Review: Centurion

From the beginning of "Centurion", it's very clear what the movie is going for. Within the first few scenes we have a small Roman garrison attacked by barbarians and some very brutal violence with stylish blood spattering everywhere. And even before that the credits appear with big, bold Celtic font, rushing over the northern mountainous regions of Britain where this was shot. It's a full blown, bloody, grisly epic in the tradition of the sword and sandals which I so dearly love. Of course, "Centurion" is far from having the depth and heart of movies like "Gladiator" and "Braveheart". But it's not going for that, far from it. It doesn't set out to achieve much, and what it does set out to do, I think it does quite well.

Michael Fassbender (above) plays Quintus Dias, a centurion stationed in the far north that gets raided and he subsequently gets captured. Luckily, he escapes and is rescued by the Ninth Legion and gets turned right back around from where he came to go fight Gorlacon, the leader of the barbarians. But sadly, it's a trap and the legion is completely destroyed. All except for Dias and 6 others, of course, and Dias is determined to get the last of the legion back home safe even with Etain (Olga Kurylenko), the mute, deadly warrior woman, on their tail.

It's easy to watch the trailer for this and dismiss it as another failure in the Roman/Greek genre such as "Alexander", "Troy", or "300" (yes, I think "300" is dumb). But unlike those movies that went for a scale and dramatic effect that failed miserably amidst terrible acting, action, characters, etc, "Centurion" shies away from such hoopla. It goes for a simpler storyline that has enough happening in it to not completely dissolve into nothing but bloody sword fights. But never fear, there are plenty, and they are quite gruesome. It avoids becoming nothing but a action show like "Clash of the Titans", devoid of any mildly interesting plot with lifeless characters. 

And Fassbender's Dias provides much of the life for the movie. I'm eager to watch how Fassbender's career goes from here. So far I've seen him in "300" and "Inglourious Basterds" and am impressed by his ability to play so many different roles. I really want to see "Hunger" where he portrays Bobby Sands, an Irish republican on a hunger strike. Most of all, I'm excited to see him as Magneto in "X-Men: First Class"  alongside James McAvoy as Charles Xavier. Although "Centurion" isn't the kind of movie to get anyone noticed for acting, it doesn't mean it can't help. Fassbender plays the resolved, intense Dias well and the choice for him as the narrator of the film clearly sets him apart and gives the audience a character to root for who is actually pretty darn cool. Olga Kurylenko definitely deserves some credit for the steely-eyed Etain. She's probably one of the best female villains I've seen for a while, actually, and never shies away from splattering her own share of gore across the camera as well. 

"Centurion" isn't a perfect movie, of course. There's a romantic interest for Dias inserted towards the end that is rather distracting and out of place in regards to the rest of the film. But part of me doesn't care so much since Dias is cool and deserves it. So in the end, I found myself satisfied with the high adrenaline theme of the movie and was surprised to find a bit more than I was expecting apart from the loads of violence. I'd say it's well worth getting OnDemand (where I saw it tonight) or waiting to add it to your Netflix cue.