The Northman follows the story of a young Viking Prince who will stop at nothing in avenging his father’s murder. The story is an official adaptation of Hamlet with a background of Vikings. So if you have read the Hamlet, you would know exactly where the film is headed. But the screenplay offers you a refreshing medieval world where the drama is set in. The screenplay moves at a brisk pace wherein you are quickly introduced to the main players before the ultimate tragedy. But a striking aspect of it is the entire Viking culture with elements of the rituals shown expertly. The atmospherics created here compliments the mood of the drama so well. There are innumerous sequences which will manage to hold your attention, at times with the rituals or at times with gore and violence. A small complaint which I had was that in the original play, the protagonist had a dilemma(if you remember, To Be Or Not To Be, That Is The Question). That same dilemma is slightly diluted out to suit the narrative, something which I felt could have been explored better(remember this film is only loosely adapted from Hamlet). But the sequence leading up to the final act is arousing including, a visually stunning final face off which is an absolute treat. Overall, the screenplay is brilliantly penned.