Centurion
| release date | July 30 2010 |
| studio | Magnet Releasing |
| director | Neil Marshall |
| writer | Neil Marshall |
| starring | Michael Fassbender, Dominic West, Olga Kurylenko |
| rating | R |
| tagline | History Is Written In Blood |
| site | centurionmovie.com |
| trailer 1 | Trailer #1 |
1 Comments
I’m a big fan of Neil Marshall – especially Dog Soldiers and The Descent – and I think his ability to make such unique movies is what helps set him apart. Since these movies, he has been given a big budget for both Doomsday and Centurion and although I enjoyed both movies, I was also a bit disappointed by both. I won’t give away too much of this movie, but I felt it had the same issue as Doomsday. Although there was a solid overall storyline the movie suffered from having too many twists and turns along the way. If it was more straight forward, I think it would have been much better.
I just got back from the theater and really have to say that it is one of the all time GREATS of the sword and sandal genre! It’s a damn shame this wasn’t given a wide release! Really ‘Centurion’ belongs in every man’s movie collection right next to Conan the Barbarian, Gladiator, and 13th Warrior. First of all it was the kind of movie you don’t see often, with straight-forward no-nonsense dialog that gets to the point and never bores, several memorable ‘Lord of the Rings’ quality quotes, and exhilarating battle scenes that are raw and bloody as hell!
We’re talking MAJOR blood gushing, with more hacked off limbs, impalings, beheadings and throat slashings than you could ever count! Many of the kills come in rapid succession which just drenches the screen with great gouts of crimson!
Those critics who were overwhelmed by the amount of violence and gore have predictably attacked ‘the story’ and several critics’ reviews I’ve read stated there was a lack of emotional involvement with the characters. Well, that’s because they probably don’t like tough Roman warriors, manly characters, or male bonding scenes in general (It’s a well known fact Hollywood critics love to bash tough guy flicks like this). I found the centurions to be interesting and honorable characters who were willing to risk their lives for one another (with the exception of certain character(s) betrayal thrown into the mix).
Some of the character scenes were as deep to me as anything in Lord of the Rings.
One should also keep in mind that Neil Marshall was working with a FRACTION of the budget of movies like Gladiator, and he wisely kept the action scaled accordingly which effectively kept the movie from looking cheesy. There is a gritty realism here that contrasts with so many modern ‘polished’ movies dealing with the same themes.
Seriously people, if you’re even slightly interested in checking this movie out I advise you to avoid reading most reviews which contain spoilers (including the main review right here on BD – really man, that was rude as hell to ruin the ending, if you’re reading this). Unfortunately some of you have already read the main review here (under the ‘HEADLINES’ tab) which has ruined the major suspense element of the movie for you.
NOTE to BD reviewer David Harley – If you don’t like the movie that’s your right and opinion, but to purposely ruin the ending is just being petty and is REALLY unprofessional.
Anyway, this movie rocks like very few I’ve seen in years! If you pass this one over you are missing out on a GREAT movie!
Neil Marshall has a solid track record and ‘Centurion’ fits nicely into his consistent filmography.
Very enjoyable action packed film where you really come to care about what happens to the leads. I recommend seeing this one if you’re a fan of movies of it’s ilk.
This director never fails to impress me! This is pure epic in scale and hugely entertaining from start to finish with characters that you root to survive. The story isn’t very original and is pretty much bloody graphic fighting and extreme chase scenes but man was it beautifully shot that would of been awesome on the IMAX screen but it never had a great wide release and it’s a shame that it never made it to my theater, he’s a talented director of raw mood and atmosphere. The pace was also very rapid because before you know it it’s over and it definitely left it open for a sequel or sequels and I look forward to going further with this epic bloody journey. Overall It has epic bloody battle scenes, breathtaking scenery, solid acting and it was a blast. Sure it didn’t have much of a original story and some characters were underdeveloped but if you enjoy movies like Gladiator, Spartacus: Blood and Sand and 300 you’ll enjoy this one for sure. Highly Recommended! Can’t wait until Neil Marshall’s next offering, he hasn’t failed yet, knock on wood.
Sometimes the most entertaining films are the B-movies in which you can turn off your mind and watch it for pure entertainment. Centurion is one of the best examples. What it lacks in character development it makes up for in action. The film is incredibly gory in the best sense of the word and it is always entertaining. The cinematography is also very well done. If you enjoy straight-forward B-movies with great action and the soul purpose to entertain, then check out Centurion.
Score: 7.5
wow what a great film…. i like historical warrior battle films this hit the spot. great team behind it and a good cast. have been waiting for a gory, violent iron age film like this, if only somone will do a good cgi version of ‘slaine’ i will cream myself to death.
Good lil movie…
I don’t see why there is so much negative feedback towards this film. Neil Marshall is definitely one of my favorite directors in the industry right now, he never fails to impress me with his films. This movie was beautifully brutal and bloody, as you would expect. I really liked the cast as well, they did a great job and the story was pretty good too. I wish this film would have gotten more recognition. I highly recommend you watch this if you haven’t.
It has often been suggested that sometimes “less is more”. This holds true specifically for the film Centurion and likely explains why it was an enjoyable watch.
Centurion is yet another film that examines the conflict between the Picts and the Romans in Northern England back in the 2nd century. Unlike the film King Arthur that was ill-received a few years back, this film takes a look more specifically at the conflict and how much difficulty the Romans had with their guerrilla warfare tactics using Pict enemies.
The plot is rather simple, as we follow a Roman solider from his capture, to his escape of the Picts and finally on a quest to rescue their fallen general. The plot is very streamlines, featuring only a few scenes of exposition, helped along by the narration of our main character. The violence is rather intense and present from nearly the first five minutes, throughout the entire movie.
Neil Marshall is a master at giving us intense battles and throwing buckets of blood at us. Centurion will provide you with plenty of slit throats and decapitations throughout the numerous battle scenes.
I found the acting to be decent and actually appreciated Olga Kurylenko’s fearless hunter character to be all the more realistic as she simply was mute and unable to speak. I even appreciated the use of subtitles in a few scenes as the characters were likely speaking in Gaelic.
As we follow both the heroes and their hunters, we begin to see that in some cases there doesn’t appear to be much of a difference between the two groups. The Romans were responsible for countless atrocities, for which the Picts responded in kind. I found this to be a rather smart way to show us this story and in the end to leave it up to the audience as to who the true heroes were.
Outside of the action and violence, there was a brief interlude featuring an exiled Pict witch-woman who provides aid to the Romans. Despite the complaints I have read online, I felt like this was just a well-needed small dose of humanity interjected into what was otherwise a dreary and sad film. The scenes didn’t last long and served to at least provide a glimmer of things that matter outside of war and death.
In the end, I found Centurion to be a fast-paced, fun film. I appreciated it not trying to bog me down with meaningless filler material, something King Arthur could have done with. I would strongly recommend either a rental or purchase here and I think Centurion will stand to multiple viewings.
+ Lots of bloody violence! In particular head decapitations and mutilations
+ Good acting
- Not the most interesting or original story line