I love this film, and I feel that there is a lot of irrational online hive mind hate directed towards it. It is perfect? By no means, however its got a lot going for it. It’s got beautiful visuals, a cool storyline and Karl Urban looking very dreamy as Commander Vaako, one of the invading Necromongers.
Every single time I watch this I think about how cool it would be if the Necromongers invaded Earth. Sure, they are religious nutcases, but how is that any different to what we have to deal with right now? Instead of white Christian fanatics invading just countries here on Earth the Necromongers take it a step further and invade planets in the name of their religion. A religion that believes that each universe has a different god and that life is antagonistic to the natural order of the universe. To die is to overcome this and insure that one has a place in the Underverse, which is a place in which all life is cherished. So, basically it is like a cross between the Valhalla of the Vikings and the Christian Heaven. The most powerful of the Necromongers have actually made the trip there, and have come back with very strong powers.
The Necromongers are a warrior type society. If you kill somebody in battle you then own what they have. So, if you happen to kill somebody who is rich then you are in turn rich. This is also how the Lord Marshals of the Necromongers are chosen for the most part. The Necromonger who defeats them in battle then themselves becomes the leader. That is why Commander Vaako tries to kill the Lord Marshall with the urging of his wife, who by the way is a total shrew of a woman that I would proudly bitchslap.
Planets are given the choice to ether join them or be killed. This is how the Necromongers gain an endless amount of soldiers to use to force planets into submission. If they came to this planet all of the people who follow the Abrahamic religions would look at it as an opportunity to martyr themselves. On the other hand there are people such as myself who are morbid as hell and would jump at the chance to join. The Underverse sounds like more fun that ‘heaven’ and it’s a place that you can visit and come back from with magical powers such as separating you soul from your physical body. That sounds nifty!
I think one of the main reasons why I like this film so much is because the baddies sound a lot more interesting than the good guys. I always tend to like the bad guys in films rather than the good guys. Bad guys quite frequently have a reason as to why they are invading, killing,etc… While the good guys frequently are just spending their time fighting the bad guys. They’re bad guys so they have to fight them, even if the logic of doing so makes no sense. Your life is total shit on the planet you are living on and there is no way to change that. Some aliens come to your planet saying that your life would be better under their rule. Would you decide to defend you planet, even though your life is shit, or would you welcome a better life with arms wide open? It’s logical, in such circumstances, to want to join the bad guys and have a better life.
Besides everything else I feel that the Necromongers have a really killer sense of fashion. Everything from their uniforms to their hairstyles really make my heart skip a beat. How could I think that Commander Vaako, Karl Urban, would be the wrong choice for a leader when he looks like that? My husband and I once went to a film museum in London and I got to stand in front of one of the Necromonger suits of armour. I felt like I had found my people!
When it comes down to it I would totally support a takeover of Earth by the Necromongers. I don’t care if that would make me a traitor. At least I would look good while ruling over all of you!