Ring of the Nibelungs (2004)

[GreenHeart]

Europe - the Dark Ages. When the evil Twin Kings betray his father, the King of Xanten, the young Prince SIEGFRIED narrowly escapes with his own life. Rescued by the kindly EYVIND, he is raised as a simple blacksmith, unaware of his true kingly heritage. When the gods send him a sign of his destiny in the form of a fallen meteor, he is led both to the metal which will be forged into his destined weapon, and the woman fated to be his love: BRUNHILD, the Valkyrie warrior queen. Duty drives them apart, but they swear to reunite - and never leave another.

Siegfried comes to thekingdom of Burgund, where he earns the respect of its king, GUNTHER, and the love of the princess KRIEMHILD. But a powerful evil is plaguing the land, and it is up to Siegfried, armed only with the sword forged from the god's metal, to slay the dragon Fafnir - and claim the dragon's gold as his own. With this treasure comes the curse of its rightful owners, the mystic Nibelungs, and the hatred of Gunther's advisor, the villainous HAGEN, who covets the gold for his own. To gain the treasure, Hagen uses black magic to make Siegfriend fall in love with Kriemhild and forget Brunhild, the love the gods had chosen for him. The curse then spins an expanding web of betrayal, deception and greed that traps everyone, plunging a world into chaos.

It's based on the Saga of the Nibelungs, very Germanic. It's got to be the best movie I've ever seen. There is absolutely gorgeous scenery- and they even talk about the old Nordic gods. All the heros are nordish; the villians have black hair.

http://www.ring-of-the-nibelungs.com/

[Stig NHF]

Yeah lets hope it turns out good. Any idea who the people behind it are? Are they the usual Hollywood-people or?

[Dr. Brandt]

You have got to be kidding me! "Good Movie" :

We already discussed this in the german section. It's a piece of shit which totaly distorts the true saga. They even boast that "Siegfried doesn't need to be blond". And "The cockyest Siegfried ever" and "It isn't the slightest bit Wagnerian!". Oh realy! A Jew couldn't have made the movie better.
They reduced Hagen to a greedy lil, cowardly twerp. Attila King of the Huns doesn't even exist in the story.
They basicly made a FANTASY Movie and named it "The Nibelungen".
What a shit film - but what can one expect from these people. I'm surprised they didn't smuggle some good nigger into the story, allthough some of them had black rasta-type hair.

http://forums.skadi.net/showthread.php?t=5450

[Zyklop]

I agree, the biggest shit I have seen since long and an insult to all Germans.

[GreenHeart]

What are you talking about? Compare it to other movies out there. Maybe like Erik the vikinmg, or 13th warrior... or even black knight. This is more realistic than any other movie I've ever seen for that time period. It's a step in the right direction.

Of course it could have been better, but its still the best movie I've ever seen.... I liked how they took most of the christian element out, it was nauseating in the saga itself.

[Zyklop]

How superficial can you get? That "good vs. evil" interpretation in this movie is more christian than anything else. In the original myth Hagen is a hero and defender of Gunther´s empire and probably the most loyal knight in German mythology ever.
Now he is portrayed as an evil villain and betrayer. Not only is the complete story turned upside down, it also lacks the main event, namely the downfall of the Nibelungs. Where is the message in this story? Seemingly it is enough for some people to hear some cheesy lines about Odin and they completely lose their mind.

[GreenHeart]

How superficial can you get? That "good vs. evil" interpretation in this movie is more christian than anything else. In the original myth Hagen is a hero and defender of Gunther´s empire and probably the most loyal knight in German mythology ever.
Now he is portrayed as an evil villain and betrayer. Not only is the complete story turned upside down, it also lacks the main event, namely the downfall of the Nibelungs. Where is the message in this story? Seemingly it is enough for some people to hear some cheesy lines about Odin and they completely lose their mind.

I think you would enjoy the book "Hagen von Tronje".
I own the saga of the Nibelungs and I don't recall Hagen ever being anything good. You get the impression that his loyalty is superficial, and just uses it as an excuse to attain his own desires.

[Evolved]

This seems like some Jews cashing in on the success of 'Lord of the Rings', taking a great story, editing it until it is unrecognizable, watering it down for the retarded masses and making it into a simple-minded cliché in order to sell action figures and T-shirts.

Who wants to see any of the European mythology or history - the heart and soul of one's culture - be butchered and commercialized?

[Zyklop]

I think you would enjoy the book "Hagen von Tronje".

Wolfgang Hohlbein? Didn´t hear much good about it.

I own the saga of the Nibelungs and I don't recall Hagen ever being anything good. You get the impression that his loyalty is superficial, and just uses it as an excuse to attain his own desires.

How so? The "forcing" of Brunhild by Siegfried with the help of his magic cap, because she wasn´t docile to Gunther in the bedroom, is simply a nice description for Siegfried raping her. And you would shed tears for him?
In the original story Hagen had to murder Siegfried from behind because Siegfried was invulnerable due to his bath in dragon´s blood and he also was superior in strength because of Brunhild´s magic belt. How should he get rid of Siegfried in a honest fight? Hagen even sinks the gold of the Nibelungs in the Rhine so Krimhild can´t use it to destroy the Kingdom. Later in Etzel´s hall the Nibelungs refuse to hand over Hagen to Kriemhild although this means their sure death. This loyalty is called "Nibelungentreue" and is an important part of German history.
Additionally, the one-eyed Hagen obviously is a reference to Odin.

If you want a good movie you should search for the silent film "Die Nibelungen" by Fritz Lang.

[GreenHeart]

Wolfgang Hohlbein? Didn´t hear much good about it.

How so? The "forcing" of Brunhild by Siegfried with the help of his magic cap, because she wasn´t docile to Gunther in the bedroom, is simply a nice description for Siegfried raping her. And you would shed tears for him?
In the original story Hagen had to murder Siegfried from behind because Siegfried was invulnerable due to his bath in dragon´s blood and he also was superior in strength because of Brunhild´s magic belt. How should he get rid of Siegfried in a honest fight? Hagen even sinks the gold of the Nibelungs in the Rhine so Krimhild can´t use it to destroy the Kingdom. Later in Etzel´s hall the Nibelungs refuse to hand over Hagen to Kriemhild although this means their sure death. This loyalty is called "Nibelungentreue" and is an important part of German history.
Additionally, the one-eyed Hagen obviously is a reference to Odin.

If you want a good movie you should search for the silent film "Die Nibelungen" by Fritz Lang.

You have some good points here. I will think about it.