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
István Göz	...	Cohort Centurion
Bence Gerö	...	Celt Boy / Young Marcus
Denis O'Hare	...	Lutorius
Paul Ritter	...	Galba
Zsolt László	...	Paulus
Julian Lewis Jones	...	Cassius
Aladár Laklóth	...	Flavius Aquila
Marcell Miklós	...	Fort Legionary 1
Bálint Magyar	...	Fort Legionary 2
Ferenc Pataki	...	Fort Legionary 3
Bálint Antal	...	Young Legionary
Lukács Bicskey	...	Druid
Douglas Henshall	...	Cradoc
James Hayes	...	Stephanos

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:

legion | wall | scotland | gay subtext | barefoot male | 

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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:

Action | Adventure | Drama | History | War

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for battle sequences and some disturbing images

Did You Know?

Trivia

It is only speculation that the Ninth Legion disappeared in Britain. There is mention of them in what is today the Netherlands from c. 120 A.D.

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Goofs

When Marcus and Esca pass Hadrian's Wall and head north, they are both pictured riding bay horses. Shortly thereafter, and for the rest of the film, they are seen mounted on war horses, 1 black, 1 white. No explanation of where they got these horses is forthcoming. (In the shooting script it is stated that they took these horses from the "rogue warriors" they killed, but in the actual film, the horses appear before the scene where they kill the rogue warriors.)

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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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Crazy Credits

The names of the Director, of the Writers (screenplay and Novel) and of the main Cast are red in an old English language.

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Connections

Version of The Eagle of the Ninth (1977)

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Soundtracks

The Return of the Eagle
Performed by Torc featuring Eoghan Neff, Flaithri Neff (as The Neff Brothers) and Atli Örvarsson

User Reviews

Interesting and entertaining

I thoroughly enjoyed this film. The CGI effects seem to have been kept under control, and so the film turned out to be more human than animation. The combat scenes were done in the current style of quick cuts where you just get a vague idea of what is going on, rather than actually being able to follow the blows being struck.

The film seemed mostly faithful to Roman history. It gives a vivid illustration of why Hadrian's wall was built. But I am not totally sure the Roman Senate had a "branch" in Britain.

The two leads (Channing Tatum and Jamie Bell) were perfectly suited to their roles, kind of like Hercules and his sidekick from 60s historical adventure films. But minus the corny jokes. There were no banquets with production numbers. And there was no "love interest" written in. And no magical effects or mythical creatures. And it was very easy to follow. And hugely entertaining.

It's not art but it's rather good, regardless.

Details

Official Sites:

Focus Features [United States] Official Facebook

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English Scottish Gaelic

Release Date:

11 February 2011 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Eagle

Filming Locations:

Rannoch Moor, Perth & Kinross, Scotland, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$25,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$8,684,464, 13 February 2011

Gross USA:

$19,490,041

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$37,989,684

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