The Brothers Lionheart (1977)

Bad Acting and worse Bad Screenplay

Too much about the plot just didn't add up, the writing was bad, some of the scenes were cringey and awkward,

The tone of this movie is interesting -- the stakes are both dramatic and high, but it's balanced with a lot of fun, tongue and cheek dialogue.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

Widely viewed by commentators as one of the greatest family action adventure films ever made, this 1977 Swedish gem is a real find for any collector of such films. The acting is first rate, especially from the young lead, Lars Soderdahl, who has that rare quality of being able to make the audience feel what his character (Skorpan) is feeling, without even speaking. The story is adorable; It is of two brothers, one of whom is terminally ill, their love for each other, and their adventures after death. Technically this film is excellent, and fans of creature features will be thrilled with special effects that rival the work of Ray Harryhausen. Be prepared for the fact that this is a Swedish Family action adventure, and not the cutesie type of 'safe' fare that American audiences have been treated to by the Domestic film industry. Enjoy the ride.

I had the privilege of owning this movie when I was a child. I think that my parents bought it from some video store that was going out of business. It was on a BetaMax tape, and was dubbed in English. I had to of watched this movie at least once week. The story is great, and the relationship between the two brothers is rather touching. Despite the fact that even as a child the dragon (who used to remind me of "the secret weapon" from An American Tale) looked terrible, it was one of my favorite movies for years. If anyone can find a copy of this movie, I suggest you watch it. Also, the synthesized soundtrack is quite good (arpeggios reminiscent of Philip Glass or something).

*This review may contain spoilers*This one hour and 42 minutes long story-telling saga is a place you're hauntingly swept into when watching.From the rather ordinary modern daily life of two young boys living in the 1970's, to an abruptly grinding halt when they one after the other dies and is transported into another land, called Nangijala. There the world is a much more clear place of good and evil, but also much more cruel and more beautiful than the one they've just left. Here, the evil stonehearted knight Tengil rules with absolute iron-fisted power.But there is also an existing hidden movement among the peaceful farmers, almost like in a strange saga-version of WW2 France, there is a "La Resistance" that works to hinder the dark and violent forces of Tengil. Among the heart-achingly beautiful valleys of Cherry Blossom Valley and the Briar-Bush Valley, there grows an ever stronger, but silent cry of freedom from the oppressors. But it is so beautiful here, that one cannot even start to suspect that anything else can be evil, not in such a warm cosy world such as this?Not until you meet the dark-helmed, dark-mantled warriors of Tengil and learn their cruel ways of vile heartlessness. Then you understand how incredibly fragile the farmers world are, how defenseless the warm and friendly people of the two Valleys are. Ripe for the taking by the mailed hand of Tengil,his cruel warriors and as if that isn't enough, also their immensely powerful ally, Katla the Dragon.This story is like an early but very successful paralelled story to the Lord of the Rings, only in a much smaller scale. But that doesn't matter, as the heart-pounding feelings of righteousness are just as strong here. You want the weak ones to carry the torch in just the same manner as in LoTR, and burn down evil against all odds in the same way. The only real difference lies in the start of this story, as the two brothers live in our world. And that makes the 'reality' of it all so much more true. You can understand the hopelessness here, the hatred, the cold cruelty, the love for beauty of the heart - because it all comes from people of our own world. No CGI-created computerized creatures here, even if the dragon is really badly made. None.And this is only understandable when you see it. So do not miss this for the world. You win the views of two worlds here. With tears.

I first saw this film when I was a little kid. It stuck in my mind because it was so damned bizzar and depressing. I also remember that they had these really weird previews at the end in which people were at some kind of eatery and they were serving rodents on sticks.After searching tirelessly, I finally tracked down a copy. The film was pretty much as I remember it, only, well, worse.The film tells the tale of two brothers, who die and go to a medivil fairy tale world. The opening sequence, which I suppose was shot in Stockholm or Copenhagen, is shot in sepia tone. The younger brother, "Crispy", is afraid he's gonna die. His older brother, Jonathan, tells him not to fear. When he dies, he'll go to some place called Nagliomi (I think that's how you spell it).Jonathan dies trying to rescue Crispy from a fire. Crispy dies shortly after. They meet up in Nagliomi. The scenes in the afterlife are shot in color, but their just as dreary. The brothers live in a medivel village called Cherry Valley. Aparently the neighboring vilage, Wild Rose Valley, has some kind of warlord that enslaves it's people. He rules over them with a big dragon called Catla.The brothers end up going to war with the bad guy. The dragon makes the Toho monsters look like the dinosaurs in "Jurassic Park". I do know that in Norse (Viking) mythology, the greatest honor is to die and go to some place where your always at war. Compared to this, the films of Ingmar Bergman look like "The Care Bear Movie".