Movie Night! ‘Kull the Conqueror’ and ‘Deadlocked’

I had my mid-year review, for work, today so of course I was all nervous and not really looking forward to it last night; which is daft really because there are never any big surprises, it’s all stuff that you know is coming your way. Funnily enough, my review went ok and there were no big surprises… I should learn a lesson from that…

Anyway, last night wasn’t a night for reading or writing the review that I meant to. It was though, very definitely a night for popping on a couple of movies and letting my brain take a break for a bit. One movie did the job but not in a great way; the other movie did just the job that it was supposed to. One thing they do have in common though was that it was really difficult to find a decent image to use here. Oh well...  


‘Kull the Conqueror’ (1997)

 The wiles of a dying king leaves Kull of Atlantis on the throne of Valusia, a throne he is happy to take but is ill prepared for; especially with two other claimants ready for him to make the wrong move. Or will it be three…? Worshipped by his subjects for his mercy and adored by the beautiful fortune-teller Zareta for his valour, Kull quickly becomes the mortal enemy of the forces of darkness, led by the villainous Akivasha.

After watching some ‘grim and gritty’ Howard adaptations, I was looking forward to seeing how Kull of Atlantis was treated on the big screen. He’s a hero that I really need to read more of but have enjoyed what I’ve read. The movie isn’t bad but very much takes it’s ‘feel’ from ‘Hercules: The Legendary Journeys’ and ‘Xena: Warrior Princess’. This is understandable (all three were made at roughly the same time, and Kevin Sorbo) but the film comes across as a little light and fluffy as a result which is not what anyone should be after from a Robert E. Howard adaptation. Stuff happens and it’s easy on the eye, it’s just hard to take it seriously when you can tell that the film is crying out for more than just a splash of blood here and there. ‘Red Sonja’ wasn’t great but at least it had some heads flying through the air. That’s what ‘Kull the Conqueror’ needed.

 


‘Deadlocked’ (2020)

 As a zombie virus breaks out, one ragtag group of trapped elevator passengers must pull together for a fighting chance of survival against an infected rider and the clever horde that awaits them outside.

 Now this was a bit more like it. ‘Deadlocked’ had been on my Prime Watchlist for a few weeks and after being disappointed by ‘Kull’, it seemed like as good a time as any to try something and see what happened. What happened? I spent large chunks of ‘Deadlocked’ with my hands over my eyes, watching between my fingers, that’s what happened…

I’ve seen enough zombie movies now to be after original efforts and setting most of ‘Deadlocked’ inside a cramped elevator was just what I was looking for. The claustrophobic atmosphere makes the tension almost tangible, especially when it all kicks off and you’re right up close with someone trying to fight off a zombie in limited space. When the action moves out of the escalator (which it has to, really), clever use of the apartment building, and zombies that aren’t as limited as your usual fare, make for even more scary moments. Not sure what was going on with the hero cop and his ‘zombie dreams’ though, an interesting opening that never really led anywhere…

That’s a small quibble though. ‘Deadlocked’ is a surprisingly effective zombie movie (I mean, you wouldn’t have thought all that ‘elevator time’ would work but it does) that Prime viewers should take advantage of while it’s free to view.

 

And now it’s back to the books. I’ll try and have a review for you tomorrow…

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