RATING 2 out of 5

Stockholm Bloodbath attempts to bring an exciting tone to the historical drama with a revenge based action and some humour, but despite a committed cast, the film’s uneven tone prevents it from becoming the riveting historical drama or exciting action film it simultaneously strives to be.

The strength of Stockholm Bloodbath lies in its cast and technical aspects. Sophie Cookson and Alba August are excellent in the lead roles of Anne and Freja Eriksson, both bringing a tenacity as these two sisters out for revenge against the men who killed their family as they find themselves stuck in the middle of a larger political maneuver to disrupt the ruling powers of Sweden and Denmark. They each impress in the action sequences, especially August with her character’s silent but commanding presence, making for two compelling lead characters for the film. Claes Bang is perfectly cast as the villainous King Christian II, chewing up every scene of his which propels the political conflict between Sweden and Denmark that is at the heart of the film’s story. Emily Beecham is great as Christina Gyllenstierna, the noble woman who finds herself as the leading force against King Christian’s attempt to take control of Denmark, creating a wonderful trio of lead female characters alongside Cookson and August. As with all historical dramas, the costuming is exquisite, and the fight choreography of the action sequences injects the film with some much needed adrenaline during the film’s bloodier moments. From a critical point of view, Stockholm Bloodbath has everything you would expect from a historical action film, and does so with solid production value.

Where the film stumbles is in its tone. On one hand, it's a historical dramatization of the massacres of November 1520 in Sweden as the Stockholm Bloodbath, explaining the political context of both Sweden and Denmark that culminated in the death of so many. While some of the historical exposition is quickly moved over to make time for the action sequences that may leave those viewers not as familiar with these events having a harder time trying to keep track of the many players in the story, the film seems to hit the major moments of this story even if the screenplay feels like a Wikipedia summary of the Stockholm Bloodbath. At the same time, there is a John Wick-esque revenge based thriller with Anne and Freja seeking revenge for the death of their family, packing a brutal violence with a sense of humour seen through the character of Anne, obviously trying to make this historical drama more appealing and entertaining for general audiences. While on paper these two tones could mix well to deliver an exciting take on the historical drama, they don’t pair well on screen. The action sequences and revenge based story of Anne and Freja benefit from this tone, but the jarring shift into the slower political historical drama moments does not do these scenes any benefit as they lose the energy of the film’s other half. Yes, it's bound to be more exciting than your standard history class, but compared to other historical dramas like Gladiator and Braveheart, Stockholm Bloodbath is unable to capture that epic nature that viewers desire from a historical action film.

Audiences are no strangers to historical dramas, with many of them being some of the biggest and most exciting films to ever grace the silver screen, and Stockholm Bloodbath strives to capture this greatness in every frame. There is no doubt that director Mikael Håfström does a great number of rights in the film, from the excellent performances of the lead cast and the impressive costume design, but the two distinct tones of the film, while working on their own, clash and hold the film back from being what it wants to be. With the awkward mixing of revenge based thriller, comedy and historical drama, not even the impressive performances of Sophie Cookson and Claes Bang will allow Stockholm Bloodbath to become the crowd pleasing historical drama it could have been.