RATING: A

Blue Harbor Entertainment presents a Fig Production Group film in association with Garden of Titans and Intermarium Media. Directed by Domagoj Mazuran and Zoran Lisinac. Written and produced by Neb Chupin, Domagoj Mazuran, and Zoran Lisinac. Cinematography by Maciej Twardowski. Edited by Alexander Harrison Jacobs, James Kondelik, and Matthew Michael Ross.

Stars Marco Ilsø, James Cosmo, Sarah-Sofie Boussnina, Joey Ansah, Goran Bogdan, Ivana Dudic, with Gilles Geary, and Caroline Goodall. 

It’s a new kind of adventure on the high seas in this action film that feels like a live-action graphic novel come to life.

The Great Flood caused the Earth’s lands to be resorted to only islands. Three centuries have passed and a sanctuary city-state known as Argos exists under the reign of The Founders, an elite organization who rule with a storm constantly in the way to divide the ocean. The Founders hold an annual race to decide which islands will remain and which ones will fall under their rule. However, one young man sets out to prove that the Founders and the storm are a means to prevent freedom amongst those who are on the islands.

As a young boy, Neb has always believed that The Founders were only there to rule with their iron fists and the storm can easily be passed. He is seen as an outcast as a result and a laughing stock. However, Neb had heard the story of Hammerhead, a legend who was believed to have surpassed the storm before its wreckage. When he is struck by lightning, he becomes haunted by visions of the past and future. Now an adult and with the help of fellow traveler Maia, Neb sets out to prove his theory at any cost. 

It is one thing to have a story based on a childhood experience, but it is another to take that childhood experience and turn it into a fantasy sci-fi that has many inspirations, from the Bible and the Odyssey to manga and anime. That’s exactly what happens with this film, in which producer Neb Chupin came up with the story based on his childhood experience with his grandfather with writer/directors Domagoj Mazuran and Zoran Lisinac expanding it into a post-apocalyptic sci-fi adventure that has some great visuals and a great story is made up on a few small stories interconnecting, giving it that anime/manga flavor to the narrative. 

Marco Ilsø, who perhaps is best known internationally for his role as Ragnar’s son Hvitserk on Vikings, takes center as Neb (a nod to the producer), a young man who believes that the “storm” that serves as the barrier around Argos is a fake and made by the Founders in order to keep their hold among the humanity on the islands. The first half-hour focuses on Neb’s relationship with his grandfather amidst the theory, which makes him somewhat of an outcast among the people of Fig Island. However, when he is struck by lightning, he begins to see visions of the past and future, prompting him to become the hero he is meant to be.

Gilles Geary is excellent in the role of Tarus, the Founder leader who plans to ensure that humanity still remains under their control, no matter what it takes. While one high ranking official, the Baroness, excellently played by Caroline Goodall, wants Tarus to believe she is following him, she does believe there is more to life than being under control of the Founders. There are others like Neb, who believe that the storm is just a front for the Founders, and at first are reluctant, but Neb’s confidence is what the rebels need to find a way to take down the power of the Founders once and for all. 

Storm Rider: Legend of Hammerhead is destined to be an epic. It has many inspirations, from a childhood experience mixed in with those from The Bible and The Odyssey to anime and manga all wrapped up in a nice little package that should it be successful, could be the beginning of something more epic in the wings, a “hydroverse” if you will. 

The film will hit theaters on March 13.