Todd’s Movie Blog

I was feeling nostalgic this past weekend and rented the classic Sword and Sorcery epic Conan the Barbarian (1982), the first and best of the eighties hack and slash films.  While watching I was reminded of how good a film it was, well made, and well acted.  The image of it’s star Arnold Schwarzenegger has morphed over the years into a nominal actor who makes action films where his most notable trait is an ability to snap out a designed, witty catchphrase after killing someone.  But Conan reminded me that before he became The action star of the nineties, he was a pretty good actor.  He runs the gamut of emotions here; rage, sorrow, love, lust, and a deep seated feeling of loss.  What really makes him shine in the role though are those moments when he is sitting alone and thinking.  Arnold is a good enough actor that he can actually convey that he is thinking.  Which is why after all is said and done, it is Conan and not the T-1 that will be Arnold’s most enduring film role.