The Eagle (2011)

In Roman-ruled Britain, a young Roman soldier endeavors to honor his father's memory by finding his lost legion's golden emblem.

Director:

Kevin Macdonald

Writers:

Jeremy Brock (screenplay), Rosemary Sutcliff (novel)

Stars:

Channing Tatum, Jamie Bell, Donald Sutherland

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Channing Tatum	...	Marcus Flavius Aquila
Jamie Bell	...	Esca
Donald Sutherland	...	Uncle Aquila
Mark Strong	...	Guern
Tahar Rahim	...	Seal Prince
Denis O'Hare	...	Lutorius
Dakin Matthews	...	Claudius Marcellus
Douglas Henshall	...	Cradoc
Paul Ritter	...	Galba
Pip Carter	...	Servius Placidus
Ned Dennehy	...	Seal Chief / The Horned One
István Göz	...	Cohort Centurion
Bence Gerö	...	Celt Boy / Young Marcus
Zsolt László	...	Paulus
Julian Lewis Jones	...	Cassius

Storyline

In 140 AD, twenty years after the unexplained disappearance of the entire Ninth Legion in the mountains of Scotland, young centurion Marcus Aquila (Tatum) arrives from Rome to solve the mystery and restore the reputation of his father, the commander of the Ninth. Accompanied only by his British slave Esca (Bell), Marcus sets out across Hadrian's Wall into the uncharted highlands of Caledonia - to confront its savage tribes, make peace with his father's memory, and retrieve the lost legion's golden emblem, the Eagle of the Ninth.

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Plot Keywords:

hadrian's wall | britain | honor | disappearance | eagle | 

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Taglines:

The destiny of a soldier. The honour of a slave. The fate of an empire.

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Genres:

Adventure | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for battle sequences and some disturbing images

Details

Official Sites:

Focus Features [us] Official Facebook

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English Scottish Gaelic

Release Date:

11 February 2011 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Eagle of the Ninth

Filming Locations:

Achiltibuie, Ross and Cromarty, Highland, Scotland, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$25,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£1,038,954 (UK) (25 March 2011)

Gross:

£2,770,774 (UK) (15 April 2011)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Focus Features, Film4, Toledo Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

114 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital DTS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The main character's name is Marcus Aquila. Aquila is the Latin word for "Eagle".

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Goofs

Marcus noted that Esca knew the Northern language and could interpret. Esca was the son of a Brigantes chief and spoke Brythonic, which is close to Welsh. The Brigantes had controlled a large section of northern England. When they pass through Hadrian's Wall into Scotland, Esca speaks in Gaelic to everyone. There were no Gaelic speakers known to be in Scotland in 120 A.D. Most scholars believe the inhabitants [the Picts] spoke a Brythonic language related to but distinct from British. The first Roman recording of Gaelic speakers [the Scotti] in Scotland was in a skirmish at Hadrian's Wall in 297, and immigration wasn't until circa 400 A.D. Esca could indeed interpret, but in Brythonic not Gaelic.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Marcus Aquila: Marcus Flavius Aquila, Fourth Cohort of Gaul, Second Legion, come to relieve the command.
Lutorius: Lutorius Drusillus Salinator, acting senior officer.
Marcus Aquila: Where's the garrison commander?
Lutorius: He left this morning, sir. Couldn't wait to get away.

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Connections

Featured in Great Movie Mistakes III: Not in 3D (2011)

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Soundtracks

"The Return of the Eagle"
Performed by Torc
Featuring The Neff Brothers and Atli Örvarsson

User Reviews

Much less rousing and dramatic than a "Gladiator," but a solid action epic

The latest modern film to play swords-and-sandals dress-up is "The Eagle," starring Channing "Pretty Boy" Tatum, a name I bestowed upon him having played "Pretty Boy" Floyd in Michael Mann's "Public Enemies" back in 2008, albeit a part of no significance. I suppose when they coined the term "hunk," no one expected it to apply so literally to the thick and broad-shouldered 30-year-old.

Tatum plays Marcus Flavius-Flave Aquila (okay, just Flavius), Roman centurion and son of a disgraced commander who disappeared along with the entire Ninth Legion and Rome's beloved eagle standard in the north of Britain in 120 AD. Fast forward 20 years and son has chosen to be posted in Britain in hopes of gaining back his, his father and Rome's honor by discovering the fate of the legion and recovering the eagle. For Tatum, this trip into dangerous territory beyond Hadrian's Wall, as it turns out, is also a test of leading man meddle.

Heading up the real American heroes of "G.I. Joe" doesn't exactly count for star capability, and while "The Eagle" barely holds a candle to the Roman epic of all Roman epics that is "Gladiator," it certainly can be seen as a more serious step and one in which the target audience has no interest in ogling him -- just watching him kill rebellious "Seal Men," (precursors to Scots).

Tatum's grades are definitely passing, but he earns more sympathy than attention. He's not quite a commanding presence, but Jeremy Brock's script doesn't exactly show us anything about him other than he feels disgraced and he's a good soldier. Flashbacks and dreams about his father riding off never to be seen again are hardly adequate ways to build a hero who can rally our spirits. He can throw down with the best of them, but he's better stoic.

For the most part, "The Eagle" follows suit. Kevin Macdonald, a versatile and underrated director who has an Academy Award for Best Documentary and also directed Forest Whitaker to his "Last King of Scotland" Oscar, keeps the action moving and more old school -- old school being the days before CGI. The fight in the beginning all the way to the journey beyond the wall and the perils he faces excite and hold attention. For an epic film that places honor and friendship at the center, the stakes just never feel high enough. You'll make an investment in hoping for a peaceful ending, but nothing stirs beyond that.

The film tries to create several dynamics such as Marcus' daddy issues and the relationship between Marcus and Esca (Jamie Bell), his servant whose life he saved, who over the wall could betray him at any moment, but little doubt seeps in. After all, while Esca's a tough and resilient guy, he was once Billy Elliot -- he's probably not screwing anyone over. Actually, Bell's performance hurts Tatum's when all is said and done; he's much more unpredictable.

Roman history nuts will find little to enjoy from that perspective with "The Eagle" as political undertones are practically non-existent and you have Americans playing Romans and Brits playing savage Brits. Brock's script sticks to the action and compelling events, using a historical period to create a tone, much in the way "300" did. Appropriately adjusting expectations for "The Eagle" to this level will help it retain the honor it deserves for capturing 120 minutes worth of interest with eventful action sequences.

~Steven C

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