06-02-2014, 06:59 PM
I'm not normally a ranter, I try and find something in most ancient movies and generally enjoy them. It's film, and the audience usually needs some kind of buy in, an old movie title (remake), a famous event, a famous person, etc. I enjoyed Gladiator, Centurion, The Eagle, Troy, even King Arthur had some good bits.
I expected some over the top heroics, a gladiator story that was different to Ridley's version, a great and accurate rendition of Pompeii (because lots and lots of tourists ie. Movie goers) have actually been there. I expected a very scary and dramatic reconstruction of the volcano, because, you know, there have been documentaries recreating it accurately for twenty years.
But, instead, hundreds of fireballs from the sky, no rain of ash, the amphithreatre destroyed by earthquake crushing all the audience, and a chasm opeining up in the arena, of course there is a tsunami as well, washing oared galleys up the street .... And the city itself is not really depicted apart from the aforementioned amphitheatre and the temple of Jupiter, the steps of which vorm the backdrop for the final duel. I had hoped for a James Cameron-style tour of Pompeii, as he had done in Titanic, with plot ocurring in the famous bits of the city.... Including the Lupercalia!!
Sadly, no.
The worst part of this is that if it flops, no-one will touch this subject again for another 20 years for fear of being tarred by the same brush. Thats why I hate awful movies about subjects I love .... It puts producers and backers off of investing in something similar.
I expected some over the top heroics, a gladiator story that was different to Ridley's version, a great and accurate rendition of Pompeii (because lots and lots of tourists ie. Movie goers) have actually been there. I expected a very scary and dramatic reconstruction of the volcano, because, you know, there have been documentaries recreating it accurately for twenty years.
But, instead, hundreds of fireballs from the sky, no rain of ash, the amphithreatre destroyed by earthquake crushing all the audience, and a chasm opeining up in the arena, of course there is a tsunami as well, washing oared galleys up the street .... And the city itself is not really depicted apart from the aforementioned amphitheatre and the temple of Jupiter, the steps of which vorm the backdrop for the final duel. I had hoped for a James Cameron-style tour of Pompeii, as he had done in Titanic, with plot ocurring in the famous bits of the city.... Including the Lupercalia!!
Sadly, no.
The worst part of this is that if it flops, no-one will touch this subject again for another 20 years for fear of being tarred by the same brush. Thats why I hate awful movies about subjects I love .... It puts producers and backers off of investing in something similar.
Paul Elliott
Legions in Crisis
http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/17815...d_i=468294
Charting the Third Century military crisis - with a focus on the change in weapons and tactics.
Legions in Crisis
http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/17815...d_i=468294
Charting the Third Century military crisis - with a focus on the change in weapons and tactics.
