Film: Barbarians
Creators: Jan Martin Scharf, Arne Nolting
Cast: Jeanne Goursaud, Laurence Rupp
Making its German presence known in an already saturated pool of historical war films, ‘Barbarians’ has nothing new to offer other than some great cinematography and a war sequence that really showcased some great directorial skills.
Set in the premise of the struggle between the Roman empire and the Germanic Barbarian civilisations in AD first century, the show really has some unique elements taken from history. At times, it presents you an insight into the historic relevance of the incidents — somewhat informative and capable of inspiring curiosity in the viewer.
However, where this falters is in its lack of development in storyline and characters. The story falls flat with new incidents happening every couple of minutes as if the characters were just making hasty decisions and not as a result of their past experiences. It unjustified the performances of the actors.
Protagonist Thusnelda, a young woman who is the daughter of the right hand of Cherusci tribe of Barbarians, who basically drives the story forward was interesting. Jeanne Goursaud really shines as Thusnelda. The action sequences were decent and had its own charm.
The cinematography was good but it failed to capture the emotions of the scenes.
The finale took the show to another level but it was at the expense of fast-paced and underdeveloped episodes prior to it. If you have the patience till then, you’ll surely be treated with a nice war sequence and some thrilling incidents.
Season 2 releases next year.