Broadswords clash, arrows whistle and heads roll as banished Arab nobleman Antonio Banderas is swept from Asia to Scandinavia to help a band of Norse warriors battle an enemy laying waste to the country.

Despite some clunky lines and too much slow motion in the final attack, this is superior medieval fare with blood-surging action in Seven Samurai tradition.

Pitched battles and adventures in caves are thrillingly done and Banderas is perfect.

Based on Michael Crichton's Beowulf-inspired legend novel Eaters of the Dead, the movie was heavily cut and re-edited just before cinema release.