Red Sonja: Rebooting the Hyborian Age

Casting 6’ 1” Brigitte Nielsen as the “She-Devil” made a lot of sense, but the notorious 1985 fantasy bomb committed many grievous cinematic sins. Without question, the worst was the absence of her iconic chainmail bikini. To its credit, this film does not make that error. The wardrobe is legit, but there is also a little bit of the warrior spirit in M.J. Bassett’s Red Sonja, which releases this Friday on VOD.

Essentially, Roy Thomas “created” Red Sonja to be Conan the Barbarian’s female colleague in hacking and slashing. Technically, he took the name from another Robert E. Howard story, but that Red Sonja was a non-Hyborian warrior, of Ukrainian descent, seeking vengeance against the Ottoman Empire. (Obviously, Putin never read “The Shadow of the Vulture,” either.)

Like Thomas’s Sonja, Bassett’s Sonja became a wanderer after her family was brutally murdered, but she is more of nature-loving seeker, on a quest to reunite with last remaining Hyrkanian people, instead of the cynical hedonistic anti-heroine fans know and love.

Thanks to her upbringing, this Sonja immediately defends the forest creatures from Emperor Draygan’s pillagers, which gets her condemned to the arena as a gladiator. So far, very Conan-esque, right? Wisely, the arena armorer only gives her wooden swords and for protection, only supplies the intentionally impractical chainmail. Of course, Sonja refuses to play ball. Instead of earning her freedom by slaying her fellow Damnati, she foments revolution against the empire instead.

There is a lot of conspicuous CGI in this Red Sonja, but that is part of its eccentric charm. Frankly, it is forgivable, because it helps depict the kind of grandly over-the-top fantasy world that fans appreciate. It also distinguishes Bassett’s film from the maligned 1985 movie. There is no shortage of slicing and dicing, as fans would hope. Plus, there is some impressive animal handling, like that of Sonja’s loyal mount, who is pretty smart for a horse.

Bassett previously helmed the better-than-you-might-expect Howard-adaptation Solomon Kane, so he clearly shows an affinity for the pulp writer. The action and fantastical elements work quite well. However, Tasha Huo’s screenplay lacks the sexy attitude that made Red Sonja a geek-favorite in the first place. While Gail Simone’s recent comics and novel embrace Sonja as a Hyborian Age feminist, her recently asserted bisexuality further enhances the franchise’s sexual overtones, but that is all entirely absent from the film.

Still, they have the chainmail bikini (whereas the cover of Simone’s recent novel inexplicably depicts a piece of snake jewelry). Matilda Lutz’s portrayal of Sonja would ordinarily be more than sufficiently compelling for a popcorn fantasy, but she lacks the fierceness fans would expect from the She-Devil. Oddly, she is too vulnerable and too human.

On the positive side, the ensemble cast features many colorful supporting players, like Trevor Eve (from A Discovery of Witches and The Heat of the Sun) as Draygan’s science/alchemy advisor, Maester Crudelis, Michael Bisping as the hulking gladiator Hawk, and Wallis Day, as the Emperor’s creepy, paranoid schizophrenic assassin Annisia. For an evil overlord, Robert Sheehan’s Draygan is weirdly neurotic, but that sort of works in the film.

Indeed, Bassett’s Red Sonja is much more eccentric than its 1985 predecessor. That is a major reason why it is also much more fun. Even if Bassett and company do not fully capture the essence of Sonja, the film clearly reflects great affection for the Hyborian age. Recommended for pulpy fantasy fans, Red Sonja releases this Friday (8/29) on VOD.