My friends will think that the *** rating I've given this film is a sign of my increasing madness but, dammit, that is how much I enjoyed this film. I'm certainly not rating it for artistic achievement and it is easy to pick holes in the plot that you could drive a chariot through. History, geography, continuity and believability play little part in this movie. When the Goths sack Rome the boy emperor escapes with the help of his bodyguard
Mr. Darcy and Sir Ben Kingsley, finds Julius Caesar's sword and crosses Europe without incident and goes to Hadrian's Wall to rally the last remnants of The Ninth Legion against an alliance of Goths and Vortigern...oh yes, I left out the female Indian Ninja. Of course it doesn't take long to work out that all this nonsense is a prequel to the Arthurian legends and Sir Ben is really our old friend Merlin. Some will say it is crap but I loved every minute, enjoyed every performance, found the fight scenes exciting and laughed at the jokes. It's nice to see an old fashioned adventure film with no pretensions beyond wanting to entertain. I unashamedly stick by my rating and I certainly had more fun watching it than I did KING ARTHUR.
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| The Last Legion |
6 comments:
Wow! You got that time machine I sent you then?
Indeed James. I watched on You Tube but bought the DVD in the HMV Desperation sale.
It is indeed a terrific 'yarn'
As someone with a history degree, I would like to once again remind everyone that a movie is a movie and history is history . . . and seldom the twain shall meet. If a movie is meant to be pure entertainment, what's wrong with that; why do people get hung up on minor plot holes in a popcorn movie? Certain movies are all about plot but certain movies aren't meant to be. That leads me back once again to my tired old saying about judging a movie for what it is and not for what it's not. And it's nice to see that you've done so, sir, with such clarity and descriptiveness. I am now going to seek out this film and take a look at it -- something I wouldn't have done without your review of it. Well done, sir.
It's funny how when it comes to history films people can indeed get hung up on facts - even I can do it.
Oddly when I saw Cimino's HEAVEN'S GATE it worried me not one bit that the two main characters had actually died a few years before the events depicted in the film BUT when I saw Walter Hill's GERONIMO it really bugged me that they had the real-life character of Al Sieber (played by Robert Duvall) die in a gunfight in the 1880's when he was still around in 1903 to give evidence at Tom Horn's trial and the fact that Sieber spoke with a thick German accent was totally ignored. I suppose none of us are consistent.
No, I don't think it's being inconsistent. I think it's all down to whether or not it's made to work in the movie whether or not it bothers you. If the movie is made well enough, you're not bothered. If something is lacking in the movie, then it's gonna bother you.
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