
'The Northman' goes heavy on blood-soaked style and light on substance
CNN
Part "Hamlet," part "Conan the Barbarian" and a whole lot of "Vikings," "The Northman" is a gorgeously shot exercise in visceral thrills that goes heavy on atmospherics and very, very light on story.
Seldom has a trailer so neatly summed up what a movie is all about, with young prince Amleth witnessing the death of his father, the king (Ethan Hawke), at the hands of the king's brother, Fjölnir (Claes Bang). Fleeing for his life, the boy vows revenge as well as to liberate his mother (Nicole Kidman), with dad having helpfully given him a pep talk about the importance of vengeance even before this act of fratricide cemented Amleth's destiny.
Flash forward many years, and Amleth has grown into Alexander Skarsgård, who has clearly been living a brutal existence while pounding the Viking equivalent of protein shakes. Hearing that his uncle has been deposed and now presides over a farm in Iceland, he arranges to be sent there as a slave, bringing him within reach of fulfilling his long-percolating quest.

Cuba is going dark under US pressure. How the crisis unfolded and why its troubles are far from over
Almost three months after the US effectively imposed an oil blockade on Cuba that worsened its energy crunch, nearly every aspect of Cuban society has been feeling the strain.

The Department of Homeland Security has been ensnared by a partial government shutdown as Congress did not act to fund the agency by the end of Friday. But nearly all DHS workers will remain on the job — even if many won’t get paid until the lapse ends — and the public probably won’t notice much of a change.











