Arnold Schwarzenegger took a muscle-bound step closer to superstardom with this entertaining sword-and-sorcery epic from John Milius, the writer of Apocalypse Now. Milius quotes Nietzsche and ladles on the fantasy atmosphere with a Wagnerian flourish as Arnie's Nordic superman ventures forth to avenge his parents' death at the hands of James Earl Jones's warlord. He's aided in his quest by thief Sandahl Bergman and would-be comic sidekick Gerry Lopez. It's all too humourless for its own good, but the movie looks fabulous, rather like Arnie himself, and succeeds through a similar combination of testosterone and self-belief.

A horde of rampaging warriors massacre the parents of young Conan and enslave the young child for years on The Wheel of Pain. As the sole survivor of the childhood massacre, Conan is released from slavery and taught the ancient arts of fighting. Transforming himself into a killing machine, Conan travels into the wilderness to seek vengeance on Thulsa Doom, the man responsible for killing his family. In the wilderness, Conan takes up with the thieves Valeria and Subotai. The group comes upon King Osric, who wants the trio of warriors to help rescue his daughter who has joined Doom in the hills.