Horrible, fascist and poorly acted

Gripping story with well-crafted characters

I saw this movie before reading any reviews, and I thought it was very funny. I was very surprised to see the overwhelmingly negative reviews this film received from critics.

This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

This film is excellent in every way. I would challenge anyone to watch this and not be totally enthralled. The acting is superb by all involved. The scenes in the Holyland and Sweden are very well portrayed. I was particularly impressed by the lead actor's horsemanship which enhances every scene that he is in on horseback.This is not only an action film but also a very tender love story. A lot of the film has subtitles but this is not a problem as it is very well blended between different languages and the subtitles. I am hard to please in films so believe me when I say this a good movie then it is a very good movie.

Recap: Arn is still stuck in the Holy Land, and his new grand master is not about to release him. At home Cecilia is starting to doubt that Arn will ever return, as news about him is rare. And when news reaches Cecilia that the Templars has been defeated she gives up hope. But Arn has been rescued and sent home by Saladin. But home the situation is deteriorating. Birger Brosa is growing old, and the king Knut is fatally ill. And rival Sverker Karlsson has gained the support of the Danes. Amidst all this Arn dreams only of peace and at last being able to marry Cecilia.Comments: The sequel, and similar, to Arn – Tempelriddaren (2007). To enjoy and understand this fully, you need to see that one first. Otherwise it is very similar, Arn – Riket vid vägens slut (2008) does show the same ambition, the same epic scenes and battles, and the same style of telling.What should be noted is that this is not a pure medieval action, nor is the battles in main focus. Instead the love story between Arn and Cecilia is at the center of the story. That means that it changes pace and slows down considerably at times. You can't expect a complete high paced action, you will only get disappointed. Still I think that this sequel is better balanced than the first movie, it does change pace but doesn't get too slow anytime. That is an improvement and I did enjoy the sequel more.It is no masterpiece though. The scale and ambition is impressive for Scandinavian standards and comparable to fairly big sized budgets on the international scene. But the story is pretty average. It uses the standard turns and developments, and it gets pretty predictable and without much surprises. Actually some scenes are too obviously made up to be dramatic and suspenseful, but are much too predictable to succeed, it almost falls flat.It does entertain though, but it sure helps to like the genre as I do. Well worth watching after the first.7/10

a bit low-budget, but a wonderful, warm tale. I enjoyed it almost as much as i enjoyed the first one. Haven't read the book, though, so don't know how it measures up to the original, but all in all i would very much recommend it. Nice scenery and locations, good acting. Could have done a bit more with the scenes set in the Holy Land, maybe played up a bit the Saracens he brought back home to Sweden with him later on. One of the things i really enjoyed was that they weren't spilling buckets of blood all over the place, i hate this recent trend which puts the emphasis on "gory"....I have to say i will be checking for new productions in the genre from Sweden....

It's 1187 and the time has come for Arn and his beloved Cecilia to reunite. They have their son who has grownup without his parents and they have their promises of everlasting love. Now our hero only has to go home and make a future for himself, his family and his people.The story is told with elements of love, war, friendship and deceit and visually impressive surroundings between the barren desert landscape in the south and the lush verdure on the north. This is where great battles and expensive special effects take place.Yet, it still doesn't become more than simple manners. No conflicts are deep enough to make it interesting, no characters are shaped enough to touch you and no surprising camera work is seen at all. Sofia Helin, Gustav Skarsgård and all the others can't do anything about the high-flown and ridiculous dialogue that makes you wonder why they wasted all that money on the casting.