities of their present, the film immerses viewers in a world where love and rivalry intertwine against a backdrop of historical conflict.
Cultural context
1960s Italian cinemapost-war European identitythe resurgence of historical epicsthe influence of mythology in film
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