subject: Centurion Online [print this page] After 2008's "Doomsday," I misplaced religion in writer/director Neil Marshall, who torched all the promise generated by 2005's "The Descent" to make a tuneless, odious John Carpenter wank that fortunately few appeared interested in. "Centurion" returns the filmmaker to an intriguing gallop, taking on the challenge of a historic actioner, following battered Roman soldiers as they march into Hell.
At least Freddy Krueger makes it fast - among the beheadings at the behest of Showtime's King Henry the eighth had been agonizingly sluggish and painful.
Marshall one-ups Snyder by forgoing the philosophy and simply concentrating on mass carnage, which means Centurion moves at a tightly packed, cold blue tinted, and subplot free 95 minutes of chases vs. the beginning-cease-start pacing and photographic type of 300.
And by clamping down on the yelling, the dialogue solely must be above the extent of "not embarrassing" to keep away from distraction. Centurion largely manages that, though it's fairly anachronistically modern in its specific choices of lowbrow humor.
The supporting cast - although doing little greater than aggressively killing every little thing in sight - is tight.
Writer/director Neil Marshall (The Descent, Dog Soldiers), who grew up near Hadrian's Wall in Newcastle upon Tyne, came up with the idea for the movie whereas driving on Roman roads near his birthplace. Fassbender is just glorious as Quintus.
" In fact that tells you originality isn't all that important to him, hence his last film Doomsday, which was an awkward and overlong style blend of Escape From New York and The Street Warrior rip-offs and anything publish-apocalyptic that got here to mind. Marshall was on firmer, more consistent floor with Dog Troopers and The Descent, and he's learned from his missteps by not going the epic route with Centurion.
Centurion Online
By: Henry Brown
welcome to Insurances.net (https://www.insurances.net)
