The 13th Warrior (1999)

6/10. So this is what a flop looks like. Apparently going over budget to a cost of $160 Million, this film lost $123 Million upon release. When McTiernan's original cut apparently didn't please test audiences, Michael Chrichton took the helm and made at least a presentable effort out of the film.

The story of an Arabic poet, outcast from his native land and into the midst of a group of Vikings. He is among those chosen to travel north to fight a mysterious enemy in a mysterious land.

I remember reading part of Chrichton's novel in high school, "Eaters of the Dead". It was pretty slow, but had elements of interest to me. It was unique in that it was written both in Old English (like Beowulf) and in modern English as well.

Unfortunately McTiernan and Chrichton and the screenwriters turn it into a pretty mundane hack-and-slash Medieval action film. No indication in the film that the mysterious hordes were actually descendants of Neanderthals, as was presented in the book. Nor is any of the feeling of coarse poetry, that bled through the pages of the book.

Chrichton was actually my favorite author growing up, and I'm familiar with most of his works (both his writings and his films), and this I would have to say is among the most middling of the film efforts. Entertaining enough, but not really capturing the power of the original story.