The Last Kingdom: Seven Kings Must Die Blu Ray Review (Universal)

The Last Kingdom: Seven Kings Must Die is a 2023 action film directed by Edward Bazalgette (The Last Kingdom, The Witcher, Versailles, Doctor Who, Class, The Guilty, and Top Gear). It was written by Martha Hillier (The Last Kingdom, Holby City, and EastEnders) and Bernard Cornwell (The Last Kingdom, The Winter King, and Sharpe). It’s a follow up to Netflix’s The Last Kingdom that lasted from 2015 to 2022 with 5 seasons and 46 episodes total. Several series regulars were cut from this full length feature due to time. Anlaf (played by: Pekka Strang from The Knocking, Tom of Finland, and Mister8) is the Viking king from Ireland. He arrives with his army in Northumbria after learning that Edward, King of the Anglo-Saxons, has fallen gravely ill. Edward soon dies, leaving behind three sons. Not one of them are named as his aetheling. Lady Eadgifu (played by: Elaine Cassidy from Sanctuary: A Witch’s Tale, Disco Pigs, The Wonder, Harper’s Island, and The Program) and the youngest son Edmund (played by: Zak Sutcliffe from No Offence, Waterloo Road, and The Brothers Grimsby) flee to Bebbanburg where Edward’s former ally Uhtred (played by: Alexander Dreymon from The Last Kingdom, Horizon Line, American Horror Story, Resistance, and Blood Randsom) resides. Uhtred is informed that Edward’s eldest son Aethelstan (played by: Harry Gilby from The Last Kingdom, Tolkien, Casualty, and Boarders) will likely attack his younger brother Aelfweard (played by: Ewan Horrocks from The Last Kingdom, Domina, and Lazarus) to claim his throne. Ingrith claims that “seven kings must die” before England is to be united.

Aethelstan is crowned king of the Saxons after he massacres his competition. Ingilmundr (played by: Laurie Davidson from The Sandman, Cats, Guilty Party, and Will) is his top advisor and he starts poisoning his mind more and more with his wicked advice. In Eoferwic, Aethelstan has taken over following the death of the previous Northumbrian king Rǫgnvaldr and demands that all foreign kings pay him tribute or face conquest and forced baptism. King Hywel Dda (played by: Steffan Rhodri from The Last Kingdom, House of the Dragon, Ironclad, and Wonder Woman) has bowed down to Aethelstan after his son was taken hostage. Aethelstan banishes Uhtred from England. Anlaf hosts a gathering of kings with Prince Domnal (played by: Ross Anderson from The Last Kingdom, Crawl, Unbroken, and Macbeth) plus the rulers of Strathclyde, Orkney, Shetland and Man, warning them of Aethelstan’s impending conquest. Aethelstan invades Scotland which forces King Constantin (played by: Rod Hallett from The Last Kingdom, Ant-Man, The Hitman’s Bodyguard, and Anna) and the other rulers to form an alliance. Knowing that all his friends and everyone that he cares about could be eliminated soon, Uhtred returns home and he makes peace with the ambitious Aethelstan to offer his help in this upcoming war. Not knowing if he can trust his former friend so he must watch his back from the new ruler and the variety of vengeful kings coming to take over their home. Can they pull it off? or Will the their kingdom be destroyed once in and for all???? The Last Kingdom: Seven Kings Must Die is a full length feature return from the popular Netflix television series. It brings back a decent amount of favorites from the show here. Alexander Dreymon is back as Uhtred, he tries to provide balance and save his home from an upcoming disaster and gruesome takeover. He is loyal and he has to go through hell just to prove it in Seven Kings Must Die. Harry Gilby is the power hungry and greedy Aethelstan. He kinda has a King Joffrey vibe to him at first. Is he a friend or enemy? You honestly can’t really tell at first. Both of these lead actors took charge in this The Last Kingdom adaptation and they are the best things about this production. This sequel has all kinds of familiar faces from the series that includes Ewan Horrocks, Rod Hallett, Ross Anderson, Steffan Rhodri, Mark Rowley, James Northcote, Cavan Clerkin, Arnas Fedaravicius, Emily Cox, Magnus Samuelsson, and Jeppe Beck Laursen. It’s great to see all these characters come back to this The Last Kingdom movie. The script is very entertaining, it stays busy and it has some nice twists. The Last Kingdom: Seven Kings Must Die is loaded with action and violence. If you are into stuff like Vikings or Game of Thrones then this will be perfect for you. It makes you miss the show and you want to revisit it after seeing this follow up. RECOMMENDED!!!! Let’s discuss this high definition presentation from Universal Pictures! This 1080p (2.39:1) unrated transfer looks great especially for being a lower budget direct to video sequel. It has an English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and English: Dolby Digital 2.0 tracks on the disc. All of the dialogue is very clean, the brutal violence is elevated, and the music has a killer boost to it. It has English SDH subtitles. It has the little over 9 minute “The Making of Seven Kings Must Die”. It has interviews with a variety of cast members and crew from the show and full length film here. They go over a overview of the last season of the television show. It has some behind the scenes footage. They chat about this follow up with such subjects as the plot, characters, changes, battle scenes, set design, and the action for the project. There’s no slipcover or a digital code with this brand new home video release. It’s available everywhere starting next week including MovieZyng.com, CHECK IT OUT!!!!