Published on October 4th, 2024 | by Jules-Pierre Malartre
0Review: Conan the Barbarian: The Official Story of the Film
Conan the Barbarian is enjoying a renaissance ever since Titan Comics picked up the rights to the character. Titan Comics has not only resurrected the Conan the Barbarian comic book; it also brought back its magazine-sized companion, The Savage Sword of Conan. Issue #1 of the limited series, Conan the Barbarian – Battle of the Blackstone, is also out right now.
These series have a lot to offer to new and old Conan fans, and Conan the Barbarian: The Official Story of the Film is a must-read for all Conan fans. And no! This book is not about the Jason Momoa Conan movie. It’s about the first Conan movie, Conan the Barbarian, directed by legendary film director John Milius.
The movie came out to mixed reviews from the fans in 1982. The script was a significant departure from the source material, and that did not sit well with Conan purists. Also, many fans didn’t feel that Arnold Schwarzenegger cut it as Conan. Still, the movie became something of a cult classic. It has also aged remarkably well; many will agree that Milius’s vision of the Hyborian Age remains a tour de force even by today’s movie standards.
Books on the making of movies used to be quite popular in the Hollywood heyday following the release of Star Wars. They don’t have much of a presence on bookstore shelves nowadays, but you can find some in well-stocked bookstores. I still read a few, but I feel like they have lost their grandeur. Such books used to be a visual celebration of the making of great films, allowing readers to learn more about the production, read some interesting behind-the-scene tidbits, and relive some of the best scenes from their favorite movie.
After Conan the Barbarian: The Official Story of the Film was announced, I pre-ordered it as soon as it became available. The movie was over 40 years old by then, but I had not read a book on the making of the film back when it came out, so this seemed like a great opportunity to relive the glory days of Conan’s first outing on the silver screen.
I knew this was going to be a great book the moment I opened the shipping box. First off, it’s larger than I imagined (12.75″ x 10.0″). The cover, simple yet gloriously dominated by the matte black background and the splash of red from the original movie poster art, captures the eye immediately. The art on the front cover and the pictures on the back are printed with a glossy finish that stands in stark contrast with the black matte background. It’s an impressive cover in an age when the book industry seems to have forgotten the importance of cover design in a fickle market. The cover makes an impact, especially for nostalgic fans.
The success of a book on the making of a movie hinges on its ratio of text to pictures. Some movie books are too verbose. While there is nothing wrong with that (some of the best books on the making of movies I ever read were in prose format), the most appealing ones strike the perfect mix of text and pictures, like this book.
There is new Conan lore in these pages for some Conan fans. I thought I knew all there was to know about the filming of Conan the Barbarian, but I learned some interesting new details from these pages. There are also pictures I had never seen before; other pictures are making an encore, but many of them are finally given the full-page treatment that they deserve. The printing on good quality paper stock also makes a difference.
This is not a book you want to buy in e-format (not that I think it’s available in electronic format). You want this handsome volume to rest on your knees while you peruse its pages. The texts are not overwhelmingly long. The font is pleasant and easy to read. Each chapter reveals some interesting lore about the making of the movie, from development to post-production. There is a great chapter on poster art that features many of the art produced in development that didn’t make it on the final poster and promo material. While many of these illustrations have been seen before, it’s great to see them assembled and displayed in their full glory on these pages.
While its main subject is the first Conan movie, the book also pays homage to a number of Conan luminaries. There is a quick bio of Conan creator, Robert E. Howard. The chapter does a great job introducing Howard. It also includes a full-page picture of the author that does him justice.
There is also a tribute to Frank Frazetta who painted some of the most celebrated Conan paintings in the history of the character. The book features a short gallery of some of Frazetta’s Conan paintings, and it doesn’t matter how often you’ve seen these pieces of art already, they remain just as striking. Frazetta’s Conan paintings are so iconic that they are the yardstick against which all other Conan paintings will ever be measured. Frazetta’s work even appeared on an early promo poster for the movie.
The book also discusses Conan’s long association with comic books, showing a great sampling of some of the most noteworthy comic book covers from the Marvel Comics era. There is also a very nice homage to the Conan novels from the near-legendary Lancer/Ace book series. All these chapters will undoubtedly strike a nostalgic chord in the heart of OG Conan fans, and help new fans discover other facets of the character that they may not be familiar with.
One of the outstanding qualities of this book resides in the large size of the pictures it contains. There is none of the small, nearly postage stamp-sized images you often see on the web these days or in similar books. The pictures take center stage here. They are bold, close-up, and many take the whole page. The introduction of every chapter features a 2-page photo spread showcasing some of the movie’s great moments. Conan fans will have seen some of these pictures umpteenth times by now, but they are featured here in their best possible light. Many pictures also give us close-ups of the main characters from the movie. It’s an up-close and personal look at the actors and filmmakers that made the movie. Even though the movie is now over 40 years old, looking at these pictures took me back to 1982.
The timing of the release of this book is also great; it will whet the appetite of some readers who haven’t seen the movie yet.: It’s still available in DVD and Blu Ray formats, but Arrow Films also released a 4K version in January 2024. It’s a chance to see the movie in (most) of its original silver screen glory. The movie has aged remarkably well–something not all ’80s blockbusters can boast about.
This book is a must for any Conan fan. The movie being over 40 years old means that fans will have already seen most of the material presented in this book. However, it’s great to see it all assembled under this book’s cover. Even the OG fans who did not like the movie much will find something interesting in this book. It will also give new fans a chance to discover another aspect of the character, beyond what they may have seen so far in the Titan Comics books.
Title: Conan the Barbarian – The Official Story of the Film
Publisher: Titan Books
Author: John Walsh
Number of pages: 176
Published: 8 August 2023