The sword and sandals genre has had a woeful resurgence of late. Not since the Hercules/Maciste/Samson films of the 50’s and 60’s have bare-chested bravura, tunics, and dusty sandals been such a hit at the box office. Recent unfortunate examples include Troy, 300, Clash of the Titans, and Prince of Persia. They all trade on our communal knowledge of some vague, ancient fable which is subsequently blown up in favor of intricate chases, encounters between massive battalions, and monster fights. I’m not a particular fan of the genre, considering sweaty Cro-Magnon brows coupled with wooden dialogue and undisciplined extras all stuffed into grandiose settings do not tempt me as they do some.
Hence I entered Neil Marshall’s new film, Centurion, with equal parts apprehension and growing nausea. But don’t paint me a devotee of self-flagellation just yet. I reasoned that, with starring roles from both Michael Fassbender (Hunger, Inglourious Basterds) and Dominic West (The Wire), there would at least be top-notch, testosterone-soaked emoting on a grand scale….
Check out the rest of my review on mediapora
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Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: | Centurion, Neil Marshall, Picts, Romans
