Flesh & Blood

My mom loves it

***3 1/2 STARS WITH SOME CONTEXT*** THIS SHOW HAS A HARD CORE FOLLOWING, BUT IS NOT FOR EVERYONE!***2 STARS for BLU RAY VIDEO ISSUES -- SEE BELOWSome will give it 5 stars, and many will give it only one. Everyone is correct for their own reasons so let me explain. This gritty tale is definitely low budget, B movie quality with some fairly cheesy dialog/acting and low production quality. So for me personally, I cannot give it top marks. Those who love it give it high marks because it completely entertains in what they want from it. It is a decently constructed adventure with intentionally less polish than Hollywood epics. For some, that is the specific charm of the movie. For it's time (1985), it is very graphic in content including full female and male nudity. This movie IS NOT historical. Those claiming so are referring to a less clean, more brutal depiction of the combat. However, this corresponds to no actual event. The clothes are pure costume and blatantly so. The siege machine used in the latter part is a pure concoction to illustrate how Arnolfini's son fights with brains rather than brawn. That's not a problem if you don't take it too seriously.THE PLOT: In 1501 Italy, Nobleman Arnolfini retakes a city for which he is the rightful ruler while aided by a band of mercenaries in support of his own soldiers. Arnolfini has promised the mercenaries 24 hours of looting before they leave in exchange for their services. Once the city is taken, Arnolfini renegs on his promise and orders the captain of the band (Hawkwood) to expel his own fighters from the city. This betrayal is facilitated as Arnolfini promises aid to Hawkwood for a young nun he accidentally injures during the sack of the city. Hawkwood's lieutenant named Martin (played by Rutger Hauer) leads the band away and they plot revenge. Meanwhile, the nobleman has arranged a marriage for his scholarly - and not so soldierly- son. The betrothed girl Agnes is played by a very young and beautiful Jennifer Jason Leigh. However, the son is not on board with the plan until an arranged "accidental" meeting ensues and she begins to win him over. Martin returns at this point and exacts his revenge while stealing Arnolfini's wagons containing treasures and dowry. That evening at camp, as Martin's band split the loot, they discover that Agnes is still hiding in one of the wagons. After being violated, she is taken with them as they evade and fight Arnolfini's forces. Can they safely get Agnes back? Will she still love Arnolfini's son? Or, will she fall for the charismatic Martin and join his band?BLU RAY PICTURE QUALITY: I mentioned it's a mixed bag. The daylight shots were a surprisingly decent upgrade for a B movie restoration. Then it got to the indoor scenes and my heart sunk. It was horrible! With indoor and night scenes there is not just grain, I would describe it as light micro snow. The scene where the nun is injured, the one where Agnes is discovered hiding in the wagon, and the tub scene where she bathes with Martin - all are affected. Those areas may well be worse than some dvd prints I have seen. Many of the scenes that made this movie a cult classic have fallen victim.MOVIE BACKGROUND AND CONTEXT: The script was partly based on unused material for the Dutch TV series Floris, which also starred Rutger Hauer and was director Verhoeven's debut. The resulting film, originally titled God's Own Butchers, was also known as The Rose and the Sword on early VHS release. The original movie concept by Verhoeven did not include the character of Agnes and focused on the rivalry between male characters. Orion Pictures felt the movie needed a love interest and what we have now was born. Verhoeven blamed the abject failure at the US box office on the added distraction of Agnes, who actually becomes the focal point. In retrospect, the low production values and cheesy acting might have had more to do with it. In fact, the well constructed adventure and the often naked Agnes are probably what made this movie a cult favorite. If you are still wondering if this movie is for you, understand that there is a gang rape scene that takes a very surprising turn. There is a supposedly romantic scene set below two hanged men where the virginal Agnes (raised in a convent) digs up mandrake root. And, there is biological warfare with a tainted animal carcass. The gore is frequent, but honestly not as bad as some movies today. The brutality is more situational in that respect. Many viewers just looking for a light medieval adventure will not like this, even though equally raw content is on cable regularly nowadays.If you have not seen it before, I highly recommend you rent it first. Many viewers (even less picky ones) will find this movie too offensive or cheesy. If you are buying, I suggest getting it at a low price because of the video issues.

Although commonly called a "medieval" adventure, the film is actually set in the early Renaissance. Appropriately for the setting, it features the triumph of reason and technology over superstition and brute force, both literally and metaphorically. It also echoes growing cynicism toward a Church which for centuries had openly advocated the use of violence to attain worldly power and wealth. Director Paul Verhoeven allows these themes to be expressed via the action, without any preachy exposition, albeit with about the same degree of subtlety he displayed while skewering corporate greed in Robocop and Total Recall.If you're looking for black-and-white morality or unambiguous heroes and villains, look elsewhere. Rutger Hauer is in top form as Martin, a charismatic mercenary who seeks to reclaim status and power after his unit is cheated out of a promised reward by the nobleman who employed them. Tom Burlinson plays Steven, the nobleman's son, whose betrothed is kidnapped by Martin after the betrayal. Steven has recently returned from a university in Italy where he studied the works of Renaissance masters like Leonardo da Vinci, and aspires to be a scholar until a serious injury to his father during a confrontation with Martin forces the mantle of authority onto his shoulders. Burlinson's performance makes Steven's oscillation between idealism and ruthlessness completely believable. Jennifer Jason Leigh is absolutely riveting as Agnes, the highborn hostage, deftly playing the passions of the other characters against one another and callously using her femininity as a weapon in a bid to survive at all costs.The movie's few flaws stem from the relatively small budget with which it was made, primarily plot conveniences which serve as shorthand for "scenes that might have been", and a handful of special effects shots (like the lightning during the climactic battle) which seem dated by today's standards. However, those shortcomings are insignificant when taken in the greater context of a setting which evokes a gritty, authentic, "dawn of an era" atmosphere.

It was a bit weird and had a disturbing rape scene, but otherwise was an interesting movie. Video and visual quality was fine.

I saw this movie years ago. I thought that the wardrobes, scenery,effects etc. portrayed quite an authentic flavor to the movie. Personally I think Rutger Hauer is great in any role he takes on and he does well in this one, which takes place in miedevil Italy with him cast as a mercenary who gets cheated, gets his revenge for a while, has all his companions killed but escapes in the end like any other good rogue.Has a few decent fight scenes without excessive gore otherwise is on the earthy side.

Period movies are usually over the top in production costs and horrible...Not this one....it's clearly not a huge budget movie but it's awesome

I first saw this movie more than 20 years ago on VHS. It's a Medieval romp, featuring plague, a besieged castle and Rutger Hauer as a mercenary leader who kidnaps and seduces a noble's daughter. It's the right mix of outrageous never allowing character motivations or development to get in the way of spectacle and overacting. The late 80s and early 90s were a great time for ott movies where plot was secondary to pretty much everything. It's well worth watching, turning your brain off and just enjoying a Paul Verhoeven event.

Dvd arrived on time. Seller kept me informed of progress. Very entertaining film.

It's a Paul Verhoeven film. If you're familiar with his films but not sure think of 'Basic Instinct'. It has a brilliant cast and the film is basically in the action category. It's not expensive and is very entertaining. Don't think, just go ahead and buy it, I do recommend this marvellous film. Enjoy :)

Excellent

excellent movie