CONAN THE BARBARIAN (1982) MOVIE REACTION! FIRST TIME WATCHING!

[@44excalibur]

The "Riddle of Steel" is the main theme of the movie, Jen. The answer to the riddle is actually contained in the opening quote from Friedrich Nietzsche, from his book, Twilight of the Idols: "That which does not kill us makes us stronger." Conan's father tells Conan that steel is far more trustworthy than men or women, while Thulsa Doom tells him that steel is nothing without flesh and that flesh is stronger. During the course of the movie, Conan learns that both Doom and his father were wrong; his father's sword gets broken during his fight with Rexor, but he still uses the broken half to cut off Doom's head, and Valeria and Subotai are both there for Conan when he needs them. Conan realizes that the answer to the riddle of steel is the human will. Metal can bend and break, and flesh can succumb to age, injury, or illness, but the steel of the human will is unbreakable.

[@kennethsmith6367]

Thanks! I’ve wondered the answer to the riddle of steel, since seeing i saw this in the theater as a child.

[@44excalibur]

@@kennethsmith6367 You're welcome! Yeah, I've wondered the same, and it only took me a quarter of a century to figure it out. lol 😂

[@secularnevrosis]

"What is steel compared to the hand that wields it?"

[@SonOvLaw]

Pearls before Swine.

[@chiefsteps-in-poo8447]

Well said 44, well said indeed.

[@jimtatro6550]

“What is best in life?” “Crush your enemies, see them driven before you and hear the lamentations of the women.” I love this movie so much!!!! This is one of the best musical scores ever!👍

[@AneudiD78]

I named my Clash of Clans group from one of the scores of this movie, Orphans of Doom. This movie deserves a remaster in 4K.

[@jeffreymcmahon3627]

"Their" women, as in, his opponents' woman crying in despair.

[@whispermason8052]

So many good quotes out of this one.

[@SedriqMiers]

Indeed and i have it on loop re-edited.

[@chiefsteps-in-poo8447]

@@jeffreymcmahon3627 Yeah, I had to look it up because I thought "hear the lamentations of the women" had something to do with orgasm.

[@chrisleebowers]

*Conan The Barbarian* was created by Robert E. Howard in 1932 for a series of fantasy stories published in the pulp magazine "Weird Tales" and has since been adapted to books, comics, films, television programs (animated and live-action), video games, and role-playing games. At the time of Howard's death in 1936, (tragically by suicide) he had written 21 complete stories, 17 of which had been published, as well as multiple unfinished fragments, that have since been published in collected novels. The Marvel comics adaptations are arguably, apart from the books, the vehicle that had the greatest influence on the longevity and popularity of the character. Marvel Comics introduced a relatively lore-faithful version in 1970, and eventually he was brought into the larger Marvel Universe and has interacted with heroes and villains alike. (There's a great issue of "What If" where he kicks Captain America's a$$) Filming took place in Spain over five months in the regions around Madrid and the province of Almería. The sets, designed by Ron Cobb, (Star Wars, Alien, Back to The Future, Total Recall) were based on Dark Age cultures and Frank Frazetta's paintings of Conan. Milius eschewed optical effects, (What would now be CG) preferring to realize his ideas with mechanical constructs and optical illusions. (Miniatures, forced perspective, matte paintings) The stunts were co-ordinated by Terry Leonard, who had worked on many films, including Milius's previous projects and Raiders of The Lost Ark (1981). Leonard said that Schwarzenegger, Bergman, and Lopez performed most of their own stunts, including the fights. The three actors were were tutored by Kiyoshi Yamazaki, a karate black belt and master swordsman, who also had a cameo as Conan's trainer in the movie (Who kicked the other student in "the bits") This was originally planned as an epic trilogy, culminating with the story of how he becomes king. However there was instead just one sequel that went in a different direction: "Conan: The Destroyer" is a less violent, more action-heavy, comic-relief filled, cheesy, family-friendly 80's movie.

[@dracoargentum9783]

Arnold Schwarzenegger reprises his role of Conan, in the MCU...

[@44excalibur]

"To crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and to hear the lamentation of their women." That's actually a quote attributed to Genghis Khan in real life.

[@chrisleebowers]

Paraphrased slightly, the Genghis Khan quote goes ""to crush your enemies, see them driven before you, *take their horses and their wealth* and hear the lamentation of their women"

[@44excalibur]

@@chrisleebowers Yes, it is paraphrased slightly. And you forgot that Genghis Khan's original quote included, "see them driven before you in chains." lol

[@kallreader7376]

“His was a tale of sorrow” Jen- “well that’s an understatement” Priceless

[@chrisleebowers]

"Wheel of pain" "Tree of Woe"

[@44excalibur]

"Sometimes the pacing in older movies can be a bit slower..." Don't you mean, those movies actually take the time to tell the story instead of vomiting explosions and special effects on the screen every ten minutes, Jen? 😜

[@blanewilliams5960]

Yeah, exactly. I can't watch that crap. Like Fast & Furious 25 or whatever they are up to now, and most of it is CGI fakery. I love this movie.

[@ThisLoveIsSweet]

@@blanewilliams5960 Conan is my favorite movie

[@blanewilliams5960]

@@ThisLoveIsSweet That's cool, one of mine as well.

[@dr.burtgummerfan439]

All the scenes of the running across the open was to symbolize Conan's new freedom, compared to the bondage he experienced through his early years. (Come to think of it, it's similar to Forrest Gump when he first discovers he can run)🤣

[@gazoontight]

Exactly. Youngsters raised on Marvel Comics movies don't have the patience to sit through classic films.

[@philliplozano7587]

Did Arnold do his own stunts? When he complained to director John Milius about continually getting injured, Milius responded, "Pain is temporary, film is forever!"

[@iron-thorne]

He was also always complaining his sword was too heavy.

[@44excalibur]

"This soundtrack is so intense!" Courtesy of composer Basil Poledouris, who also worked on movies like RoboCop, The Hunt For Red October, and Red Dawn.

[@jean-paulaudette9246]

Oh, the score in Hunt fRO was stunning.

[@extracouponsrebates6261]

imo a masterpiece

[@blanewilliams5960]

It's excellent.

[@jeffreymcmahon3627]

And Starshop Troopers. Best original score ever IMO.

[@jeffreymcmahon3627]

Lol, not Starship Troopers, Conan the Barbarian. John Milius even said this was his peak of greatness in the Conan Unchained documentary.

[@aeneasfate]

I've always considered this to have one of the best musical scores of all time. It becomes a character of its own, which makes sense considering it has the responsibility to speak for Conan when he does not. Composed by the mad genius Basil Poledouris, who was responsible for a large number of the most memorable film scores throughout the 80s and 90s. But few seem to live up to the sheer volume of material, variety, and expression given here in Conan. It's something I often listen to on its own, as an album or opera.

[@DamnedSilly]

And as a bonus, it's mostly just copyright free classical cut and pasted to fit.

[@spacedinosaur8733]

@@DamnedSilly Carmina Burana by Carl Orff

[@44excalibur]

Fun Fact: Conan The Barbarian is set in the fictional "Hyborian Age" created by Robert E. Howard. Howard describes Conan's people as "Cimmerians," who are supposed to be the ancestors of the Celtic tribes of Ireland and Scotland. The Cimmerians are the descendants of the Atlanteans, who fled Atlantis after it sunk and traveled east to the Celtic islands.

[@WUStLBear82]

However, Thulsa Doom and many other elements of the movie, including Conan's origin story, were actually borrowed from Howard's earlier series set in the Atlantean age featuring Kull the Conqueror as hero. That meant when the '90s Kull movie starring Kevin Sorbo was made they had to loosely base it on one of Howard's Conan stories because they didn't hold rights to the Kull story elements used in Schwarzenegger's Conan films.

[@chiefsteps-in-poo8447]

One hint Conans people were ancestors of Vikings was in the scene when he's eating with Subati. He said when he dies he'll have to stand before Crom and answer the question "what is the riddle of steel". If he does not know Crom will cast him out of Valhalla forever. Valhalla was like the Viking heaven.

[@44excalibur]

@@chiefsteps-in-poo8447 I'm going by the official canon of Robert E. Howard, the author of the Conan stories, and he says that Conan's people are descended from the Atlanteans, and that the Cimmerians are the ancestors of the ancient Celtic tribes, and possibly the Vikings as well, but Howard's stories make no mention of "Valhalla." I suspect that's an addition made by Oliver Stone or John Milius.

[@chiefsteps-in-poo8447]

@@44excalibur Obviously you are more educated in this than I am. All I know is that I've always heard Vikings in movies and books talk about being a good warrior and going to Valhalla when they die. And I heard Conan say that if he doesn't know the riddle of steel Crom will laugh at him and cast him out of Valhalla. As for all the other stuff, I don't know about it and, not to seem rude or disrespectful, I really don't care to get tangled up in all that. I'm not disrespecting those that do, it's just that I'm not that interested in it.

[@jeepstertj556]

in the movie the tomb where he got the sword was an Atlantian. the music score from that scene is titled the atlantian sword

[@IndyCrewInNYC]

So funny how Conan wears the hides of the same dogs that were stalking him early on.

[@mikeduplessis8069]

The Conan books series is so significant they even did a 1996 Hollywood movie of the author's life starring Vincent D'Ofrio and Renee Zellweger.

[@44excalibur]

In case you don't know who Conan The Barbarian director John Milius is, Jen, he's the co-writer of the first two Dirty Harry movies, and earned an Academy Award nomination for co-writing the screenplay for Apocalypse Now. He also went on to direct the movie Red Dawn.

[@nicholasbielik7156]

Also, the character of Walter in the Big Lebowski is sort of a homage to Milius.

[@rabbitandcrow]

Also director of the great period drama The Wind and The Lion. Good director and such a great writer.

[@erwinsmit440]

That's the problem with this lady. She doesn't do any research, doesn't know a thing, just gives childish & silly reactions. Highly annoying. Better find another hobby, something you do have connection with.

[@zainhartono7193]

When he says “Crom!” It’s his equivalent of “Oh my God!”.

[@zainhartono7193]

So that skeleton where he gets the sword isn’t ‘Crom’. It’s an ancient Atlantean king. Perhaps Kull the Conqueror?

[@44excalibur]

"It's like he found this crypt for this king, almost?" Good guess, Jen. It's an Atlantean King, to be specific. The sword that Conan takes from the skeleton is an Atlantean sword. Originally in the script, the skeleton was supposed to come to life and attack Conan for trying to steal the sword, but that scene ended up not being filmed due to the lack of technology to make it work.

[@ScarlettM]

Did the sword poses any magic abilities?

[@44excalibur]

@@ScarlettM Not that I'm aware of. I didn't read the published stories, so I can't comment on those. I only read the comics.

[@rabbitandcrow]

That scene with the fight against the skeleton is directly from one of the first Conan short stories by Robert E. Howard. Glad they didn't get to do it - that scene is so much more beautiful and poignant with the forgotten king collapsing into nothing.

[@iron-thorne]

I always imagined the skeleton in this movie was King Kull.

[@davidmathieson8661]

​@@iron-thorne well Conan is a direct descendent of King Kull

[@44excalibur]

"I'm guessing she was a witch, or something? Oh, it's Crom?" No, Jen. lol 😆 Conan just says, "Crom!" as an exclamation, like if a person were to say "Oh my God!" 😜

[@krbkrbkrbkrbkrb]

It's his version of "cheese and crackers!"

[@Mr.Ekshin]

Yeah, I know... how did she not get that? I'm beginning to think Jen prays to someone other than Crom. That's weird, but to each their own I guess.

[@Mitheledh]

You mean Crumb?

[@44excalibur]

Fun Fact: The character of Thulsa Doom, played by James Earl Jones, is not actually a villain character from the Conan stories. He's actually a villain and enemy of King Kull of Atlantis, another character created by Robert E. Howard. Conan's enemy in the short stories and the comics is typically the wizard known as Thoth Amon.

[@Malum09]

He’s basically a mashup of Amon and Doom

[@flatebo1]

Thoth Amon is the wizard in Conan the Destroyer. So they did work him in later.

[@44excalibur]

@@flatebo1 Yeah, but Toth Amon in Conan The Destroyer was a pretty weak interpretation. The Marvel Comics version was more intimidating.

[@flatebo1]

@@44excalibur True. On the other hand, it's not like they were trying to make any of the movie villains recurring characters like Thoth was in the stories. And they already had the queen as the ultimate bad guy in Destroyer, so Thoth got the short end of the stick.

[@jeffreymcmahon3627]

"Please don't hurt the dogs." Next scene he's wearing the dogs🤣

[@karlmoles6530]

Rober E Howard wrote TONS of fiction in the 1920s and 30s. Conan is his most famous creation but far from his only one. The films Kull The Conqueror and Solomon Kane are also based on his works. He wrote Sword & Sorcery very well but he wrote in many many genres. My favorite work of his is Pigeons From Hell, an awesome Southern Gothic Horror that was adapted into an episode of the TV series Thriller, which you can find here on KZbin. Howard was a major force in American fiction.

[@44excalibur]

The wizard is played by veteran Japanese-American actor Makoto Iwamatsu, professionally known as Mako. He was one of the actors who was up for the role of Mr. Miyagi in The Karate Kid before Pat Morita was cast.

[@chrisleebowers]

He's Uncle Iroh from Avatar: The Last Airbender

[@44excalibur]

@@chrisleebowers His final role before passing away, sadly.

[@44excalibur]

"I was kinda hoping that Conan would have his own theme song, but nothing yet." He does have his own theme music, Jen. It's "The Anvil of Crom," and it's the music that plays during the opening credits and during the fight scene during the temple festival.

[@blanewilliams5960]

Exactly

[@graymouser6599]

One of the best soundtracks in a movie ever. It does not get mentioned enough with those from movies like Star Wars or Rocky as far as I'm concerned, it is a wonderful soundtrack and PERFECT for this movie.

[@bobsacamano2948]

No doubt that the soundtrack brought this movie to another level

[@williamozier918]

This is not just a movie, this is cinema! Fight me.

[@AwkwardKyle]

Conan the Barbarian started as a series of short stories published in pulp magazines in the 1930s

[@44excalibur]

"It's gonna get very spicy. That's a lot of fur in this scene." I'm... not... even... gonna... touch that one, Jen. LOL 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@chefskiss6179]

"Well now no one can use that fountain." Lol, you rock!

[@ReelReviewsWithJen]

Haha thank you!

[@chefskiss6179]

@@ReelReviewsWithJen No, thank YOU.

[@extracouponsrebates6261]

when Sandahl came back, I think she represented being a Valkyrie

[@dr.burtgummerfan439]

She made a dying promise that she would return from the pit of hell to fight by Conan's side. It would appear that earned her way to Valhalla instead.

[@graymouser6599]

"It's going to get very spicy ... there's lots of fur in this scene ..." Okay, okay, you got me with the double entendre there." Good thing I wasn't drinking my diet coke at the time or it would have shot out of my nose. 🤣

[@csrhymer]

Arnold had to do most of the stunts in this film simply because there were no stunt men who were large enough and beefy enough to look like Arnold ...

[@jeffreymcmahon3627]

Thulsa Doom's henchman with the giant hammer went on the do most of Arnold's stunt double work after this movie actually. He also has small roles in a lot of his movies. Lastly, he was Tigris in Gladiator.

[@schwartzy65]

@@jeffreymcmahon3627 arnolds stunt double was peter kent most of his career starting from terminator 1

[@schwartzy65]

Arnold was also way way bigger in his bodybuilding days than in this because he had hard time to swordfight with that much muscle so he had to downsize a bit.

[@rudyramos2333]

I get a lump in my throat when I saw Valeria come back as a Valkyrie. She kept her promise to come back from death to help him

[@bobmessier5215]

This was one of my all-time favorites. I was a big fan of the 1930's novels. Arnold was perfect in the role.

[@extracouponsrebates6261]

agree, he was perfect as Conan, just like Ryan Reynolds is perfect for Deadpool

[@blanewilliams5960]

Yes, I loved the Howard books and Arnold was great. One of my favorites as well.

[@asdfasdf7199]

one of the fantasy masterpieces of the 1980s. fantastic Basil Poledouris score.

[@hanng1242]

The character Conan is a creation of Robert E. Howard, a writer of adventure stories for pulp magazines in the early 20th Century. Howard's other characters include Kull of Atlantis and the Puritan witch hunter Solomon Kane. For quite a while in the '80's, Marvel published Conan comic books under the title "The Savage Sword of Conan." As for Howard's writings, Del Ray has published three volumes of collected Conan stories, one volume of Kull stories, a volume of Solomon Kane stories, and a volume of his horror stories (Howard published for the same magazines as and corresponded with Howard P. Lovecraft). As for films, there is a terrible sequel titled "Conan the Destroyer," and a reboot with a completely different polt in 2011, also titled "Conan the Barbarian," starring Jason Momoa. There is also the film "Red Sonja" starring Brigitte Nielsen based upon a character invented by Marvel which was based upon Valeria. "Red Sonja" has Arnold in it as totally-not-Conan (for copyright reasons). As for John Milius, he was a film writer and director who went to school with and was friends with Francis Ford Coppola and George Lucas; however, unlike them, Milius was openly right-wing, which did him no favors in Hollywood. Milius also co-wrote the script of "Apocalypse Now" and directed "Red Dawn" (the original one, not the remake). The character of Walter in "The Big Lebowski" is based upon Milius, and the brandishing of the handgun in that film was based upon a story where, during the filming of "Apocalypse Now," Martin Sheen wasn't portraying the frightened emotion that the director wanted, so Milius pulled out his gun and set it on the table in front of Sheen, which freaked him out, thereby showing the emotion needed for the scene.

[@flatebo1]

Red Sonja was a mashup of several Howard characters, including Sed Sonya of Rogatino (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Shadow_of_the_Vulture). So the character is not purely a Marvel invention. On the other hand, the Valeria of Conan the Barbarian is a mashup of Valeria and Belit from Howard's stories, so there's a lot of that going around.

[@extracouponsrebates6261]

I'd say Conan the Destroyer is more cheesy than Barbarian, so maybe Jen would still enjoy it. I think it's still entertaining. I remember watching it multiple times on HBO or another cable movie channel in 1984 or 1985. My mother and I were visiting her sister in Chicago at the time, she had cable. I was about 9 or 10 years old.

[@jamielandis4308]

I was in high school when this came out. I read the novelization for it and also read a lot of fan mags at the time. The one thing I remember is that Conan’s sword was custom made for the movie and cost $15,000. That was an insane amount of money for a movie prop in the early 80’s. The Terminator was Arnold’s big breakout flick but Conan was his first big budget movie.

[@ThisLoveIsSweet]

I think Arnold owns that sword to this day.

[@dr.burtgummerfan439]

John Milius is a stickler for weapons. He hired a custom swordsmith to design the swords in order to make them practical weapons. Both the Sword of the Father and the Atlantean sword are more ornate than practical historical swords, but their design doesn't take away from their usefulness. And while both swords are much heavier than historical swords, they were intended for characters that were larger and stronger than normal people.

[@misterprickly]

I was wondering if you were going to see this! -Valeria was played by Sandahl Bergman. She was the sexy scientist in Hell comes to frog town. -it was shot mostly in Spain. -the Producer wanted the *drunk Conan* scene removed but the director insisted that it be left in, as Conan learns about the dangers of excess. -This was based on the Conan books and Conan Comics. -The soup is called "split pea and HAND". -Thulsa Doom it the last of an ancient race of Snake-men. The children of Seth. -Conan asking Crom for a blessing is something that is not to be done. You don't *ask* Crom, you *thank* him. -The swordmaster in the training scene is the ACTUAL instructor for all the actors. -The temple siege scene took several days to shoot. The actors had to sleep in their body paint to retain the continuity. -Thulsa Doom tries to hypnotize Conan, the way he did all his followers but Conan's resolve was too strong. -There is a direct sequel (Conan the Destroyer) and an indirect sequel (Red Sonja). A third movie has been in production hell for several decades. -There was a reboot starring Jason Mamoa but it's not very good.

[@Thundarr100]

Very well done. I would like to add that there was also another quasi-sequel called “Kull The Conqueror” starring Kevin Sorbo. It was originally supposed to be a direct sequel to Conan The Destroyer and tell the story of Conan becoming king. However due to an inability to come to terms with Arnold regarding his fee, it had to be rewritten as a Kull movie (likely because they feared no one would accept Kevin Sorbo as Conan should they recast the role). Also, the movie was a mishmash of elements from several Conan stories , as well as stories of King Kull. For example, the scene of Conan hiding in the Atlantean king’s tomb to escape the wolves and finding a sword there was taken directly from a Conan short story, while the character of Thulsa Doom was taken from the King Kull stories. Also, Conan being forced into slavery and becoming a gladiator was Kull’s backstory, not Conan’s. And the movie character of Valeria was a combination of the book characters Valeria and Belite. In the books it was Belite who was killed and returned from the dead to help Conan as he fought for his life. But physically the movie character looks like the book character Valeria. Other than that I think you pretty much covered everything.

[@misterprickly]

@@Thundarr100 IMO Tia Carrere was the only reason to watch that movie. She just goes to town on every scene.

[@ThisLoveIsSweet]

I think it's the cult of Set, not Seth.

[@misterprickly]

@@ThisLoveIsSweet Spelt seth but pronounced set.

[@dr.burtgummerfan439]

Sandahl Bergman also played one of the crew members in Airplane 2. She appeared in several Broadway musicals as a dancer. There's a myth that snakes can hypnotize their prey by staring at the animal and rendering it motionless. I always thought that was the origin of Doom's stare-power. During Thulsa Doom's final speech to his followers, he missed a golden opportunity to use the phrase "Doom's day is coming". The king's daughter was brainwashed/programmed by the snake cult, that's why she fought her rescuers and had to be chained up. Her belief and loyalty were shattered when Doom betrayed her and tried to kill her. Valeria's ghost (or Valkyrie form) was her fulfillment of her dying promise to Conan that she would return to fight by his side.

[@albertmassingo4249]

They say life is short and yet modern Life everyone wants everything just fly by and be fast we used to like sitting back and spending a time watching a movie being together and nothing being rushed

[@3rdaxis649]

A man's man of a movie. One of the greatest of all time.

[@vwlssnvwls3262]

I saw this with my mother, when it released, and I was 13. We saw it at a drive in, and loved it so much we stayed thru the second feature to watch it again. This is easily one of my top 5 favorite movies. I love the soundtrack too. I often listen to it over and over in my car for months at a time. My two favorite scenes are when they meet King Osric, and when Thulsa Doom explains the riddle of steel to Conan.

[@jamieserrano827]

This is based on a sword and sorcery pulp comic book/Novella series by Robert E Howard he also did Kul the conqueror and Solomon Kane which are all movies now but they all appeared in pulp magazine stories from the 20s 30s and 40s

[@RichardEKranz]

Everyone should have a personal Jen to watch films with.

[@robertcarlson1404]

Now you can do Red Sonja...oh and the Beast Master! Red Sonja is more closely associated with Conan but the Beast Master has a similar feel to me. Both classics of my childhood.

[@extracouponsrebates6261]

include Conan the Destroyer also, more cheese than Barbarian :) but entertaining

[@rodentnolastname6612]

Seconded. These three films were probably the best Swords and Barbarian films of the era.

[@williamjones6031]

1. Conan's mom was a hottie!😍😜 2. That woman was a harpy. 3. Filmed primarily in Spain. 4. James Earl Jones is the MAN 5. One of the best endings ever. 6. "Conan the Destroyer" doesn't suck.

[@jean-paulaudette9246]

Robert Howard was a contemporary and correspondant to H. P. Lovecraft. There are a few plot elements that show up in both of their bodies of work.

[@iron-thorne]

They were also best friends.

[@youellswinney1964]

To quote the director from his commentary track, that green stuff with the hands in it is supposed to be called split pea and hand.

[@jeffreymcmahon3627]

Best audio commentary ever. I wouldn't be surprised if the warning labels for other commentary came from that one🤣

[@jimmyj5035]

This movie has one of the Greatest Soundtracks of All-Time. The music really helps to tell the story

[@perkeyser2032]

"Pup's got armour!" I'm laughing myself out of bed, and that's saying gsomething, cause I'm a cripple. :) Thank you so much for your..... insightful commentary. It makes my day. Over and over and over. :) Thank you!

[@44excalibur]

Fun Fact: The two main villains working for Thulsa Doom, Rexor and Thorgrim, were played by former football player and Oakland Raiders defensive end Ben Davidson, and Danish stuntman and bodybuilder Sven-Ole Thorsen, who worked with Arnold Schwarzenegger on several films, including The Running Man, Red Heat, and Predator, and also appeared as Tigris of Gaul in Gladiator.

[@pappajudas9267]

He was also Tank from Captain Power

[@pappajudas9267]

He was also Tank from Captain Power

[@44excalibur]

Conan's girlfriend, Valeria, is played by actress and professional dancer Sandahl Bergman, Jen. You saw her with Roddy Piper in Hell Comes To Frogtown. 😆

[@RoninUK-e3u]

and performs the Air Erotica dance number in "All that Jazz"

[@lordoflek]

can't believe how little you think of Valeria's role and importance in this film... definitely not the view I had of her when I was 12 and saw this for the first time. The character in the movie is a combination of two of Conan's love interests in the Howard short stories. Belit, from Queen of the Black Coast, who died and came back to fight by Conan's side and Valeria, from the story Red Nails, who was a tough and beautiful traveling companion. Although quite different in some aspects from the literary Conan this movie captured the essence and feel of Conan and the Hyborian Age.

[@danielwilliamson6180]

Conan the Barbarian is a great movie. One of Schwarzenegger's best.

[@JonPaulMaki]

It's hard to tell with Arnold's flat delivery, but most of the time when he says "Crom!" it's meant to be like saying, "Oh my god!" or "Cheese and crackers."

[@jean-paulaudette9246]

Cracker Crom!

[@DamnedSilly]

It's one of the few things I liked about the film. Crom was an uncaring god. You didn't pray to him for help or call out to him in anguish. According to Crom, you were on your own and if it didn't work out, too bad.

[@edwardthorne9875]

This might be considered one of the very first Marvel Comics movies. ( Though the production studio MARVEL was not a thing yet.) It was the popularity of the comic that made this movie possible. Barry Smith, the English artist on the strip was quite young, and very talented. He also suffered from some wierd non-drug induced hallucinations. Smith later went on to have a career in fine arts and changed his name to Barry Windsor Smith. Interesting artist.

[@alankohn6709]

Conan's god Crom is a very simple god to deal with "I created you now get on with it and don't bother me". Howard created one of the most fully realised world settings he had history, geography, and the peoples. It was also had some quite progressive stories for it's time with coloured character taking quite prominent roles and it even portrayed interracial relationships. The stories were sadly underappreciated at the time as they appeared in pulp magazines which were seen as the lowest form of writing cheap formulaic quickly written stories with little merit, Edgar Rice Burroughs the writer of the Tarzan stories could rip out a 10000 word story in days you have to remember these writer were paid by the word and that story might earn $400 dollars so if you wanted to make a living you had to have a rapid turn over of work. I wasn't till much later that these writers and stories were apricated.

[@merkerb]

“The people’s elbow!!” That takes me back!!!!

[@chadlynch1551]

They did one sequel with Arnie. It was OK. Another Conan movie was made just a few years ago. That one was a sort of re-boot. No Arnie. The original stories are from the early part of the 20th century. In my opinion, while the movies were all enjoyable, they never quite captured the character as he was written. In the stories, he was never a child slave. His history basically starts when he is a teenager and participates in an attack his people conduct on a border fort manned by a more "civilized" kingdom, a battle where he distinguished himself as a great warrior. He goes on to be a bandit, warlord, mercenary captain, pirate, etc., fighting human opponents, wizards, demons, monsters until eventually he fights his way to the throne of the known world's biggest, wealthiest kingdom. Basically, his entire life he is the ultimate, stoic bad ass.

[@DeadbeatCreep]

“Crumb” was my favorite part. I think the sequel Conan the Destroyer is more in line of what you thought this would be, campy over the top fun. It’s not on the level of the first, but it’s a crazy fun watch, a lot of laughs.

[@dr.burtgummerfan439]

Conan spawned a whole genre of low-budget (and some not so low) cheesy sword-and -sorcery imitators who cashed in on its success.

[@iron-thorne]

​@@dr.burtgummerfan439 I think its a perfect time for that genre to make a comeback, but hollywood refuses to do new things these days.

[@dr.burtgummerfan439]

@@iron-thorne I can't imagine Hollywood trying to make a "woque", PC version of a barbarian movie. Independent film is the future of cinema.

[@perkeyser2032]

"This feels cheezy". Best prediction in the history of man! :)

[@kevinfhaney]

Yeah Conan the Barbarian and Star Wars best music ever

[@spiritscar]

Conan the Barbarian was created by the author Robert E Howard. The character first appeared in short stories in the pulp magazine, “Weird Tales” starting in 1932. Robert E Howard was one of the great pulp writers and a friend to HP Lovecraft. There were reprints of his short Conan stories collected as books starting in the 50s. And from that one of the greatest of 20th century artists would forever be tied to the character. Frank Frazetta. Legendary fantasy artist who influenced generations of artists after fim. Frazetta’s paintings of Conan are iconic and totally distinct. Do an image search of “Conan Frazetta” and see for yourself. A lot of the visual style and nods in this film are definitely influenced by the artwork of Frank Frazetta. Then in the 70s, Marvel Comics began publishing Conan comic books. And the lore expanded wider and kept the character alive in the geek cultural consciousness. The producers of this film were so impressed with Arnold, seeing him in the bodybuilding documentary “Pumping Iron” they wanted to do something with him. Conan came to them as the perfect character and role for Arnie’s unique talents. There’s a phenomenal independent film made about the Conan author, Robert E Howard starring Vincent D’Onofrio as Howard. Highly recommend that film. Don’t bother looking up anything about Howard, just watch this film.

[@CaptainNice]

Lancer paperbacks, starting in 1966, with new Frank Frazetta covers were wildly popular. Arnold looks a lot like the Marvel Comics character.

[@perkeyser2032]

"Right in the fire. See you later!" Fuckin hilarious! :) I'm lauging my bedsheets off! :) Thank you.

[@kevindorn2508]

32:58 and conan would have given his life for her. But it wasnt his choice. It think Valeria and Sandahl Bergams performance is underrated. Shes a super badass fighter, thief and fights of demons and even sacrifices herself for the love of her life. Bergman was a broadway dancer/actress and did her own stunts!

[@johnnyjohnjohn79]

the scream when the guy get's killed from the spike trap, is the scream from golden axe when you kill an enemy

[@quentinmichel7581]

"Don't kill the dogs..." Doesn't notice in the next scene he's wearing dog pelts....lol

[@HistoritorJimaldus]

‘The old toss-em-into-the-fire’ 😂

[@OneEyedJack1970]

Another early Arnie film is The Villain (1979), with Kirk Douglas. It's a Western comedy movie. Definitely your type of movie, Jen.

[@dr.burtgummerfan439]

Yeah, she'd get a kick out of that one!

[@44excalibur]

Oliver Stone was still a screenwriter and an aspiring director when he took the job of co-writing the screenplay for Conan The Barbarian. He had originally planned for twelve movies, but obviously that didn't happen. He wrote Conan The Barbarian with John Milius shortly after his Academy Award winning screenplay for Midnight Express, and around the same time that he wrote the script for Scarface with Brian De Palma. He later became a director in the 1980s.

[@extracouponsrebates6261]

would have loved to see 12 Conan movies!

[@rneelymedia9152]

One the finest scores of all time- from the late, great Basil Poledouris.

[@robertlancaster4538]

"Book or Short story". Howard wrote stories of various lengths for the pulps of his time. He also wrote a Conan Novel 'Hour of the Dragon' aka 'Conan the Conqueror', and the sci-fi fantasy he-man adventure 'Almuric'.

[@bobmessier5215]

All the main actors trained for a year with a Japanese sword specialist for the sword-fighting scenes.

[@vwlssnvwls3262]

Arnold did a lot of his own stunts, and there is a behind the scenes feature where he talks about all the times he was injured, or almost injured. The funniest part is there is a blooper at the end of the feature where the boom mic comes down and hits him in the head and he says something like "even in the making of commentary I get hurt!" :D

[@robertkramer2271]

This was Arnold's first major studio starring role. The reason why he doesn't have much dialouge is because they were worried people wouldn't understand him with his heavy accent. Yes, there's one sequel starring Arnold called "Conan the Destroyer". It came out two years later. This is the movie that made Arnold a movie star. The success of this movie led to the "sword & sorcery" movie craze of the early/mid 80's. Conan is the creation of Robert E. Howard, who wrote several novels and short stories based on the character. There was also a very successful Marvel comic based on the character during the 1970's.

[@johnw8578]

Conan The Destroyer (Conan 2) has more female characters including an awesome performance by Grace Jones. I read somewhere that she was so wild with the fighting scenes that everyone became afraid of her.

[@DamnedSilly]

Being afraid of the jerk who won't be careful isn't the same as being dangerous.

[@jeffreymcmahon3627]

She injured a lot of stuntman actually. Not just scrapes and bruises, but stitches and broken bones.

[@lordflashheart3680]

Valeria came back as a Valkyrie to save Conan. Small point but worth noting.

[@LeviAckerman-cb5ji]

9:40 "Did we just become best friends!?" "Yup!!"

[@tremorsfan]

For a long time these sorts of movies where the only type that Hollywood would cast Arnold in. One of the reasons he took the role of the Terminator is that it wasn't a fantasy movie.

[@doughyguy2663]

If you want a 'cheesy' Conan movie check out the sequel, Conan The Destroyer. Much less serious and epic, but better paced and with some attempts at humor.

[@StCerberusEngel]

As much hate as it gets, I always liked the sequel. It has its problems, but it's a fun time.

[@secularnevrosis]

I love the first movie. The pacing, the cinematography, low fantasy and subtle humor. Conans companions really makes the movie shine. All of them! One of the things I don't like with the Destroyer, is that Subotai is gone.

[@robertlancaster4538]

Jen has reviewed 'Conan the Barbarian' 1982? CROMMMMM!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@arkayoarkayo4739]

"Now it's Conan the orphan". 😂

[@44excalibur]

Filming of Conan The Barbarian was done in England's Shepperton Studios and on location in Spain, Jen.

[@jean-paulaudette9246]

Those grunts are trademark Arnold. Seriously, you owe him royalties for using them in your show.

[@blanewilliams5960]

Yes, she did them very well.

[@patrickflanagan3762]

Oliver Stone got a story credit because he wrote a draft or two before John Milius came on board. Stone's script varied wildly from the source material; his story was set in the far future after a nuclear war and his Conan was the reincarnation of the Conan from the original short stories, I think, and he fought armies of mutants. I don't think much of his script made it into this film. Conan was created by Robert E. Howard, a young writer from Texas who thrived selling short stories of various adventure genres to pulp magazines and slick magazines (a higher-scale market than the pulps) in the early 20th century. He wrote Westerns, boxing stories, sports stories, war stories, and historical adventures of all kinds, as well as the genre he basically created which became known as "sword and sorcery," fantasy adventures with wandering warriors, evil sorcerers, magic, monsters and high adventure. Conan is the most well-known hero of the sword and sorcery genre. This movie actually strays from the standard S&S stories which Howard wrote in that it was very contemplative, slow-paced and lacking in action, and it's almost more of a character study than a true Conan adventure. There was a sequel in 1984, CONAN THE DESTROYER, which is much closer to Conan's written adventures in terms of story. Probably much more like the "cheesy adventure story" you were expecting from this film.

[@blanewilliams5960]

Thank Crom that Stone didn't get to make his movie.

[@patrickflanagan3762]

@@blanewilliams5960 It might have been a great movie but almost certainly a failure as an adaptation.

[@nicholasbsoumai]

This may have been mentioned, but the sets were all actually built, the making of goes into detail. For example the mountain of power (large staircase set at the end) was actually built on site in Almeria, Spain

[@extracouponsrebates6261]

lol when you said "the snake himself", you didn't know how right you were

[@Spikeelsucko]

Conan says "Crom!" as an exclamation, that's why he says it in the tomb and the witch's hut

[@manuelvillacana9284]

Majority of this film was filmed in Spain

[@pappajudas9267]

This was one of the first Arnold Schwarzenegger movies Hercules in New York, Stay Hungry and Pumping Iron being previous films. There weren't a lot of stuntmen built like Arnold Schwarzenegger, so this was one of his most physical roles where he did Many of his own stunts.

[@extracouponsrebates6261]

he got injured in the scene where he found the King's crypt

[@extracouponsrebates6261]

@@Rivercoon wasn't it The Villain with Kirk Douglas?

[@WUStLBear82]

Possibly because it is not available for streaming (there is a DVD), most people have forgotten 1979's 'The Villain', directed by stuntman-turned-director Hal Needham ('Smokey and the Bandit, 'The Cannonball Run') with Schwarzenegger and a slumming Kirk Douglas. It is best described as a wild live-action comedic sendup of Dudley Do-Right vs. Wile E. Coyote. Douglas plays the villainous Cactus Jack, and Schwarzenegger the hero, Handsome Stranger ("I vuz named afder my fahder" he says repeatedly). The cast contains a Who's Who of classic Western character actors, plus Ann-Margaret, Ruth Buzzi, and Paul Lynde (as a Native American, no less...different times).

[@pappajudas9267]

I had forgotten The Villain. It's one of those movies I read about once and never heard of again.

[@BigGator5]

"Conan! What is best in life?" "To crush your enemies. See them driven before you. And to hear the lamentations of their women." He's not wrong. 😎 Fun Fact: Real arrows were shot into the snake, right over Arnold Schwarzenegger's head. John Milius shot them himself after it was determined he was the best archer in the crew. Bonus Fact: Although the "Hyborian Age" of Conan was approximately 10,000 BC, creator Robert E. Howard used Medieval themes and influences in the Conan stories to avoid any complicated historical research.

[@ronweber1402]

And you can gloss it all over as a "lost age" after some great tragedy like the flood in the Epic of Gilgamesh wiped it all out.

[@TheWizardsTales]

That was, by far, my favorite "Bonked 'im!"

[@44excalibur]

"Gushing of blood everywhere!" Again, early 1980s, Jen. 😆😜

[@rabbitandcrow]

Valeria was played by Sandahl Bergman, a great Swedish-born dancer. She was in Bob Fosse's All That Jazz.

[@mvjonsson]

I highly recommend Excalibur (1981), a really well-made Sword and Sorcery film about King Arthur film by John Boorman.

[@hippychikforever]

The best King Arthur film!

[@44excalibur]

"Crumb? Like a bread crumb?" No, Crom, Jen. lol 😆 Crom is the king of the gods worshipped by the Cimmerians, the equivalent of Odin in Norse mythology.

[@ReelReviewsWithJen]

Haha ah okay, I’ve never heard of him before this movie

[@44excalibur]

@@ReelReviewsWithJen That's okay, Jen. lol Like I said, pretty much everything in this movie is the creation of Robert E. Howard and is all part of his mythology. It would be difficult to follow if you hadn't read the stories or the comic books.

[@noirgatherer]

Conan was a series of novellas and short stories in pulp magazines in the 20’s. He is originally a literary character like Sherlock Holmes and James Bond.

[@warpig4942]

Growing up I knew that if I saw the name DeLaurentiis attached to a film, it was something I wanted to see.

[@jimmyj5035]

The scene at the end is the reality that Thulsa Doom is telling the truth. Thulsa Doom is Conan the Barbarian's father because he altered his life and created his destiny to become the man he is. The indomitable warrior with the unbreakable will... Thulsa Doom was actually ready to take him in as his son and heir to his throne... Conan realizes that it's all true but then remembers that not only did he kill his parents but he is the last of the Cimmerians. That Thulsa Doom is pure Evil that must be Destroyed

[@bobriemersma]

Blade Runner was what I had in mind on my first visit to Los Angeles, this movie was like my first visit to Toronto.

[@robertlancaster4538]

If interested in a Robert E. Howard biopic, I very highly recommend Dan Ireland's excellent 1996 'The Whole Wide World', starring Vincent D'Onofrio as Robert E. Howard and a Renée Zellweger as friend/sometime-dating-interest Novalyne Price.

[@somthingbrutal]

the greatest sword and sorcery movie of last century

[@dwayneleigh9]

Stan Lee brought the character Conan to Marvel Comics in 1964, this was one of my favorite films in the 80's! Very well done without CGI & the soundtrack was Completely Epic, even today!

[@SimoExMachina2]

"Crom!" is Conan speak for "Oh, my God!". He uses it in that context.