''Arn – The Kingdom at Road's End'' () is an

epic film Epic films have large scale, sweeping scope, and spectacle. The term is slightly ambiguous, sometimes designating a film genre and at other times simply big-budget films. Like epics in the classical literary sense, it is often focused on a her ...

based on

Jan Guillou Jan Oskar Sverre Lucien Henri Guillou (, ; born 17 January 1944) is a French-Swedish author and journalist. Guillou's fame in Sweden was established during his time as an investigative journalist, most notably in 1973 when he and co-reporter Pet ...

trilogy A trilogy is a set of three distinct works that are connected and can be seen either as a single work or as three individual works. They are commonly found in literature, film, and video games. Three-part works that are considered components of ...

about the fictional Swedish

Knight Templar The Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon, mainly known as the Knights Templar, was a Military order (religious society), military order of the Catholic Church, Catholic faith, and one of the most important military ord ...

Arn Magnusson. It was released to cinemas in Sweden on 22 August 2008 and is the sequel to the 2007 film ''

Arn – The Knight Templar ''Arn: The Knight Templar'' () is an epic film based on Jan Guillou's trilogy about the fictional Swedish Knight Templar Arn Magnusson. The film was released to cinemas in Sweden on 17 December 2007 and the sequel, '' Arn – The Kingdom at R ...

'', but both films were combined into a single cut for the English release on DVD in 2010. Filmed in

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

Damascus, Syria Damascus ( , ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in the Levant region by population, largest city of Syria. It is the oldest capital in the world and, according to some, the fourth Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. Kno ...

and

Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...

Plot

The plot of the film loosely follows the book of the same name – the third volume of the ''Crusades'' trilogy, spanning the period of about 1187 to 1210. Arn is the commander of a

Templar The Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon, mainly known as the Knights Templar, was a military order of the Catholic faith, and one of the most important military orders in Western Christianity. They were founded in 11 ...

garrison in Gaza. He is commanded to join a Templar force intercepting the army of

Saladin Salah ad-Din Yusuf ibn Ayyub ( – 4 March 1193), commonly known as Saladin, was the founder of the Ayyubid dynasty. Hailing from a Kurdish family, he was the first sultan of both Egypt and Syria. An important figure of the Third Crusade, h ...

. Due to the arrogance of the new Templar Grandmaster

Gerard de Ridefort Gérard de Ridefort, also called Gerard de Ridefort (died 4 October 1189), was Grand Master of the Knights Templar from the end of 1184 and until his death in 1189. Early life Gerard de Ridefort is thought probably to have been of Flemish ori ...

, the Crusaders are destroyed in the ensuing

Battle of Hattin The Battle of Hattin took place on 4 July 1187, between the Crusader states of the Levant and the forces of the Ayyubid sultan Saladin. It is also known as the Battle of the Horns of Hattin, due to the shape of the nearby extinct volcano of ...

. Arn is wounded but Saladin recognizes him and saves Arn from execution. Arn wakes in

Damascus Damascus ( , ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in the Levant region by population, largest city of Syria. It is the oldest capital in the world and, according to some, the fourth Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. Kno ...

, his wounds treated; Saladin sends him home with his friendship as he prepares to take Jerusalem. Cecilia is finally allowed to leave the monastery where she has done penance for twenty years, meeting her son

Magnus Magnus, meaning "Great" in Latin, was used as cognomen of Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus in the first century BC. The best-known use of the name during the Roman Empire is for the fourth-century Western Roman Emperor Magnus Maximus. The name gained wid ...

for the first time. She soon hears of the fall of Jerusalem and the destruction of the Templars and believing Arn dead decides to become a nun for the rest of her life, being offered the post of Abbess by the

Folkung In modern Swedish, Folkung has two meanings, which appear to be opposites: # The medieval " House of Bjälbo" in Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in ...

clan. Arn meets her as she is just about to enter the convent, and they marry at last, building an estate, Forsvik, where Arn has gathered craftsmen from all over Europe and the Holy Land. Arn is introduced to his son Magnus, born in his absence; after a little time a daughter named Alde is born, and Forsvik grows rapidly. Arn takes young men and boys to become knights-in-training. Six years later King

Knut Eriksson Knut Eriksson (; born before 1150 – died 1195/96), also known as Canute I, was King of Sweden from 1173 until his death (rival king since 1167). He was a son of King Erik the Saint and Queen Christina, who was a granddaughter of the Swedish k ...

dies, leaving children as heirs. King Sverker II retakes the crown with Danish help and attempts to murder the sons of Knut, prevented by the intercession of a Folkung who has tricked Sverker into thinking he was a double agent. Forced to go to war once again, Arn leads the Folkung against the Sverker-Danish force at the

Battle of Lena The Battle of Lena occurred on 31 January 1208 and probably took place near :sv:Kungslena, Kungslena, in the Tidaholm Municipality in Västergötland, Sweden. It was an important battle between the Danish-backed King Sverker II of Sweden and Prin ...

, aided by Arabic craftsmen and the Norwegian Templar, Harald Øysteinsson. Arn destroys the Danish cavalry tricking them to charge into a rain of arrows. Arn charges forward on horseback to attack King Sverker, and is intercepted by Ebbe Sunesson, the leader of the Danes; in the ensuing duel Arn kills him, taking a fatal wound in the exchange. The Folkung emerge victorious, but Arn dies of his wound upon his return to Forsvik. The film concludes with an epilogue foreshadowing the completion of the

consolidation of Sweden Consolidation may refer to: In science and technology * Consolidation (computing), the act of linkage editing in computing * Consolidation (locomotive), popular name of a steam locomotive with a 2-8-0 wheel arrangement * Consolidation (soil), ...

into a unified kingdom a generation later through

Birger Jarl Birger Jarl or Birger Magnusson (21 October 1266) was a Swedish statesman and regent, ''Swedish jarls, jarl'', and a member of the House of Bjälbo, who played a pivotal role in consolidating Sweden after the civil wars between the House of Eri ...

, identified as Arn's grandson.

Cast

Joakim Nätterqvist Dag Joakim Tedson Nätterqvist (; born 24 October 1974) is a Swedish actor, theatre director, musical artist, singer, and acting coach. Background Nätterqvist was born in Gamla Uppsala. He is the son of competitive equestrians Ted and Pia Le ...

as Arn Magnusson *

Sofia Helin Sofia Margareta Götschenhjelm-Helin is a Swedish actress. She was nominated for a Guldbagge Awards, Guldbagge Award for her role in ''Dalecarlians (film), Dalecarlians'', and stars as Saga Norén in the Danish/Swedish co-produced TV series ''T ...

as Cecilia Algotsdotter *

Anders Baasmo Christiansen Anders Baasmo (born 29 January 1976) is a Norwegian actor originally from Hamar. Baasmo earned his breakthrough in 2003 when he received the Amanda award for his performance in the Norwegian picture '' Buddy''. He won the TV award Gullruten in ...

as Harald Øysteinsson, a Norwegian Templar and Arn's trusted friend *

Morgan Alling Sven Robert Morgan Alling (born ''Persson''; 8 June 1968) is a Sweden, Swedish actor, screenwriter and film director, film and theatre director. Alling finished Malmö Theatre Academy 1990. He rose to fame in 1993 as co-host of children's telev ...

as Eskil Magnusson, brother of Arn *

Stellan Skarsgård Stellan John Skarsgård (, ; born 13 June 1951) is a Swedish actor. He is known for his collaborations with director Lars von Trier, appearing in ''Breaking the Waves'' (1996), ''Dancer in the Dark'' (2000), '' Dogville'' (2003), ''Melancholia' ...

Birger Brosa Birger Brosa (Old Norse: ''Birgir Brósa''; died 9 January 1202) was the Swedish jarls, jarl of Sweden from 1174 to 1202. Biography He was a son of Bengt Snivil and a member of the powerful House of Bjälbo. In medieval texts, he is either cal ...

, uncle of Arn *

Joel Kinnaman Charles Joel Nordström Kinnaman (; born 25 November 1979) is a Swedish-American actor. He first gained recognition for his roles in the 2010 Swedish film '' Easy Money'' and the ''Johan Falk'' crime series. Kinnaman is known internationally fo ...

as King Sverker Karlsson *

Gustaf Skarsgård Gustaf Caspar Orm Skarsgård (born 12 November 1980) is a Swedish actor. He is known for his roles in ''Evil'' (2003), '' The Way Back'' (2010), ''Kon-Tiki'' (2012), and '' Oppenheimer'' (2023). He also appeared in the HBO TV series ''Westworld ...

as King

, Arn's best friend *

Bill Skarsgård Bill Istvan Günther Skarsgård (; born 9 August 1990) is a Swedish actor. He is known for portraying Pennywise in the horror films '' It'' (2017) and ''It Chapter Two'' (2019). Other horror appearances were in the series '' Hemlock Grove'' (2 ...

Erik Knutsson Erik Knutsson (; – 10 April 1216), sometimes known as Eric X, was King of Sweden between 1208 and 1216. Also known as ''Erik the Survivor'' (), he was, at his accession to the throne, the only remaining son of King Knut Eriksson and his queen ...

, son of Knut *

Milind Soman Milind Usha Soman (born 4 November 1965) is an Indian actor, model, film producer, and fitness enthusiast. He rose to fame in the year 1995, when he got featured in Alisha Chinai's music video, '' Made in India''. The same year, he made his deb ...

* Nicholas Boulton as

, Grandmaster of Templars * Nijas Ørnbak-Fjeldmose as Sune Folkesson *

Martin Wallström Carl Martin Gunnar Wallström Milkéwitz (born 7 July 1983) is a Swedish television and film actor. A successful actor in his home country, he is best known internationally for his 2015 American debut role as Tyrell Wellick in the USA Network c ...

as Magnus Månsköld, son of Arn * Jakob Cedergren as Ebbe Sunesson * Driss Roukhe as Fakhr * Fanny Risberg as Queen Cecilia Blanka, wife of Knut * Zakaria Atifi as Ibrahim *

Valter Skarsgård Valter Skarsgård (; born 25 October 1995) is a Swedish actor, a member of the Skarsgård acting family that includes his father, Stellan, and brothers Alexander, Gustaf, and Bill. Early life and education Valter Skarsgård was born on 25 Oc ...

as Jon Knutsson * Azher Adil as Brosoa * Mohamed Tsouli as Village Elder *

Göran Ragnerstam Göran Axel Ragnerstam (born 7 November 1957 ) is a Swedish actor. Ragnerstam was born in Stockholm; he grew up in Södermalm and later in Vällingby. His father was interested in theatre and acted out for his children. He encouraged Ragnersta ...

as Bishop Erland * Callum Mitchell as Viking *

Barnaby Kay Barnaby Kay (born 9 April 1969) is a British actor who has played roles in television, stage, film and performance art. He was a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company. Personal life Kay was born at St Pancras, London and is the son of actor ...

as Riddare

Language

In addition to Swedish as the film's primary language, several other languages were used in the dialogue to heighten the cultural differences: Norwegian, Danish, English, and

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

. English was used to represent

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

and

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

speakers. The part of the dialogue that is not in Swedish was subtitled in Swedish.

Music

Music composed by

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'' ...

. Closing song by

Marie Fredriksson Gun-Marie Fredriksson (; 30 May 1958 – 9 December 2019) was a Swedish singer, songwriter, pianist, and lead vocalist of pop-rock duo Roxette, which she formed in 1986 with Per Gessle. The duo achieved international success in the late 1980s an ...

, the lead singer for

Roxette Roxette is a Swedish pop rock duo originally consisting of Marie Fredriksson and Per Gessle, both of whom were already established musicians in Sweden prior to the band's formation. Fredriksson had released a number of successful solo albums, ...

Reception

considers the story of Arn as an

epic Epic commonly refers to: * Epic poetry, a long narrative poem celebrating heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation * Epic film, a genre of film defined by the spectacular presentation of human drama on a grandiose scale Epic(s) ...

, but in his opinion the film narrative of Arn only turns into an epic during and after the second movie ''Arn - The Kingdom at Road's End'', when Arn returns to Sweden bringing multicultural craftsmen and doctors to build a new home. After the victory against the Sverker Army and Danish soldiers, his legacy is ensured and revealed in the closing title of the movie: ''"Arn Magnusson's victory secured the peace for many years. Thanks to him, the country was soon united as the Kingdom of Sweden."'' The important matter for Sturtevant and the core of the movie, is the epic and myth of the national foundation of Sweden itself. He sees similarities between the myth and the contemporary Swedish self-image of a society built upon multicultural cooperation. Sturtevant also adds that contemporary Sweden takes pride in neutrality and pacifism which is reflected in Arns's last battle speech: ''"Listen to me! Have no doubt. Believe! Believe in our victory. We chose this place. Not the Danes, and not the Sverkers. We chose this time, not the Danes and not the Sverkers. Believe. God stands by those who are strong in faith. That is why we shall win and peace shall reign."'' Through this statement, the fictional character Arn is paving the way for his grandson

, who was a real-life statesman in thirteenth-century Sweden. Sturtevant sees Arn's final act in ''The Kingdom at Road's End'' as the beginning of forging the Swedish nation and identity.

Award

The second Arn movie won the viewer's award at the

44th Guldbagge Awards The 44th Guldbagge Awards ceremony, presented by the Swedish Film Institute, honored the best Swedish films of 2008, and took place on 12 January 2009. ''Everlasting Moments'' directed by Jan Troell was presented with the award for Best Film. W ...

References

Sources

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Arn - The Kingdom At Road's End 2008 films 2000s action drama films 2000s historical romance films 2000s war drama films Films based on Swedish novels Films directed by Peter Flinth Films set in the 12th century Films set in the 13th century Films set in Damascus Films set in Sweden Swedish sequel films Crusades films Knights Templar in popular culture Films shot in Glasgow Films shot in Morocco Films shot in Fife Films shot in Edinburgh Films shot in Sweden Swedish action films Swedish epic films Swedish historical films Historical action films Films scored by Tuomas Kantelinen War epic films 2008 drama films 2000s Swedish films Films based on historical novels Films based on works by Jan Guillou