Dark Kingdom - The Dragon King |  | Director: Uli Edel
Actors: Benno Fürmann, Kristanna Loken, Alicia Witt, Julian Sands, Samuel West
Studio: Sony Pictures
Category: DVD
List Price: $14.94
Buy Used: $2.43
as of 2/9/2010 15:38 EST details
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Rating:  54 reviews
Sales Rank: 11005
Format: AC-3, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, DVD, Special Edition, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Subtitled), French (Subtitled), French (Dubbed)
Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Region: 99
Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
Number Of Discs: 1
Running Time: 184 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.3
Dimensions (in): 7.5 x 5.3 x 0.6
MPN: COLD10029D
ISBN: 1404973273
UPC: 043396100299
EAN: 9781404973275
ASIN: B0007OCG5Q
Theatrical Release Date: March 27, 2006
Release Date: March 28, 2006
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
IN THE TRADITION OF THE LORD OF THE RINGS COMES A BRAND NEW EPICFANTASY.A FANTASY-ADVENTURE STORY BASED ON NORDIC MYTHS OF THERING OF THE NIBELUNGS ABOUT THE SON OF A SIMPLE SWORDSMITH WHOREPEATEDLY SAVES HIS COUNTRY, NOT KNOWING THAT HE IS HEIR TO ATHRONE.
Amazon.com
Dark Kingdom: The Dragon King is a visually impressive historical adventure based on the same Germanic and Norse legends that inspired Richard Wagner's Ring Cycle operas and J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings. Produced for German television (and shot in South Africa), the film stars Benno Furmann as Siegfried, a prince whose family is slaughtered by a pair of evil kings; raised by a blacksmith (Max Von Sydow, still commanding as ever), he meets and falls for Valkyrie queen Brunhild (Kristanna Loken from Terminator 3) and slays the dragon Fafnir for King Gunther (Samuel West), which in turn, involves him in treachery, war, and separation from his beloved Brunhild. Well directed by Uli Edel (Last Exit to Brooklyn>, The Mists of Avalon), Dark Kingdom occasionally suffers from exceedingly purple dialogue, but the performances, action, and special effects combine to make for a rousing fantasy-drama. Originally broadcast at three hours in length, the DVD presentation here is the U.S. cut, which comes in at just over two hours; a battery of five making-of featurettes are included in the disc's supplemental features. --Paul Gaita
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 54
 Look Beyond the Horrible Title. December 26, 2009
Thaddeus Papke
I picked up this movie on a whim from the local library expecting a cheesy fantasy crap-fest. I was floored to discover that it was an adaptation of the German legend of the Nibelungenlied (really more of a mash-up between the Nibelungenlied and the related Volsunga Saga of Iceland). It's not fantastic and not super accurate, but better than I would expect from Hollywood. I understand that the hour longer (and better named) European version is better.
 Buy the UK Version 2 Double DVD December 7, 2009
David Showalter (San Dimas, CA United States)
Skip the lame "sliced and diced" US version and get the full 2 hour & 57 minute UK version from Amazon in the UK. It's awesome! It comes with 2 DVDs, and though it's Region 2 in PAL format, I had no problem running it on my Mac using the free VLC media player; no need to mess with DVD region settings. (Also only cost me $8 including shipping). :)
Besides what others have written, unrequited romance dominates the storyline and rivets your eyes to the screen, needing to know what comes next! To whit, Xanten has one of the strongest female leads in Kristanna Loken of any fantasy movie ever. She oozes chemistry and power, and her look just screams "untamed." Alicia Witt provided a believable and passionate supporting actress as well. And yes, for you guys out there they are both gorgeous. :D
The budget is not huge but big enough so it doesn't get in the way, and there is some excellent directing nonetheless. Some of the scenes are actually quite beautiful and memorable, especially at the beginning and end. The music is decent, and the story quite engaging and involving. Characters progress and develop naturally, as one scene leads to the next and the story grows. And the slower scenes are just as fascinating and fun to watch as the battle scenes, which is hard to achieve!
Without spoiling anything, if you're looking for light and happy family fantasy, keep in mind the entire movie centers centers around the cost of scheming to get what you want, so... I'll leave it at that. I imagine for those familiar with the original legend you know that, but I'm not. I once saw the first cycle in opera form at the National Theater in Prague, but as it was all singing in German I didn't exactly follow the story too well! ;D
 Dark Kingdom:The Dragon King November 15, 2009
Donald West (Fayetteville, N.C. USA)
Amazon misrepresented this item in its advertisement. On their web page they presented this item as being 184 minutes long. This would have been the original mini series which i wanted. When I received the item, it is only 132 minutes long. I already had this dvd. I wanted the 184 minutes version. There is no place on their web page to complain about it.
An excellent B movie production... October 20, 2009
D. Knox (New Mexico, USA)
First of all - let's face it, most fantasy-type movies fall into the "B" movie category. So, if we start there, it is easy to give this film four stars and call it an excellent production. And it really is. This is a VERY fun movie, for all of what I would call an ending that does not leave you smiling. As moviegoers we tend to love movies with the more complicated but happy endings. This is not the case here! Overall, though, I loved the movie, loved the story, and though I dislike the ending, it truly rates four stars from me for the timeless tale of how everyone's good intentions can go horribly wrong when mixed with personal longing.
 Junk October 14, 2009
Hans Heuer
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I watched the original version of this movie in Germany, It is based on the Ancient German legen of Siegfried.. This is inaccurate to actual story is sooo americanized... Dont buy it and read the original story Nibelungen or the legend of Siegfried..
Showing reviews 1-5 of 54
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