The Northman’s Alexander Skarsgard has directed sci-fi horror, a serial killer thriller, a monster movie, and a remake, but what’s his best horror?
Although The man from the north star Alexander Skarsgard appeared in a handful of horror films, not all of which received critical acclaim. Many actors avoid horror movies after getting their big break. After all, the genre has traditionally been seen as a path to bigger and better things for actors who take themselves seriously.
Getting tangled up with vampires, slashers, and the walking dead is fine with an actor hoping to make a name for themselves, but Hollywood history has generally shown that actors start moving away from the horror genre once that they want to be seen as serious stars. For example, Patricia Arquette turned down a lead role in a Nightmare on Elm Street sequel because she wanted to move on to more serious work, despite the franchise being a huge hit at the time. Fortunately, however, not all actors see the horror genre in those terms.
For example, The man from the northAlexander Skarsgård waited until he was relatively well established before even appearing in a horror movie. Rather than using the often critically maligned genre as a springboard, Skarsgård became horrified as a well-regarded star, though that didn’t necessarily help his choice of projects in the genre. The actor has made a handful of contributions to the horror genre, but few of them have been critical hits. His first role was a remake of the tense siege thriller straw dogswhich was followed by 2015 Hiddenan indie sci-fi horror from the creators of Netflix’s hit stranger things. After that, Skarsgård appeared in 2018’s Dark Serial Killer Horror hold the blackwhile 2021 saw the actor switch gears with a role in the major blockbuster monster movie Godzilla vs. Kong. While this is undeniably an impressive amount of horror films for an actor’s career, the reception given to these releases can unfortunately be considered quite mixed.
straw dogs
The original from legendary western director Sam Peckinpah straw dogs is a lousy movie. This is not necessarily a criticism, since the loose adaptation of the novel The seat of the farm of Trencher is not intended to be a lightweight watch. However, where figures like director Stanley Kubrick A clockwork orange could be read as a condemnation of contemporary society, the plot of straw dogs is a simpler kind of dark, unpleasant horror. Both the original film and its 2011 remake follow a bookish protagonist who takes bloody and brutal revenge after his wife is assaulted by two men working at their remote home.
The Redeeming Qualities That Stop Peckinpah’s Original straw dogs to be unassailable are its culture clash between the UK and the US over the horror of the outback and the authentic and sinister atmosphere of the film. The 2011 remake, in which a miscast Skarsgård plays the villain, ditches both of those elements for a brilliant Hollywood narrative in a typical setting. Issuance-small town style. So, 2011 straw dogs loses everything that made the hard-to-watch 1971 original justify its existence, while the debonair Skarsgård is ridiculously ill-suited to play an inarticulate, brutal villain.
hold the black
While another successful frontman, Ryan Reynolds, also makes horror films, none of this actor’s endeavors are as relentlessly dark as hold the black. This twisty mystery sees Skarsgård play a deranged soldier with an absurdly dark secret, while the film’s director Jeremy Saulnier overplays his hand after a pair of indie hits. This relentlessly dark sequel to the acclaimed 2015 album green room and the sleeper tube of 2013 blue ruin fails to recapture the incredibly tense action and dark humor of those earlier hits, resulting in desperately depressing but ultimately slow and overlong horror. By the time the big twist is revealed, viewers are more likely to have checked out than to be freaked out, despite Skarsgård’s best attempt to inject character into the slog.
Hidden
The first film of the Duffer Brothers, Hidden displays some of the creativity the pair would soon show off with stranger things. The film is an ambitious independent film that does a lot with a limited premise and low budget, following the story of a family of three as they hide in an underground bunker trying to escape a mysterious viral outbreak, knowing that something – or someone – is watching from there. Although Hiddenthe success of was somewhat undermined by the same 10 Cloverfield Laneit’s still an efficient and interesting cooler with a solid touch, and Hidden is enhanced by a trio of stellar central performances. Due to the film’s limited locations, Hidden lives or dies based on the many quiet scenes shared by the small family huddled in the dark awaiting their fate. Fortunately, not only is Skarsgård stronger than ever, but the future Gossip Girl Reboot heroine Emily Alyn Lind wows as her daughter in a debut performance that showcases her prodigious talent.
Godzilla vs. Kong
The 2021 hit that delivered exactly what its title promised, Godzilla vs. Kong was a major change of pace for Skarsgård after so many serious horror movement roles. However, it was also the right decision, as proven by the film’s box office success and its status as Skarsgård’s best horror film to date. where the likes of straw dogs and hold the black desperately wanted to say something deep but ended up being overworked and nihilistic, Godzilla vs. Kong means exactly one thing – Godzilla fights King Kong – and communicates that idea perfectly. There is more to Godzilla vs. Kong (as evidenced by the MonsterVerse’s many creatures), but ultimately Skarsgård was right when he sardonically noted that no one came to see the hit film to judge his acting performance.
Spectators arriving at the cinema to see Godzilla vs. Kong were treated to some solid campy turns from Skarsgård, Millie Bobby Brown and the rest of the cast as the film prepared for the inevitable eponymous showdown, but that was just a necessary preamble. All that mattered in the end was that Godzilla vs. Kong provided the monster mayhem promised by the title. When the movie did, Godzilla vs. Kong became The man from the northit is by Alexander Skarsgård best horror film to date by achieving this feat.
- The Man from the North (2022)Release date: April 22, 2022
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