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James Purefoy, Max von Sydow, Pete Postlethwaite, Rachel Hurd-Wood, MacKenzie Crook ... see more see more... , Alice Krige , Jason Flemyng , Philip Winchester , Patrick Hurd-Wood

James Purefoy stars as Solomon Kane, a wandering 16th century hero whose haunted past forces him to redeem himself by battling a growing evil in his homeland in this big-screen incarnation of Robert E... read more read more.... Howard's cloaked pulp character. Deathwatch's Michael J. Bassett directs from his own script, with Max von Sydow, Pete Postlethwaite, Rachel Hurd-Wood, Alice Krige, and Mackenzie Crook co-starring. ~ Jeremy Wheeler, Rovi

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45% liked it

12,433 ratings

Critics

83% liked it

18 critics

Unrated, 1 hr. 44 min.

Directed by: Michael J. Bassett

Release Date: September 24, 2009

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Flixster Reviews (1,454)

  • garyX
    May 30, 2012
    garyX
    A murderous pirate renounces his evil ways in the hope of saving his soul from damnation but is drawn back to his violent ways when an evil sorcerer's army invades the land. Solomon Kane reminded me of a Hammer Studios period chiller done in the style of The Lord Of The Rings. Th... read moree medieval setting and religious imagery of something like The Witchfinder General combine with some bloody, rain and mud soaked battle sequences to create a believably grimy world of superstition and violence that makes a nice backdrop to James Purefoy's intense central performance and it's this grittiness that makes it stand out from the never-ending crowd of Hollywood style comic strip action films. Unfortunately and almost inevitably, the script lets the side down; this is the third fantasy inspired action film I've seen this week, and the third that includes a plot revolving around a tough, amoral warrior that faces his nemesis to rescue a kidnapped damsel in distress. How original. And anyone who fails to guess the identity of the masked villain would have to be a paste eater on a Ralph Wiggum level. The cheesy CGI monsters tacked on to the beginning and end of this otherwise brutally realistic hack and slasher clearly compromise its vision and it's a shame that film makers today feel the need to play to the cheap seats in this way, every single time. Still, thanks to some strong performances and quality production design, it's easily the best of the three.
  • cancercapricorn2002
    May 26, 2011
    cancercapricorn2002
    Solomon Kane is a literary creation from the legendary Robert E. Howard (1906-1936), who was also the creator of Conan the Barbarian and the father of modern heroic fantasy.I've been waiting on this film for a while and I finally got my hands on the dvd from overseas since the fi... read morelm has not got a U.S. release date as of this writing and I have to say this film ended up being a very entertaining film with very good action scenes and a well written screenplay which constructed the main character on a quite interesting way.

    Director Michael J. Bassett has only two other movies in his filmography (the modest but excellent war horror film Deathwatch; and Wilderness, which I have not seen), and the idea of putting him in front of an ambitious multi-national co-production may sounded risky, but the truth is that he made a very solid work in Solomon Kane.As for the screenplay (which was written also by Bassett), I appreciated the fact that it did not try to "modernize" the story; it would have been easier (and more economic) to move the story to modern times, but if the film had done that, it would have lost the heroic "taste" from the main character, as well as the historical content from Howard's tales, and his almost academic examination of the social contrasts during the puritan period in England.However, I cannot deny that the classic conflict between God and Satan, along with the many Christian references, could be interpreted as simple religious propaganda nowadays.

    James Purefoy was excellent in the titular role. Frankly speaking, I had little faith in a lesser-known actor playing a titular role, but James proved everybody wrong. He was like the shining armor for the movie. Others, even though little-known, played their part decently enough to leave any bad impression.

    "Solomon Kane" strength is clearly its stylish direction, taut storyline, fine character development, ample sword play, and adequate running time. Kudos to the Director Michael Bassett, who gives the movie a very stylish look. The camera-work, slow-motion sequence, action choreography added great depth to the movie. Giving scope for character development is very important and it was properly showcased.

    The movie derides itself a bit in the ending. Like most action movies, the ending is reduced to One-Versus-All fight, giving a little unrealistic feel. Also, the ending came a little too fast. Meaning, the So-Called-Very-Bad-Guys were overpowered quite quickly and easily by the protagonist. Having said that, this movie is far better than most movies in the similar category.

    Overall, "Solomon Kane" is a very good movie that will hopefully find a U.S. release date one day.
  • thefog1331
    January 4, 2011
    thefog1331
    I stumbled across this film after I heard the news of Pete Postlethwaite's passing and decided to check it out since I had already read several of Robert Howard's stories.
    It doesn't really do those stories justice and at first glance looks like a Van Helsing rip off but unlike ... read morethat film, Kane turns out to be a highly entertaining, visually impressive Puritan action movie--as weird as that sounds and is something I wouldn't mind owning whenever it actually gets released in the US.
  • deano
    December 27, 2010
    deano
    The title character who dressed like Van Helsing, fought like Conan, and battled evil as though his soul depended on it (which it did). James Purefoy cuts a terrifically intense dash as Kane, effectively managing the transition from amoral killer to tortured soul who finds eschew... read moreing violence is all very well - but "sometime you have to fight to be a man".
    Max von Sydow and Pete Postlethwaite add necessary gravitas in support roles, although an equally weighty actor would have been welcome as the villain: no amount of make-up or CG trickery can make Jason Flemyng remotely threatening.
  • newvogueravyn
    December 12, 2010
    newvogueravyn
    When I saw this advertised I just knew I was going to love it. It's got that sword and sourcery element I tend to love in fiction, and visually it is stunning. Also it has some good performances from the cast, most notably James Purefoy and MacKenzie Crook. The Pilgrim family wer... read moree very endearing, and I was most upset about what happened to them.
  • Deano78
    December 9, 2010
    Deano78
    An enjoyable sword and sorcery film with some good fight scenes. Starts well, slows a little before leading up to the grand finale! I thought after the start we would get more demonic creatures to fight but there aren't many which was a bit disappointing. Otherwise an entertainin... read moreg film with some bloody sword fights and a good array of largely English acting talent, filmed on some impressive sets.
  • Gx7
    September 19, 2010
    Gx7
    Okay, Im torn between rating this above average and average cuz I liked it. -- have to go get ready for work n my dish in the kitchen is about to burn!!! proper review to follow!
  • gor41
    August 31, 2010
    gor41
    Spirited effort from all involved but the wafer thin plot can't sustain the generally impressive visuals. Purefoy gives his all to try and add weight but it can't escape its graphic novel limitations - would be much better as a videogame.
  • kpn666
    June 4, 2010
    kpn666
    In the tradition of The Lord of the Rings fused with the dark persona of Constantine and the glitz of Van Helsing without the cheesyness, and throw in a brooding anti-hero damned to hell, Solomon Kane is a pretty interesting movie

    Based on the fictional stories and character, Ka... read morene is a 17th century mercenary working for the Queen Elizabeth. After conquering a North African stronghold, Kane finds himself trapped by the Devil's Reaper, who proclaims his soul is damned and belongs to the Devil. Defying heaven all his life and now hell, Kane manages to escape, but to keep the devil at bay, he turns his back on his evil life and seeks to live a religous and peaceful life to find redemption.

    But that isn't possible for a man like Kane, and despite his strength and devotion, Kane begins to seek out his true destiny and must fight evil to be redeemed.

    A story is defintley there, the past, present and uncertain future. Religion, faith, horror, family and bloodlust take a part in Kane's dark world, which is magnificent in the movie, the cold, desolate wasteland filled with death and evil. The scenery and costumes and most of the demon work is astounding, the location is just as you would imagine it to be, a dark, hopless world with no life. The twists and turns are nearly predictable, but its hard not to get engaged when things get rolling... this movie is intended to introduce the character of Solomon Kane, therefore it does take some time exploring the persona and dark history.

    James Purefoy undoubtedly was the star, his portayl of the brooding and guilt riddled Kane is perfect.... a lone wanderer with no home, no past and possibly no future, trying to find peace... and if peace is threatened, his sword will find it for him. it is a character struggling to find himself, find forgiveness and faith in an evil world.

    As a B-grade movie, the quality of the script, storytelling, direction and action is much better than the recent Clash of the Titans and other Fantasy /Period flicks. its darkness and depth of evil is its attractiveness, its foreboding and horrific. The ending though, and the use of mainstream CGI is what brought down the movie.... it was poorly finished and the creature was... disappointing. it just didnt end with a bang, which was wanting, after the slow start and build up.

    the movie is.... solid. Not fantastic, but a solid effort. In terms of quality to budget costs, it is a success in my view. But it could be better, but I think Mainstream influences will kill the quality it has.

    Think of it as a quasi history / periodical movie, crossed with Van Helsing and Dracula, infused with the fantasy of Highlander and the darkness of Blade... it is a huge mix of a lot of things and influences. But it does stand out on its own, which makes it one of the better movies amongst its peers. its a touch of old school style movie making with a minimal of CGI, and you will see what little CGI it did use, it didn't work for the movie.

    Anyways, for those wanting to watch it, its worth it.
  • phubbs1
    April 3, 2010
    phubbs1
    Hey now this is actually pretty good stuff :) I saw it go in and out from the cinema like a bad case of diarrhoea so I kinda assumed it would be another bad comic book adaptation, but no!!! its not, this is good fun sword wielding stuff :) flintlocks at the ready!! ;)

    For starte... read morers this is nice and dark with plenty of blood n head chopping so it passes the 'kiddie crapola' test, I'm not up on the comicbook so I don't know if this is close to the original concept or if the plot was in a comicbook but its still a good little predictable story. Cross Highlander, Willow, even some Star Wars and you have a cool, dark, rainy, Elizabethan based, Pilgrim looking action flick thats got a nice original look n feel about it. The action is fast and effective, stunts and effects are top notch with some good cgi and most of all it all looks very authentic and well made, the lashing rain adds to this of course but in general this film looks damn good. Highly enjoyable yarn with a good baddie/hero character well played by James Purefoy and looks good in his hat.

    Choose your rapier sir!

View All Solomon Kane Reviews

Critic Reviews

Dennis Harvey
October 12, 2009
Dennis Harvey, Variety

This muscular yet monotonous Kane just isn't much fun. Full Review

Scott Nash
June 18, 2010
Scott Nash, Three Movie Buffs

It's doubtful Kane will ever rival Conan--Howard's other creation--in terms of fame, but his world is definitely one that I would be willing to visit again. Full Review

Luke Y. Thompson
April 28, 2010
Luke Y. Thompson, Geekweek

Don't misunderstand -- this is no masterpiece akin to Orson Welles' similarly named Citizen, but it's entertaining pulp, cheesy but not campy. Full Review

February 23, 2010
Scotsman

The film fails to take full advantage, possessing neither a sense of its own ridiculousness nor the flat-out propulsive energy that would make concerns about its hokey storyline irrelevant. Full Review

David Hughes
February 19, 2010
David Hughes, Empire Magazine

If weapons and wizardry get your blood up, and you prefer your movies dark and brooding and minus the sandals, Solomon Kane fits the bill. It may lack The Lord Of The Rings' majesty, but Robert E. How... Full Review

Nigel Floyd
February 19, 2010
Nigel Floyd, Time Out

A monstrously entertaining action-adventure... the film's epic vision bears comparison with the 'Lord of the Rings' trilogy, its imaginative supernatural elements confidently fused with a savage reality. Full Review

February 19, 2010
Film4

A hugely entertaining adaptation of the dark comic series. Full Review

Phelim O'Neill
February 19, 2010
Phelim O'Neill, Guardian [UK]

There's plenty that's good here: a serious tone, steady pacing, muddy and bloody scenery and a convincing turn by Purefoy in his own west country accent. But Kane is an ill fit into the origins tale t... Full Review

Ben Rawson-Jones
February 19, 2010
Ben Rawson-Jones, Digital Spy

A thoroughly entertaining demon-slaying romp set in 16th Century Britain. Boasting an impressive lead performance by James Purefoy as the anti-hero seeking redemption, the film bears enough individual... Full Review

Matt Risley
February 19, 2010
Matt Risley, Sky Movies

A combination of Purefoy's stoic, captivating performance and a number of bloodthirstily brilliant fight scenes ensure this is more Darling Bloods of May than twee cheese-fest. Full Review

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    • Solomon Kane: If I kill you, I am bound for hell. It is a price I shall gladly pay.
    • Solomon Kane: There are many paths to redemption, not all of them peaceful.
    • Solomon Kane: I was never more at home than I was at battle.
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