Search - The 13th Warrior on DVD

The 13th Warrior

Actor(s): Antonio Banderas, Diane Venora, Dennis Storhoi, Vladimir Kulich, Omar Sharif
Director(s): John McTiernan
98

Movie Details

MPAA Rating: R
Content Advisory: Graphic Violence, Adult Situations
Movie Release: 1999
DVD Release: 01/18/2000
Format: DVD - Enhanced Wide Screen Letterbox for 16x9 TV
Edition: Dual Layered
Audio Tracks: English, French
Subtitles: English
SwapaDVD Credits: 1
Number of Discs: 1
Run Time: 1 hrs 43 mins
Studio: Walt Disney Video
Total Copies: 7
Genres: Fantasy, Adventure Drama, Fantasy Adventure
See Also: The 13th Warrior [Includes Digital Copy]

DVD Synopsis

A cultured diplomat joins a band of savage warriors in time to meet an even more fearsome enemy in this historical adventure. In 922 A.D., Ibn Fadlan (Antonio Banderas) is a Muslim emissary from Baghdad en route to meet with the King of Saqaliba when he is captured by a gang of Vikings. While Ibn and his people are intelligent and well-mannered, the Vikings are a rowdy and sometimes unpleasant lot, with an unquenchable appetite for food, alcohol, and women. However, in time he develops an understanding and respect for the Viking warriors and is welcomed into their society by their leader, Buliwyf. However, Ibn must now join them as they return to their homeland once they receive word of an invasion by a huge pack of bloodthirsty invaders who will destroy and eat anything in their path -- including the flesh of the men they have killed. The 13th Warrior was based on the book Eaters of the Dead by Michael Crichton, which was in turn adapted from tales of Viking folklore. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Actors

Antonio Banderas - Ibn Fadlan
Diane Venora - Queen Weilew
Dennis Storhoi - Herger the Joyous
Vladimir Kulich - Buliwyf
Omar Sharif - Melchisidek

Editorial Review of DVD

The 13th Warrior, a rousing adventure tale that uses the "stranger in a strange land" theme by placing a Moor courtesan amongst a pack of Viking raiders in the European Dark Ages, looks and sounds great on DVD, with a widescreen presentation and 5.1 Surround Sound that replicates the big-screen experience. It is disappointing, however, that the DVD contains few extras, just the standard trailer and language subtitles. An epic like this begs for some deleted scenes and production notes, while a commentary by director John McTiernan on a reportedly rocky production that took years to finish would have been a welcome addition. A sleeper, The 13th Warrior provides lots of swashbuckling adventure that is scarce in today's action genre. ~ Chris Lawrence, All Movie Guide

Member Movie Reviews

Lisa K. (farmdog) from ATLANTA, GA wrote on 4/4/2008...

2 of 2 member(s) found this review helpful.

This is a rather unknown, but GREAT movie. It is in my never-to-be-swapped pile, and I've watched it at least a dozen times. I know, it sounds cheesy: Antonio Banderas as an Arab who ends up with a bunch of Vikings hunting mysterious monsters preying on a Dark Ages Nordic village. Really is a re-telling of the Beowulf saga, and has a lot of rich imagery, surprisingly good acting from some good European actors as the Vikings, and a pretty good script. Based on Michael Crichton novel, which wasn't very good.