“The Northman” is a long but beautifully rendered look at the world of the Vikings. Directed by Robert Eggers (the horror masterpiece “The Witch”) and based on meticulous research, the movie is based on a real-life legend. Sometimes brutally, but not gratuitously, violent, the action in the film is bolstered by visions and prophecies that sometimes leave the viewer wondering what is going on.

The story begins in 895 A.D./C.E. King Aurvandil (Ethan Hawke) has returned from a raiding expedition. He is awaited by his wife Queen Gudrun (Nicole Kidman) and young son Amleth (Oscar Novak).

One evening Aurvandil takes Amleth to a temple to undergo an initiation ritual to prepare him for the kingship. After ingesting what may be psychoactive substances, Amleth has his first vision.

As they leave the temple, Aurvandil is ambushed by warriors who fill him with arrows. His half-brother Fjölnir (Claes Bang) is behind the coup. Aurvandil tells his son to run. Fjölnir kills the king and then tells his underlings to find Amleth in the forest.

Amleth is able to hide and eventually makes his way into the town. There he sees his screaming mother being carried away by Fjölnir. Amleth, vowing to avenge his father and rescue his mother, flees in a rowboat.

The picture then jumps twenty years into the future. Amleth is now a seasoned warrior traveling as part of a group of raiders on a longboat through the Land of the Rus. After a night of preparation that brings to mind the Berserker tradition, they attack a Slavic village.

Of course the Slavs are no match for the Vikings. In the aftermath, Amleth encounters a Seeress in the village. She reminds him of his promises to his father and mother in a spooky scene.

Amleth learns that Fjölnir was ousted from his stolen kingdom. He and Gudrun have moved to Iceland where he now is a farmer. Amleth marks himself as a slave so that he can be part of a group of the captured villagers who are being sent to Fjölnir.

On the boat, Amleth meets Olga of the Birch Forest, who communicates with the Earth spirits. They become partners in Amleth’s quest for revenge.

Arriving in Iceland, the unrecognized Amleth discovers that his mother has borne Fjölnir a son, now around Amleth’s age when he fled. There is an older son who is the heir apparent to the farm.

Amleth sneaks out at night to seek out a local seer. He is told of a sacred sword, and has to fight a skeleton figure for the right to use it.

Soon his plan for vengeance begins to unfold in a bloody, sometimes macabre, way. He wants to create panic in Fjölnir before he exacts his final revenge on him. But he is in for a surprise when he goes to rescue his mother as things are not as they seem. How will this affect his plan?

The production notes indicate that the story of Amleth is based on a legend in the sagas. In fact, if it sounds like Hamlet, it is apparently the original Ur-story for Shakespeare’s noble Prince of Denmark.

Probably the most marvelous aspect of the movie is the attention to detail. Whether it is the costumes, the boats, the farm dwellings, the Slavic village or the weaponry, everything seems utterly realistic. It was not an easy era to live in and the film does not make it seem glamorous in any way.

Another positive aspect of Eggers’ film is that it does not bother to explain what is real or not real. The visions that occur, such as a recurring motif of a tree with bodies hanging from it (a literal family tree), are organically woven into the fabric of Amleth’s life. Their veracity and sense of destiny are unquestioned by him. The viewer must decide whether or not the action that occurs is actually happening or not.

This sense of integration of the spirit world with the real world adds greatly to the screenplay, which Eggers co-wrote with Sjón (the wonderfully strange “Lamb”). How the Vikings lived their beliefs seems more accessible and vital because of this inclusion.

The cinematography also adds greatly to the picture. I particularly appreciated the fine work done on the night scenes in terms of clarity. The final battle scene, filmed by an active volcano, is beautifully rendered.

As for the fight scenes, they are very well-choreographed. I especially liked the Berserker attack on the Slavic village as it focused on Amleth’s path of killing.

The score by Robin Carolan and Sebastian Gainsborough tried to use historically accurate instruments when at all possible. They also did research on singing styles of the time. The music enhances the often eerie vision sequences and the battle scenes. The music for the passage of the merchant boat from the Land of the Rus to Iceland is also notable.

The acting is first-rate. I didn’t even recognize Ethan Hawke as the King or Willem Dafoe as the court jester/shaman as they vanished into their characters. Alexander Skarsgård and Anya Taylor-Joy had great chemistry together and made a believable team. Nicole Kidman has one great scene but makes the most of it.

For those expecting a Viking picture with lots of gore and action, this movie will be a disappointment. It is a much more nuanced and detailed look at a particular legend than it is a standard battle film. It probably will suffer at the box office as a result but will outlast that ignominy as a quality portrayal of the era.

I have to admit that I felt the length of the movie (a little over 2 hours) while viewing it. But in retrospect I cannot easily think of a scene that I would edit from the film.

The violence, when it happens, is brutal so this is not an appropriate film for young children.

Like Eggers’ two other features, “The Witch” and “The Lighthouse,” this is a must-see.

Four and a half out of five stars

From visionary director Robert Eggers comes THE NORTHMAN, an action-filled epic that follows a young Viking prince on his quest to avenge his father’s murder. With an all-star cast that includes Alexander Skarsgård, Nicole Kidman, Claes Bang, Anya Taylor-Joy, Ethan Hawke, Björk, and Willem Dafoe.

Cast: Alexander Skarsgård, Nicole Kidman, Claes Bang, Anya Taylor-Joy, Gustav Lindh, Ethan Hawke, Björk, and Willem Dafoe
Director/Writer: Robert Eggers
Co-Writer: Sjón