It seems the last ten or so years have been leaning heavily on Nordic and Viking-era pieces, including in film, television, and even video games. The popularity of the MCU's Thor could have helped boost this recent trend, with the release of entertainment like the new God of War video game series, the TV show Vikings, and now director Robert Eggers' latest film, The Northman.

The Northman follows a young Nordic Prince named Amleth who is on the verge of becoming a man when his father, King Aurvandil War-Raven, is murdered by his brother Fjölnir -- Amleth's uncle. After Amleth's mother, Queen Gudrún, is taken by Fjölnir and his loyalists, Amleth escapes to a nearby shore, and sails away, vowing to avenge his father, save his mother, and kill his uncle.

RELATED: 7 Great Viking Movies To Watch After The Northman

As years pass, Amleth finds himself a part of a Viking tribe, pillaging villages and selling the residents into slavery as a source of income. But after invading this one village, he overhears from one of his tribesmen that these slaves will be sent to a sheep farmer in Iceland named Fjölnir the Brotherless. He knows the farmer must be his father's killer, and so he cuts his hair, brands himself with the mark of a slave, and travels to the far away land to enact vengeance upon his treacherous uncle.

How Does The Northman End?

After discovering that his mother was involved in the murder of King Aurvandil War-Raven, and that she herself was merely a slave to the once king, Amleth is conflicted, having been lied to all his life, a life that was ultimately ruined by everyone he once considered family, including his father. And so, Amleth storms out of his mother's tent and kills Fjölnir's eldest son, Thórir, while he sleeps, stealing his heart straight from his chest before he goes into hiding.

The next day, Amleth is captured by Fjölnir, and tortured for withholding the true location of Thórir's heart. But a flock of ravens -- thought to be sent from the All-Father Odin -- break the restraints and set him free. Amleth is then rescued by a fellow slave, Olga of the Birch Forest, whom he has fallen in love with, and they escape Iceland together on a ship. On the boat, Amleth discovers that Olga is pregnant with his twin children, and he thinks back to his prophecy given to him by a He-Witch who showed him where to find the sword that would kill Fjölnir:

At the time, he thought nothing of the first option, because his only purpose was vengeance. But now the distinction between the two options is clear, he must choose to either avenge his father, or move on and raise his future family. He decides he will choose both, seeing as though he believes Fjölnir will never stop pursuing Amleth to avenge Thórir, and once he finds out Amleth also has children, he will no doubt murder them, too.

So, Amleth flees the ship back to Iceland to fulfill his vengeance, which will in turn protect Olga and their unborn children. Once back at the farm, Amleth kills Fjölnir's loyalists and frees the remaining slaves before he's attacked by his mother and half-brother Gunnar, both of whom he is forced to kill in self-defense after being severely wounded by them. Fjölnir retrieves the bodies of his family's corpses, and tells Amleth to meet him at the Gates of Hel, a distant field that has been covered in lava after a volcanic eruption.

The two then battle each other in an epic sword fight while surrounded by the flowing lava. Amleth is weak and wounded, falling to the ground about to accept defeat, before rising again with fury and wailing his mystical blade, Daugr, upon Fjölnir. Amleth strikes one last time, severing Fjölnir's head as Fjölnir stabs Amleth in the heart, and Amleth collapses. As he lies on the ground dying, he visualizes Olga and his unborn children, and can hear Olga say to him:

Amleth then sheds a single tear before being escorted by a Valkyrja (Valkyrie) to Valhalla, after dying a warrior's death in battle.

When he was a boy, Amleth and his father performed an initiation ceremony that signified him becoming a man and a king, where he swore an oath to both his father and to Heimir the Fool, acting as a sort of oracle:

By returning to the farm to kill Fjölnir, Amleth sought to stay true to his oath, honoring his promise to seek vengeance, protecting Olga and his children, and avenging his father for his murder. During the ritual, Amleth shed a single tear after touching his father's fatal wound, a tear captured by Heimir, who told the boy:

And so, as Amleth was dying in the Gates of Hel, he shed the tear at the moment he needed it most, at his weakest point in his life. This moment was weaker than when his father died because he cried over leaving Olga and his children, the family he chose, the one that truly loved him back. Because he felt true love for his mother and father, but their love for him was false. His father's love was selfish, for an heir and future king of a kingdom rather than a son. His mother's love was just plain fake, because she never loved Aurvandil and didn't particularly care for Amleth as a result. But Olga saw his pain and his true self, and chose to be with him and bear his children. While Amleth fought the entire movie for the honor of the family he came from, he came to realize he was actually fighting for the family he would eventually create.

What Is The Northman About?

Amleth's father is killed, and his mother kidnapped by his uncle Fjölnir. He escapes from his uncle and flees to another land, where he joins a Viking tribe and invades various villages, all the while he is plotting his return to his uncle to enact his revenge.

After leaving his Viking tribe, Amleth travels to Iceland to serve as a slave to Fjölnir on his sheep farm. There, he befriends Olga, telling her the true reason why he is there, to which she agrees to help him and plot their joint escape. Along the way, they fall in love.

In the meantime, Amleth keeps his identity a secret, adopting the name Björnulfr. He rises in the ranks of the slaves, eventually becoming a sort of "head slave" after saving Gunnar from another laborer. Olga rises in the same manner, becoming in charge of the house-working women slaves. Every night, though, Amleth further develops his plan to kill his uncle, visiting witches, retrieving his sword, Draugr, and eventually killing off the loyalist soldiers one-by-one before eventually revealing his true self.

What Is The Northman's Rotten Tomatoes Score?

The Northman is rated 90% for a critic score, and a 64% audience score. Some of the notable reviews from Tomatometer-approved critics include:

Lee Zumpe (Tampa Bay Newspapers):

Ryan Oquiza (Rappler):

Tori Brazier (metro.co.uk):

Robert Eggers doesn't fail to deliver a film that is visually stunning while telling a Nordic tale that is as timeless as it is a reflection of a time when ruthless barbarians and witches delivered fate to those who believed in it. Definitely worth the watch, especially for those who are intrigued by the histories of Vikings and Norse mythology.

MORE: The Northman Shouldn't Have Failed At The Box Office