I liked the concept of this but wasn't impressed with the execution of it. Lighting was crap so everyone looked alike.

Having seen "Pathfinder" about three times now so far, since it was released in 2007, I will say that the movie is actually entertaining enough to sustain multiple viewing with some years in between each viewing.The story told in "Pathfinder" was anything but original, and it is something that has been seen in other movies, and it does bear great similarities to "Dances With Wolves", for example. And on that account, "Pathfinder" doesn't stand out for having an original and innovating storyline.What does work for the movie is the action throughout the movie, especially since the movie starts out in a good pace early on in the story and continues on in that lane throughout the entire movie.Furthermore, the costume department really managed to create something unique here. But while the vikings were about as far from being historically correct as it almost could have been, then it was still very visually pleasing. Why? Because they were dark, brutal, primal and menacing to look at. They had a very nicely done dark fantasy feel to them given the costume design.The characters in the movie were generic, sure. But still, they were interesting enough to sustain the movie and keep it being interesting to watch.As for the actors and actresses brought in to portray the various roles and characters. Well, I did enjoy watching Karl Urban as the lead role, and he did carry the movie quite well. Furthermore, the native Americans that filled out the majority of roles in the movie were really doing good jobs as well, and they brought so much realism to the movie. However, the people cast for portraying the vikings were essentially faceless throughout the entire movie, aside from two or three of them."Pathfinder" is by no means a masterpiece, but it is surely entertaining for what it turned out to be. I was thoroughly entertained by it, and could easily return to watch the movie again at another time a couple of years down the lane. Just don't sit down to watch "Pathfinder" if you want to watch something that is historical correct.

The biggest problem with Pathfinder is that it's style over substance. It feels less like a movie and more like an hour and a half long heavy metal music video. And on some level that's awesome. It has native Americans fighting demonic vikings, on majestic mountains, in the middle of a raging winter storm. As I said, heavy metal.But, even though I know I have to turn in my male membership card for saying this, it needs more. It needs to have characters that have actual, well, character. It needs to have dialogue. Because there actually is very little of that in here, it's mostly just wordless action. As I said, music video. It needs to have a plot beyond basic good guy kills bad guys. There really are no actors, only stunt men. The location is unrealistic, the vikings laughably over the top, it suffers from the oh so enraging "in the end it takes a white guy to solve the problem, even when the problem is the white guys" syndrome and it's about the definition of brainless.Then again, did I mention the demonic vikings. Because they're cool, they're really cool. I cannot deny that a significant part of me went "Oh yeah!" more often than not while watching this film. And sure, the visuals are needlessly dark and muddled, but the action itself is pretty cool to watch, the designs got a lot of things right and there is some "so bad it's good" value to this. It's dumb, but if you've ever wondered what it would be like if your favourite heavy metal music video was longer and had something resembling a plot, this might be worth a watch. Pop in some Amon Amarth, turn down the volume of your TV and enjoy.

There are not too many new Viking movies out today which take root to enthrall audiences. Here is one directed by Marcus Nisped, which despite my reluctance to view it, surprised me to no end. The film is called " Pathfinder " and stars Karl Urban as 'Ghost.' It's the story of a Viking boy who, legend has it, accompanies his father to the New World 600 years before Columbus. His Father discovers his son's reluctance to murder Native American children, angrily explodes, whips and abandons his son to the strange and forbidden land. The boy is traumatized, left behind, but later found by a kindly native American woman, then adopted by a Spiritual leader called the Pathfinder. (Russell Means) Growing up amid his adopted tribe, the boy grows to manhood and becomes an integral part of his tribe against the returning Vikings. Unlike other films which includes the same elements, this movie contains superb acting and is further loaded with exciting, action-oriented black scenes. With Moon Bloodgood providing the romance element Starfire, there are compelling reasons to enjoy the touching film. Among the other fine actors is Clancy Brown as Gunnar. All in all, I highly recommend this story to anyone seeking good old fashion Viking vs Native America confrontation. Well done! ****