Eine Splittergruppe römischer Soldaten kämpft hinter feindlichen Linien um ihr Leben, nachdem ihre Legion bei einem Guerillaangriff verwüstet wurde.Eine Splittergruppe römischer Soldaten kämpft hinter feindlichen Linien um ihr Leben, nachdem ihre Legion bei einem Guerillaangriff verwüstet wurde.Eine Splittergruppe römischer Soldaten kämpft hinter feindlichen Linien um ihr Leben, nachdem ihre Legion bei einem Guerillaangriff verwüstet wurde.
- Auszeichnungen
- 1 Nominierung
- Roman Officer Argos
- (as Jake Maskell)
Handlung
WUSSTEST DU SCHON:
- WissenswertesNeil Marshall and his director of photography Sam McCurdy spent about two years discussing the look of the film before making it. One thing they were adamant about was that it should be shot on location and nowhere near a green screen.
- PatzerThe chief of the Picts would never have had a shaved head, as long hair and beards were considered what made a man strong and a leader.
- Zitate
Centurion Quintus Dias: [narrating] In the chaos of battle, when the ground beneath your feet is a slurry of blood, puke, piss and the entrails of friends and enemies alike, it's easy to turn to the gods for salvation. But it's soldiers who do the fighting, and soldiers who do the dying, and the gods never get their feet wet.
- Crazy CreditsThe end of the closing credits state that "This film is based on a 2000 year-old legend", referring to the mysterious disappearance of the Ninth Hispana or Ninth Spanish Legion in Roman-occupied Britain around 117 CE.
- VerbindungenFeatured in History Buffs: Gladiator (2015)
- SoundtracksFort Attack
Composed and arranged by Ilan Eshkeri
While it is Centurion Quintus Dias (Michael Fassbender) who is the protagonist as the somewhat reluctant leader of our heroes, the most memorable character on screen is Etain, a Brigantian tracker played by Olga Kurylenko. Etain's tribe was massacred by the Romans and she took refuge with the Picts. Her backstory is a powerful device that explains all the hatred she has for Romans and the length she will go to exact revenge. Neil Marshall makes great use of actress Kurylenko and she literally eats the screen in almost every scene she is in, despite her character being mute. Etain reaches iconic status as far as I'm concerned, much like Karl Vreski (Die Hard).
The actual plot, despite its historical context, is less Gladiator and more Apocalypto. Several battles are extremely gritty, entering gory territory as blood flows. There are a lot of CGI sequences mixed with traditional effects but they do not detract from the experience too much. Quintus' bunch of survivors are portrayed by a group of effective actors but the movie's short length prevents much characterization. Where Marshall is more effective is in the portrayal of the Picts. In very few words, several characters stand out throughout the movie.
Everything is fairly entertaining but the movie never quite reaches classic epic status due to its short length and several incongruities. For instance, I still don't understand why two healthy and armed soldiers would run away from wolves, nor why wolves would pursue them (that simply flies in the face of anything we know about the behavior of wolves). Etain is also ordered to severe the heads of the men she is chasing but conveniently omits certain characters so that they survive their injuries, which makes no sense and is transparent bad writing. Likewise, when the Romans have a chance to steal or kill the Picts' horses, they simply ignore this opportunity. These plot holes add up pretty fast and detract from our experience, turning what could have been a classic into just a great pop corn flick.
But an entertaining pop corn flick it is, despite its faults! I wish Marshall would be slightly less ambitious, as it seems he is at his best working on smaller scale movies but he still has a knack to shoot fun films and create engaging characters. Special kudos for not glorifying the Roman empire and especially, for not portraying the Picts as clear-cut villains. Although the structure of the film firmly puts the Picts in the "baddies" slot, there are several hints and a lot of subtext that, on the contrary, showcases the Roman empire as bloodthirsty invaders, plotting backstabbers and savages themselves.
Every amateur of sword epic will want to see this one at least once, possibly several times.
- Siamois
- 24. Aug. 2010
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Details
- Erscheinungsdatum
- Herkunftsländer
- Offizielle Standorte
- Sprachen
- Auch bekannt als
- Binh Đoàn La Mã
- Drehorte
- Produktionsfirmen
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Box Office
- Budget
- 12.000.000 $ (geschätzt)
- Bruttoertrag in den USA und Kanada
- 123.570 $
- Eröffnungswochenende in den USA und in Kanada
- 42.826 $
- 29. Aug. 2010
- Weltweiter Bruttoertrag
- 6.890.432 $
- Laufzeit1 Stunde 37 Minuten
- Farbe
- Sound-Mix
- Seitenverhältnis
- 2.35 : 1