History Film / ValhallaRising

* NeverHurtAnInnocent: One-Eye quickly dispatches of the man who means to kill Are, thinking him a curse.

* TranslationConvention: The Vikings all speak modern Scottish English, while historically they would have spoken the Caithness dialect of Old Norse. Then, the only none-Scottish actor plays a mute and Nicolas Winding Refn did not want the character to speak with various accents.

%%* ARealManIsAKiller: And how!

%%* ReligiousHorror: All over the place.

* ArtisticLicenseHistory: The film makes very few historical claims, but even then they don't match up very well. UsefulNotes/TheCrusades were triggered in 1095, about a century later than the purported setting of the movie.-- While the period around 1000 AD saw indeed some violent confrontations between pagans and Christians in Norway, such religious struggles had little impact in the British Isles. Then again, it's never really specified whether the first part of the movie is supposed to take place in Scotland (where it's filmed), or possibly in Norway.

* FollowTheLeader: Althrough it was not a commercial success, the visual look and style of this film has informed many other viking-related films since like ''Hammer of the Gods'', ''Vikings - The Berserkers'', ''Sword of Vengence'' and even ''Vikings''. The highly contrasted and desaturated look and the vikings as Hells Angels/Mad Max-marauders where coined by this film.

'''''Valhalla Rising''''' is a 2009 film (released in the States in 2010), directed by Creator/NicolasWindingRefn, starring Creator/MadsMikkelsen. The film was shot entirely in Scotland, and takes place in 1000 AD.

* {{Badass}}: The main character is so ruthlessly and emotionlessly good at killing that the other Vikings are afraid of him.

%%* CombatPragmatist: One-Eye uses any means available to him when in a fight.

%%* GrimDark: Even in the full sunlight of rolling green hills, it manages to be both grim and dark.

* TranslationConvention: The Vikings all speak modern Scottish English, while historically they would have spoken the Caithness dialect of Old Norse.

-->-- '''The Chieftain''' on [[TheVoiceless One-Eye]]

-->--'''The Chieftain''' on [[TheVoiceless One-Eye]]

* ArtisticLicenseHistory: The film makes very few historical claims, but even then they don't match up very well. TheCrusades were triggered in 1095, about a century later than the purported setting of the movie.-- While the period around 1000 AD saw indeed some violent confrontations between pagans and Christians in Norway, such religious struggles had little impact in the British Isles. Then again, it's never really specified whether the first part of the movie is supposed to take place in Scotland (where it's filmed), or possibly in Norway.

[[caption-width-right:350:''He was brought up out of [[NorseMythology Hel]].'']]

->[[ThePowerofHate He's driven by hate]]. [[TheDeterminator It's how he survives,]] and [[CombatPragmatist it's why he never loses]]. [[BecauseDestinySaysSo He'll come because he has to come]]; to finish it.
-->-- The Chieftain on [[TheVoiceless One-Eye]]

'''''Valhalla Rising''''' is a 2009 film (released in the States in 2010), directed by Nicolas Winding Refn, starring Creator/MadsMikkelsen. The film was shot entirely in Scotland, and takes place in 1000 AD.

[[caption-width-right:350:''He was brought up out of Hell.'']]

->He's driven by hate. It's how he survives, and it's why he never loses. He'll come because he has to come. To finish it.

-->-- 'The Chieftain' on [[One Eye TheVoiceless]]

-->''"The old Gods are fading out\\
The old Gods are no longer true\\
I will burst the chains\\
I will break you loose\\
The time has come to crush the old world! To crush the old values!\\
The time has come for the old Gods to call in the horns for the final battle!"''
-->-- '''Music/{{The Leather Nun}}'''

* TokenGoodTeammate: Gary Lewis' character is probably the closest thing that the Christian Vikings have to one of these. He doesn't have any particular problem with carrying out a holy war, but is also the compassionate and cool-headed character in the movie.

%%* {{Gorn}}: Oh God, so much.

%%* RealMenLoveJesus: Christian. Vikings. What's more to say ?

%%* TokenGoodTeammate: Gary Lewis' character is probably the closest thing that the Christian Vikings have to one of these.

* DoubleStandardRapeMaleOnMale: Averted. [[{{Squick}} Yeesh.]] And [[{{RightThroughHisPants}} ambiguous]].

* {{Badass}}: Well, the main character is so ruthlessly and emotionlessly good at killing that the other Vikings are afraid of him.

* TheCrusades: The Christian Norsemen want to sail to Jerusalem and reclaim the Holy Land.

* Myth/NorseMythology: Alluded to in the movie title though, and in One-Eye himself, who's name is one of Odin's nicknames. Odin had traded an eye for knowledge; similarly, One-Eye can see the future.
** One-Eye also shares traits with Vidar, the God of Vengeance and Odin's illegitimate son, who was silent, associated with nature and had great strength.
** Sacred wells were a common motif and important to the Norse pagans. When One-Eye bathes in a natural well he finds the steel arrowhead that sets him free.
** The spearing of a foe's severed head on a pike is not a random act of intimidatory violence; the Vikings would put the head of a horse on a pike with runes carved on it as part of a ritual to invoke a curse on their enemies. This was known as a nithing pole.
** One of the three Norse underworlds is called Nifelheim: ''Mist Home''

* SilenceIsGolden: There are long, ''long'' stretches of film with no dialogue whatsoever.

* ARealManIsAKiller: And how!

* CombatPragmatist: One-Eye uses any means available to him when in a fight.

* DeathOfTheOldGods
* DreamSequence: Often hard to distinguish from the real story. Strongly implied that One-Eye can [[spoiler:see the future in his dreams]].

* {{Gorn}}: Oh God, so much.

* GrimDark: Even in the full sunlight of rolling green hills, it manages to be both grim and dark.

* {{Hell}}: The men think they're actually there after a while, and not without good reason.
* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler:One-Eye.]]
* InTheBack: One man ''does'' stab one of his allies in the back while hugging him!
* KidSidekick: After One-Eye kills his captors, Are accompanies him on his journey.
* LeFilmArtistique: Quite so.

* NoHoldsBarredBeatdown: One-Eye is forced to deliver many of these.

* PetTheDog: One-Eye's relationship with Are.

* ProtectedByAChild: Are cares for One-Eye, who in turn protects him on their journey.
* PsychoStrings

* RealMenLoveJesus: Christian. Vikings. What's more to say ?

* ReligiousHorror: All over the place.

* RiverOfInsanity: In the middle part of the movie.

* SpiritualSuccessor: The film clearly draws a great deal of influence from ''AguirreTheWrathOfGod'', with its European warriors blundering through the New World, adrift on a river, beset by [[InjunCountry hostile inhabitants]], slowly going insane, and ultimately meeting a variety of grisly ends.
* TokenGoodTeammate: Gary Lewis' character is probably the closest thing that the Christian Vikings have to one of these.

* WithMyHandsTied: Literally!

* NorseMythology: Alluded to in the movie title though, and in One-Eye himself, who's name is one of Odin's nicknames. Odin had traded an eye for knowledge; similarly, One-Eye can see the future.

* TheSavageIndian: [[spoiler:They end up in ''North America'' and One-Eye gets beaten to death by Native Americans. They are not any more savage than the Norsemen, however; their aggression is possibly caused by the Norsemen desecrating a burial ground earlier.]]
* SceneryPorn: Many beautiful shots of the Scottish highlands.

* SpiritualSuccessor: The film clearly draws a great deal of influence from ''AguirreTheWrathOfGod'', with its European warriors blundering through the New World, adrift on a river, beset by [[InjunCountry hostile natives]], slowly going insane, and ultimately meeting a bad end.

* TranslationConvention: The vikings all speak modern Scottish English, while historically they would have spoken the Caithness dialect of Old Norse.

** One-Eye also shares traits with Vidar, the God of Vengence and Odin's illegitimate son, who was silent, associated with nature and had great strength.
** Sacred wells where a common motif and important to the norse pagans. When One-Eye baths in a natural well he finds the arrow that sets him free.
** The placing of a man's head on a pike is not random violence; the vikings whould put the head of an horse on a pike with runes carved on it as part of a ritual to curse someone. This was known as a nithing pole.
** One of the three norse underworlds where called Nifelheim: ''Mist Home''
* NothingIsScarier: Most notable in the OminousFog sequence. The movie doesn't get its horror factor from violence, but from its consistently bleak and dreading atmosphere, some strange imagery, and the [[PsychoStrings sound]][[ScareChord track]].

* OffWithHisHead: The fate of [[spoiler:the warden who imprisoned One-Eye]], as well as others.
* OminousFog: Ocean fog gets the group horribly lost.

* PrecisionFStrike: When a guy gets shot by an arrow, the rest of the team start screaming and swearing profusely. It's quite a shock considering most of the rest of the film involves very little talking in general. In fact, even when the man at the beginning is having his entrails removed, there is no swearing at all!

[[caption-width-right:350:''"He was brought up out of Hell.'']]

[[caption-width-right:350:''"He's driven by hate. That's why he survives. Why he never loses."'']]