Solomon Kane (The Official Movie Novelisation)
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'The book felt more like an original novel, rather than an adaptation of a screenplay. If the film is as good as the book it should be well worth seeing.' --Sci-Fi Online
Product Description
Solomon Kane is a 16th century anti-hero created by Robert E. Howard (creator of Conan the Barbarian). When Solomon Kane (James Purefoy of Rome) meets the Devil s Reaper, he postpones his fate by renouncing violence a vow that is soon tested by the forces of evil. As Kane once again straps on his weapons, he embarks on an epic journey of redemption. Written and directed by Michael J. Bassett, the film also stars Rachel Hurd-Wood, Pete Postlethwaite, Alice Krige, Mackenzie Crook, Jason Flemyng and Max von Sydow as Josiah Kane.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Better than expected,
By Colin Leslie "The Black Abyss" (Inverness, UK) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Solomon Kane: Official Movie Novelisation (Film Tie in) (Mass Market Paperback)
By rights this book should be rubbish, let's look at the evidence. Firstly, Hollywood has not been kind to the legacy left by Robert E. Howard, the Conan films were camped up travesties and Red Sonja was just a travesty. Hollywood seems to take out all the interesting bits of Howard's writing before focusing in on the most basic (muscly adventure). Second it's a novelisation, now to me that's like someone writing a description of Van Gogh's Sunflowers. Oh yes, they might be yellow flowers in a vase but that hardly conveys the power of the artists intentions now does it. But...and there are two big buts, this is Ramsey Campbell, Britain's greatest living horror writer and secondly it features Howard's most interesting character.Solomon Kane is a 17th Century Puritan. He fears his soul is owned by the devil because of previous misdemeanours so vows "never to harm another man", but a chance encounter with a group of travellers changes everything. Not only is Kane forced to revise his moral code but his past indiscretions come back to haunt him with a vengeance. Now as plots go it's not much and certainly bears little resemblance to the exotic and esoteric strands that ran through Howard's short stories but it's a fun adventure and for the casual viewer goes some way to explaining this complex character. You will probably see the ending coming about twenty pages in but just hang on and enjoy the ride and it's fine. What really makes this work though is Kane's character and most importantly the way this is portrayed by Ramsey Campbell. The Christ like journey Kane undertakes tests the limits of, not just his physical strength but also his faith. This is a man seemingly condemned by God who is forced to try to redeem himself by carrying out Gods work. This duality between religion and violence was always the most fascinating thing about Kane and it is dealt with well here. Ramsey Campbell manages to take the basic screenplay but weaves in his own subtle dark magic so that the novel sparkles with an undercurrent of deeper, darker things. It's nothing like his normal fairly dense prose and rightly so. Whilst his normal writing requires concentration and rewards the reader with unbeatable levels of unease, this is an adventure first and foremost and demands the direct style it is given. Credit also should be given that both book and movie have avoided Howard's annoying habit of portraying Kane's voice in authentic 17th C Devonian, something which always comes across like a biblical pirate to me. So it shouldn't work but it does, don't get me wrong it's hardly going to trouble the Booker judges but that's not what it sets out to do. It's great to see Robert E. Howard's legacy given a bit more attention and hopefully it will open up the "sombre and gloomy world" of Kane to a new audience. If you want to try out some of the original stories then my advice would be to get hold of a copy of The Right Hand Of Doom from the fine people at Wordsworth editions.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The solitutude of Kane,
By
This review is from: Solomon Kane: Official Movie Novelisation (Film Tie in) (Mass Market Paperback)
For a movie tie-in novelisation of Robert E Howard's character, Solomon Kane, Ramsey Campbell did an excellent job, describing in detail the main character, his surroundings and the mood of the present moment! 100 pages in and he had my heart strings touched by the way he captured the slaughter of the Crowthorns family, who have previously rescued and befriended Kane, with the daughter Meredith being captured and the young boy Samuel being mercilessly killed in front of his parents, older brother and sister, after which his older brother and father are killed.This is not a book to be rushed. Even if it is a movie tie-in, time should be taken to read the book so as to fully visualise the events as they unfold. Kane swears to surviving Katherine, the mother of the Crowthorns family, that he will find daughter Meredith and save her from a fate to be bestowed upon her, a witches curse, and so unfolds a gripping tale which leads to a great climax. I shall enjoy watching the DVD AFTER I have read the book. Highly recommended.
1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
OK but only due to author.,
By Gareth Wilson - Falcata Times Blog "Falcata T... - See all my reviews (VINE VOICE) (TOP 500 REVIEWER)
This review is from: Solomon Kane: Official Movie Novelisation (Film Tie in) (Mass Market Paperback)
When I originally heard about the movie finally making an appearance, I was more than happy that this character made his big screen debut. Then I started hearing from people that it was completely different to the RE Howard characters within. That said, you'll always get the fans who hate whatever has been done with any character/book adaptation. So I decided to give this a go, purely for the fact that I'm not all that fey with the Solomon Kane novels.What unfurled within (for those who don't have a clue currently) is a cross between a medieval Spawn and Van Helsing. Whilst that's not a bad thing it did only really leave the title only one route to travel which it did pretty well, but I put that mainly in the hands of the producers putting their money where their mouth is and utilising a damn fine writer with a lot of clout within the genre, Ramsey Campbell. It's action packed, it's got great fight sequences but it did make the character feel pretty one dimensional and with the trials and tribulations faced within it did show how far Ramsey must have been pushed to get a tale with a few more troughs and peaks than I think the film would have allowed. It was always going to be an uphill struggle but he turned what could have been just a cash in, into a reasonable product that will amuse a number of readers.
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