Since first seeing this on TV back in the 80s, my feelings about this have gone up and down like the proverbial roller-coaster. Initially high on the film's mix of swordfighting, skin, and magic, I eventually became a fan of Robert Howard's fantasy writing and the film seemed to suffer greatly by comparison. Of course such overly literal comparisons are un-necessary. Red Sonja is only marginally even a Robert Howard character, and more a creation of Marvel Comics' Roy Thomas and others. But she does walk the same dusty streets as Conan and Kull, and her Conan-esquire prince in this one is supposed to be a Hyrkanian Lord named Kalidor (Arnold Schwartzenneger). What should be said is that the character is not identical to Conan, but Arnold's performance as Kalidor is exactly the same as his interpretation of Conan.
He seems only too happy to sink into the background as much as possible on this one; his original Conan co-star Sandahl Bergman is comparatively ambitious and scenery-chewing as a witch queen who seizes a glowing orb that controls the weather. As for the star of the show, Brigitte Nielsen, the less said of her acting by far the better. Seeing as most Italian movies are fixed in post-production, I'm astounded that even dubbing could not have solved some of the most woeful problems with her lack of inflection. There's literally no emotion in her voice at any time really. On the positive side, that does make her an equal match for Schwartzenneger. Ernie Reyes Jr., who made his film debut in Berry Gordy's "The Last Dragon" the previous year, is fun comic diversion as an undisciplined prince, and he shows off his martial arts skills to good effect.
The best thing about the film is the great score supplied by Ennio Morricone which lifts everything up a notch. The matte work is also quite well done, and despite what perhaps others have said about the film its production values are generally high just as usual for a DeLaurentis production. The photography is quite beautiful in some places, thanks to Giuseppe Rotunno (who also shot Gilliam's lovely "Baron Munchausen"), but Richard Fleischer's monotonous direction drags the film down at every opportunity when it could have soared. The script is very hollow too -- basically the plot consists of leaving one member or other of the group behind so that he can suddenly appear in time to *surprise* save the rest from whatever monster they've encountered.
Basically what we have here is something that you can enjoy if you have a few drinks in you, the music and the photography will carry you if you're in the mood for a fantasy vibe, but the acting in general and the story are very dull.
He seems only too happy to sink into the background as much as possible on this one; his original Conan co-star Sandahl Bergman is comparatively ambitious and scenery-chewing as a witch queen who seizes a glowing orb that controls the weather. As for the star of the show, Brigitte Nielsen, the less said of her acting by far the better. Seeing as most Italian movies are fixed in post-production, I'm astounded that even dubbing could not have solved some of the most woeful problems with her lack of inflection. There's literally no emotion in her voice at any time really. On the positive side, that does make her an equal match for Schwartzenneger. Ernie Reyes Jr., who made his film debut in Berry Gordy's "The Last Dragon" the previous year, is fun comic diversion as an undisciplined prince, and he shows off his martial arts skills to good effect.
The best thing about the film is the great score supplied by Ennio Morricone which lifts everything up a notch. The matte work is also quite well done, and despite what perhaps others have said about the film its production values are generally high just as usual for a DeLaurentis production. The photography is quite beautiful in some places, thanks to Giuseppe Rotunno (who also shot Gilliam's lovely "Baron Munchausen"), but Richard Fleischer's monotonous direction drags the film down at every opportunity when it could have soared. The script is very hollow too -- basically the plot consists of leaving one member or other of the group behind so that he can suddenly appear in time to *surprise* save the rest from whatever monster they've encountered.
Basically what we have here is something that you can enjoy if you have a few drinks in you, the music and the photography will carry you if you're in the mood for a fantasy vibe, but the acting in general and the story are very dull.