Seventh Son (film)
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''Seventh Son'' is a 2014 American
fantasy film Fantasy films are films that belong to the fantasy genre with fantastic themes, usually magic, supernatural events, mythology, folklore, or exotic fantasy worlds. The genre is considered a form of speculative fiction alongside science fiction f ...
directed by
Sergei Bodrov Sergei Vladimirovich Bodrov ( rus, Серге́й Влади́мирович Бодро́в, p=sʲɪrˈɡʲej bɐˈdrof; born June 28, 1948) is a Russian film director, screenwriter, and producer. In 2003 he was the President of the Jury at the 2 ...
and starring Ben Barnes,
Jeff Bridges Jeffrey Leon Bridges (born December 4, 1949) is an American actor. He has received various accolades throughout his career spanning over seven decades, including an Academy Award and two Golden Globe Awards. Bridges comes from a prominent a ...
,
Alicia Vikander Alicia Amanda Vikander (, ; born 3 October 1988) is a Swedish actress. She is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award and a Critics' Choice Movie Award, as well as receiving nominations for ...
, Kit Harrington, and
Julianne Moore Julie Anne Smith (born December 3, 1960), known professionally as Julianne Moore, is an American actress. Prolific in film since the early 1990s, she is particularly known for her portrayals of emotionally troubled women in independent films, a ...
. It is loosely based on the 2004 novel ''
The Spook's Apprentice ''The Spook's Apprentice'' (American title: ''The Last Apprentice: Revenge of the Witch''), written by Joseph Delaney, is the first story in ''The Wardstone Chronicles'' arc of the ''Spook's'' series. The plot centres on a 13-year-old farm boy ...
'' (titled ''The Last Apprentice: Revenge of the Witch'' in the United States) by
Joseph Delaney Joseph Henry Delaney (25 July 1945 – 16 August 2022) was an English author, known for his dark fantasy series ''Spook's''. He started his career as a teacher and wrote science fiction and fantasy novels for adults under the pseudonym J. K. H ...
. The story centers on Thomas Ward, a
seventh son of a seventh son ''Seventh Son of a Seventh Son'' is the seventh studio album by English heavy metal band Iron Maiden. It was released on 11 April 1988 in the United Kingdom by EMI Records and in the United States by Capitol Records. Like '' The Number of the ...
, and his adventures as the apprentice of the Spook. After having its release date shifted numerous times, the film was released in France on December 17, 2014, and in Canada and the United States on February 6, 2015, by
Universal Pictures Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Ameri ...
. ''Seventh Son'' received generally negative reviews from film critics and it earned $114 million on a $95 million budget.


Plot

In 1572, the witch Malkin is imprisoned underground by Gregory, the last of the Falcons, a knightly order which defended mankind against supernatural threats. Years later, Gregory works as a "spook" – a roving witch hunter. Malkin escapes, killing Gregory's apprentice William, and fleeing to her mountain fortress. She restores the fortress and the beauty of her disfigured, loyal sister, Bony Lizzie. The coming centennial blood moon will make Malkin unstoppable. Gregory seeks out Tom Ward – the
seventh son of a seventh son ''Seventh Son of a Seventh Son'' is the seventh studio album by English heavy metal band Iron Maiden. It was released on 11 April 1988 in the United Kingdom by EMI Records and in the United States by Capitol Records. Like '' The Number of the ...
– as his new apprentice. Tom's Mam gives him her necklace as a talisman, urging him to wear it always. In a town, Tom sees a girl, Alice, about to be burned as a witch. Recognizing her from his
clairvoyant Clairvoyance (; ) is the magical ability to gain information about an object, person, location, or physical event through extrasensory perception. Any person who is claimed to have such ability is said to be a clairvoyant () ("one who sees cl ...
visions, Tom frees her. Alice requests that he not tell Gregory about her. She is revealed to be Lizzie's daughter, sent to spy on Gregory. Malkin begins gathering an army of minions. Tom meets Gregory's assistant, Tusk. With only a week before the blood moon is full, reviving Malkin's full power, Tom must rush through his training while the trio head to Malkin's fortress. En route, Gregory is summoned to a walled city by an
inquisitor An inquisitor was an official (usually with judicial or investigative functions) in an inquisition – an organization or program intended to eliminate heresy and other things contrary to the doctrine or teachings of the Catholic faith. Literall ...
whose forces have subdued one of Malkin's followers, a werebear named Urag. Tom hesitates when instructed to burn the werebear alive, causing Gregory to dismiss him and light the flame himself. Tom meets Alice again; the two share their feelings for each other and fall in love. They briefly consider running off, but Tom has a vision of Malkin killing Gregory and unleashing destruction upon the world. Tom returns to Gregory, who reveals that he once loved Malkin, leading him to imprison rather than kill her. Gregory feels responsible for every person killed by Malkin, and warns Tom never to show mercy to witches. The trio are attacked on the road by an enormous
boggart A boggart is a creature in English folklore, either a household spirit or a malevolent '' genius loci'' (that is, a geographically-defined spirit) inhabiting fields, marshes, or other topographical features. Other names of this group include ''bu ...
. Tom kills it and survives being swept down a waterfall. He is confronted by Bony Lizzie, whose attack is repelled by his Mam's necklace. Gregory recognizes it as the Umbran Stone, which increases the power of witches. It had once belonged to Malkin, until one of her witch followers – Tom's Mam – stole it, weakening Malkin enough for Gregory to trap her. Malkin instructs Alice to steal the stone, promising to spare Tom's life. Malkin and her minions destroy the city where Urag was killed, to avenge his death. By chance, Tom's family is in the city; his Mam kills the warlock Strix and confronts Malkin with her own powers. Malkin kills her, mocking her for giving away the stone that might have saved her life. Alice finds Tom and pleads with him to leave with her. Gregory tries to kill her, but Tom intervenes, allowing her to flee. Gregory points out she has taken the necklace, and Tom, Gregory and Tusk pursue her. Malkin's servant Radu attacks them; he captures Gregory and drives Tusk and Tom over a cliff, leaving them for dead. Tom wakes to a vision of his Mam telling him that, as both the seventh son of a seventh son, and the son of a witch, he has a unique power to defeat Malkin. The witches gather as Malkin attempts to seduce Gregory. Alice is horrified when told that Tom is dead, and grabs the stone from Malkin, breaking Malkin's hold on Gregory. Malkin transforms into a dragon, and Lizzie also transforms, to protect her daughter. Tom retrieves the stone and, fighting together, Gregory, Tom and Alice kill several of Malkin's minions. Malkin kills Lizzie, but is seriously wounded. Gregory follows Malkin into her room and confronts her. Appearing close to death, she recalls their relationship, but then seizes Gregory with her claws. Tom enters and hurls a blade at Malkin, making her release her grip. Tom kills Malkin and they burn her body. Gregory brands Tom's hand, declaring him a Falcon knight. Alice accepts that Tom's vocation means they cannot be together, but promises they will meet again. Gregory leaves for parts unknown, leaving Tom and Tusk to continue his work, but urging Tom not to follow the "rules".


Cast

*
Jeff Bridges Jeffrey Leon Bridges (born December 4, 1949) is an American actor. He has received various accolades throughout his career spanning over seven decades, including an Academy Award and two Golden Globe Awards. Bridges comes from a prominent a ...
as Master Gregory * Ben Barnes as
Tom Ward Tom Ward (born 11 January 1971) is a British film, stage and television actor. Early life Tom Ward was born in Swansea, Wales, the son of poet and academic John Powell Ward, and Sarah Ward OBE, a farmer. Ward was sent to the Dragon School i ...
*
Julianne Moore Julie Anne Smith (born December 3, 1960), known professionally as Julianne Moore, is an American actress. Prolific in film since the early 1990s, she is particularly known for her portrayals of emotionally troubled women in independent films, a ...
as Mother Malkin *
Alicia Vikander Alicia Amanda Vikander (, ; born 3 October 1988) is a Swedish actress. She is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award and a Critics' Choice Movie Award, as well as receiving nominations for ...
as Alice * Antje Traue as Bony Lizzie *
Olivia Williams Olivia Haigh Williams (born 26 July 1968) is a British actress who has appeared in British and American films and television. After studying drama at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School for two years followed by three years at the Royal Shakesp ...
as Mam Ward * John DeSantis as Tusk *
Kit Harington Christopher Catesby Harington (born 26 December 1986) is an English actor who is widely known for his role as Jon Snow in the HBO epic fantasy television series ''Game of Thrones'' (2011–2019). After studying at the Royal Central School o ...
as William Bradley *
Djimon Hounsou Djimon Gaston Hounsou (; ; born April 24, 1964) is a Beninese-American actor and model. He began his career appearing in music videos. He made his film debut in '' Without You I'm Nothing'' (1990) and earned widespread recognition for his role as ...
as Radu * Gerard Plunkett as Inquisitor *
Jason Scott Lee Jason Scott Lee (; born November 19, 1966) is an American actor and martial artist. He played Mowgli in Disney's 1994 live-action adaptation of ''The Jungle Book'' and Bruce Lee in the 1993 martial arts film '' Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story''. He ...
as Urag


Production

Sam Claflin Samuel George Claflin (born 27 June 1986) is an English actor. After graduating from the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art in 2009, he began his acting career on television and had his first film role as Philip Swift in '' Pirates of th ...
was in negotiations to star as Tom Ward, but in June 2011, negotiations with Claflin fell through and Ben Barnes replaced him. Production began on March 19, 2012, in
Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...
,
British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...
. In February 2013, Legendary Pictures agreed to give $5 million to recently bankrupt visual effects house
Rhythm and Hues Studios Rhythm & Hues Studios was an American visual effects and animation company, that received the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects in 1995 for '' Babe'', in 2008 for '' The Golden Compass'', and in 2013 for '' Life of Pi''. It also received fou ...
so they would complete their work on ''Seventh Son''. By the time production wrapped, the budget had ballooned to as much as $110 million.
China Film Group China Film Group Corporation (CFGC), is the largest, most influential film enterprise in the People's Republic of China, owned by the Publicity Department of the Chinese Communist Party. According to ''Forbes'', it is a state monopoly that al ...
made an "eight-figure" equity investment in the film, as well as the adaptation of ''
Warcraft ''Warcraft'' is a franchise of video games, novels, and other media created by Blizzard Entertainment. The series is made up of five core games: '' Warcraft: Orcs & Humans'', '' Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness'', '' Warcraft III: Reign of Chao ...
'' (2016).


Music

It was originally announced that
A. R. Rahman Allah Rakha Rahman (; born A. S. Dileep Kumar; 6 January 1967) is an Indian music composer, record producer, singer and songwriter, popular for his works in Indian cinema; predominantly in Tamil and Hindi films, with occasional forays in int ...
and
Tuomas Kantelinen Tuomas Kantelinen (born 22 September 1969 in Kankaanpää) is a Finnish composer. He studied composition at the Sibelius Academy with Eero Hämeenniemi. He is best known for his scores for films such as ''Rukajärven tie'', '' Äideistä parhain'', ...
would compose the score for the movie. However, in July 2013, Rahman left the project due to scheduling conflicts. A. R. Rahman revealed that he backed out from the project to compose for '' Kaaviya Thalaivan'', a
Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nativ ...
historical fiction Historical fiction is a literary genre in which the plot takes place in a setting related to the past events, but is fictional. Although the term is commonly used as a synonym for historical fiction literature, it can also be applied to other ty ...
film, because it gave him the scope to innovate with folk music like never before. Subsequently, in December 2013, Kantelinen was replaced by Marco Beltrami.


Release

The film was originally scheduled for release on February 15, 2013, but was moved back to October 18, 2013, to complete post-production. It was moved again to January 17, 2014, due to the film's production partner
Legendary Pictures Legendary Pictures Productions, LLC (doing business as Legendary Entertainment or simply Legendary) is an American film production and mass media company based in Burbank, California, founded by Thomas Tull in 2000. The company has collaborated ...
parting ways with
Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...
, who were initially intended to distribute the film. On August 15, 2013, it was announced that Legendary had sold the distribution rights to their new partner
Universal Studios Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Ameri ...
, which pulled the film again. On November 27, 2013, it was announced that the film was pushed back to February 6, 2015. The film premiered in France on December 17, 2014.


Reception


Box office

''Seventh Son'' grossed $17.2 million in North America and $93.4 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $114.2 million.


North America

The film featured in the list of "The Riskiest Box Office Bets of 2015" published by screenrant.com. The film posted a gross of $295,000 from the Thursday preview. The film earned an opening day gross of estimated $2,300,000, an estimated $3,000,000 for its second day and $1,801,000 for its third day. The film was a commercial disaster, according to ''
Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'' the film has a "projected loss of $85 million", earning only $7,101,000 weekend gross, by playing in 2,875 theaters, with a $2,470 per-theater average and ranking #4.


Other territories

The film opened in France and Lebanon on December 21, 2014, a month and a half ahead of its North America release, and earned $1.2 million. The following weekend the film added $18.4 million from 24 new markets where it debuted at #1 in Russia, Romania, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand. Russia opened with $8.6 million while Spain generated $1.2 million.


Critical response

On
Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
, a
review aggregator A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews of products and services (such as films, books, video games, software, hardware, and cars). This system stores the reviews and uses them for purposes such as supporting a website where users ...
, the film has an approval rating of based on reviews and an average rating of . The site's critical consensus reads, "''Seventh Son'' squanders an excellent cast and some strange storyline ingredients, leaving audiences with one disappointingly dull fantasy adventure." On
Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...
, the film has a score of 30 out of 100 based 32 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews". Audiences polled by
CinemaScore CinemaScore is a market research firm based in Las Vegas. It surveys film audiences to rate their viewing experiences with letter grades, reports the results, and forecasts box office receipts based on the data. Background Ed Mintz founded Ci ...
gave the film an average grade of "B−" on an A+ to F scale. Peter Debruge of ''
Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'' gave a negative review criticizing the film's tired plot, special effects, lack of chemistry, and of the cast's performances such as that of Bridges' and Moore's, and calling the film an "over-designed" and "under-conceived fantasy epic". ''
The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...
''s Jordan Mintzer writes that it "takes an A-list crew and cast—including Moore sporting a black feather dress and matching eyeliner—and goes nowhere new with it, investing lots in VFX and locations but not enough in an original story anyone cares about". ''
Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
'' Betsey Sharkey said that the movie would "certainly be a contender" for "the worst movie of the year"; she notes, "For acclaimed Russian director Bodrov, this foray into English-language filmmaking is a rare fail. Bodrov certainly knows his way around epics, as his excellent Oscar-nominated films ''
Mongol The Mongols ( mn, Монголчууд, , , ; ; russian: Монголы) are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia, Inner Mongolia in China and the Buryatia Republic of the Russian Federation. The Mongols are the principal member of ...
'' and ''
Prisoner of the Mountains ''Prisoner of the Mountains'' (russian: Кавказский пленник, ''Kavkazskiy plennik''), also known as ''Prisoner of the Caucasus'', is a 1996 Russian war drama film directed by Sergei Bodrov and written by Bodrov, Arif Aliyev and Bor ...
'' attest. ''Seventh'' comes as a shock. Virtually every performance falls flat, aided no doubt by the vapid dialogue. And Bridges is saddled with an awful accent he never masters." ''
USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgini ...
''s Claudia Puig says, "The 3-D effects are off-putting: Smoke spills out at the audience, and the camera swooshes high and careens over cliffs. It's more dizzying than dazzling. Further mucking up the attempts at magical fantasy is a distracting, bombastic musical score and feeble attempts at humor. ''Seventh Son'' is thoroughly ill-conceived, a pale imitation of its more adventurous and breathtaking brethren." ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
''s Jordan Hoffman gave the movie two out of five stars and explained, "While ''Seventh Son'' has trace of Saturday afternoon fun, its unoriginal nature gets the better of it... There are flashes where you think ''Seventh Son'' is going to be wise enough to put a spin on the standard script, but by the end it just devolves into another loud, messy CGI brawl. How much more ruined masonry can moviegoers take? A lot, it seems, as this genre seems to be in no danger of going away." The New York '' Daily News'' Joe Neumaier was more complimentary of Moore's and Bridges' leading performances. "Saints be praised for whatever strange magic brought Bridges and Moore together for their own little mini–'' Big Lebowski'' reunion, whether it was playfulness, paychecks or an open spot on their calendars. Because they save this mediocre medieval fantasy adventure from the ash heap."


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Seventh Son 2014 films 2014 3D films 2014 fantasy films American 3D films American dark fantasy films 2010s English-language films Films based on British novels Films shot in Vancouver American high fantasy films IMAX films Sororicide in fiction Films about witchcraft Legendary Pictures films Universal Pictures films Films with screenplays by Max Borenstein Films with screenplays by Steven Knight Films scored by Marco Beltrami Films directed by Sergei Bodrov Films produced by Thomas Tull Films about dragons Films produced by Basil Iwanyk Thunder Road Films films 2010s American films