217 replies to this topic

[Kane]

I think that if Destroyer had been treated like the first film, done as a serious film and "R" rated, it might have been the best of the three films.
The story is good, the characters are interesting, and the action is there to be had.
But doing it as an action comedy ruins everything.
It might not have been a "Conan" film, but it would have been a great Sword and Sorcery film.
As it stands, Sarah Douglas is the only reason to watch it.

[Rockamobile]

Things I would Change in the Film . I wouldn't made Dagon into the Mindless brute that he was in the Movie. He should have actually looked like the Beautiful statue . He should have been charismatic, still be stone cold evil .

[KG Thunder]

Things I would Change in the Film . I wouldn't made Dagon into the Mindless brute that he was in the Movie. He should have actually looked like the Beautiful statue . He should have been charismatic, still be stone cold evil .

I haven't seen it in a while, but didn't he turn monstrous only because the ritual was disturbed?

[billofill]

You know what the most ironic part of this all is? If they just filmed the movie like how it was written by Roy Thomas it would of been not only a good Conan movie, but more true to the Howard Stories as well. I recently just read the Horn of Azoth which was worth tracking down.

[Kortoso]

Things I would Change in the Film . I wouldn't made Dagon into the Mindless brute that he was in the Movie. He should have actually looked like the Beautiful statue . He should have been charismatic, still be stone cold evil .

I haven't seen it in a while, but didn't he turn monstrous only because the ritual was disturbed?

Sadly, we'll never know.

[BarbaricBludgeoning]

Am i the only one that genuinely likes CTD?

[Tex]

Am i the only one that genuinely likes CTD?

Yes.

Tex
(who couldn't let a straight line like that go by)

[Ironhand]

Am i the only one that genuinely likes CTD?

Actually I have seen one or two others on this forum who liked CTD.

[Tex]

Am i the only one that genuinely likes CTD?

Actually I have seen one or two others on this forum who liked CTD.

But they buy their salsa in New Your City.

Tex
(and have remote security systems for their horses)

[Ironhand]

My horse screams any time Frau Blucher gets anywhere near him.

[Lunatic]

I think that if Destroyer had been treated like the first film, done as a serious film and "R" rated, it might have been the best of the three films.
The story is good, the characters are interesting, and the action is there to be had.
But doing it as an action comedy ruins everything.
It might not have been a "Conan" film, but it would have been a great Sword and Sorcery film.
As it stands, Sarah Douglas is the only reason to watch it.

I agree, the action comedy part destroys it.

By the third movie I guess you mean Red Sonja? Gotta tell you I enjoyed the costumes alot and some of the enviroments. But these movies are getting old now as some of us. Probably enjoyed it when I was a kid.

Taking away the stupid klichée jokes and the cheese would have improved it. But as for Red Sonja I wondered if Queen Gedren is supposed to be Hyperborean? They have some weird cyclopean masonry and silverlamps made to look like rangling skeletons, and she is a witchqueen.

[thestone]

I like Destroyer. And I think that movie would be a lot more popular if the first movie had never existed.

The problem was that Arnold’s portrayal of Conan in the Barbarian and Destroyer were completely different. Anyone who had already come to enjoy Arnold’s portrayal in the first film, probably would not enjoy the way the character changed in the sequel.

But if people saw CTD and just accepted it as a different genre (a Conan story played more for laughs), then more people would have enjoyed it for just being a fun movie.

[lespaul59]

I like Destroyer. And I think that movie would be a lot more popular if the first movie had never existed.

The problem was that Arnold’s portrayal of Conan in the Barbarian and Destroyer were completely different. Anyone who had already come to enjoy Arnold’s portrayal in the first film, probably would not enjoy the way the character changed in the sequel.

But if people saw CTD and just accepted it as a different genre (a Conan story played more for laughs), then more people would have enjoyed it for just being a fun movie.

I wonder if this is because of the director or Dino DeLaurentiis? Another thing I still wonder about is why they modified the Atlantean sword?

And not only am I a fan of CTD but it's my favorite of the three Conan movies. While I cosider CTB82 to be the best of the three CTD is my go to Conan movie. And really it has to do with the fact that CTD is probaly the first movie I ever remember watching.

[Swiftsteel]

Dino De Laurentiis was 90% responsible for the way CTD turned out. Apparently DDL never understood the character or even the first film for that matter and could never understand why the franchise wasn't being aimed more at little kids. Go figure. Whatever its faults, at least CTB attempted to take the character seriously. Milius went to great lengths to invest that film with a certain weight, depth, and gravitas. The reason the character's origins were so mangled was due to all of the legal wrangling going on at the time over the Howard estate which - to put it in Cole's Notes for everyone - essentially resulted in the screenwriters being allowed to use the character of Conan, but without being able to directly adapt anything from the original Conan tales ( Paul Sammon goes into this in greater depth in his excellent 'Conan the Phenomenon'). Given this handicap, IMO Milius did a pretty damned good job with what he had to work with, throwing in as many sly, logical Howardian references from the original stories without getting the production mired in a legal limbo in the process. They HAD to change the character just to get a 'Conan' film made at all. As such, those involved - I think correctly for what it's worth - decided to do so to the best of their ability. Personally I can live with the results too and continue to enjoy watching CTB '82 at varying intervals. As for '...Destroyer' though...IMO, both DDL and Richard Fleischer really missed the boat on that one. The story itself was actually quite serviceable as a Conan yarn, but the tone they chose to invest it with effectively sabotaged the end result. If it had been directly adapted from the Robert Jordan novel it would have been quite excellent really, and would have left the franchise open to probably several sequels by now. Alas...that is another story!

Edited by Swiftsteel, 20 May 2012 - 08:56 PM.

[Ironhand]

I never knew that about the legal restrictions. Maybe we've been unfair to Milius?

[Russell12]

Banished to the land of the midnight film.

[Kortoso]

I never knew that about the legal restrictions. Maybe we've been unfair to Milius?

Ironhand, I hope you had your doctor examine you soon after your concussion.

[Crom2006]

Conan the destroyer was so bad that it was funny. Probably the low point of the film for me, was the silly wrestling scene with Thoth Amon. The moment I watched this scene, I considered the movie a great comedy instead of a good adventure film. What about you?

[Lunatic]

After the first battle, Arnold is wearing his headband so low that he has to look up and that gives him a confused look..lol!

Also when he throws his knife and then forgets...

I didn´t like how the ape in the cape sounded as a vacuum cleaner either.

There were funny scenes in CtB82 also but never this amount of cheese. They should have made it R-rated like the first.

[Strom]

The whole Thoth Amon fiasco is why I can not watch CTD more often than not. There are some cool scenes and sets that work but Thoth is so chessy, my arteries clog just from watching him.