In Britain, A.D. 117, the
legendary Ninth Legion of Rome under General Vitilus’s command journeys north of
Hadrian’s Wall under orders to destroy the Picts and their leader Gorlacon.
This is the story of Quintus Dias, one of the few survivors, after the Picts decimate
the Romans in a sneak attack.
Writer-director Neil Marshall had
a strong background in thriller/horror films (having directed The Decent) as he entered
production on Centurion giving him a good grasp on employing tension and shooting
action. After Centurion, he directed maybe the best episode of Game of Thrones to date – Blackwater. He worked with composer
Ilan Eshkeri, cinematographer
Sam McCurdy (who does impressive
work), and production designer Simon Bowles on this film.
The cast is fantastic. The film
stars Michael Fassbender, and
features Dominic West, JJ Field, David Morrissey, Ulrich Thomsen, Olga Kurylenko, Liam Cunningham, Noel Clarke, Riz Ahmed, and Imogen Poots in support.
Centurion has a bad rap (at least
with critics when it came out). For a low budget British action thriller/drama,
it is fantastic. It is among the best recent films regarding Rome’s occupation
of Britain (and it makes a decent companion piece to The Eagle and the fictional King Arthur – though, it is the
best of the three). Fassbender gives a good performance, and it has a ‘trapped
behind enemy lines with a small group’ plot that works well. The action scenes
are also quite compelling, outshining many big budget films. While Centurion is
not a classic, it is a great underrated/under-seen film and well worth checking
out for fans of Roman Empire period action films.
