The Last Legion (movie)

[Klingan]

The film has been released in the US and not surprisingly it was universally panned by the critics. Rotten tomatoes has given the film a rating of 19% based on the collected reviews of the film. It might not be as bad as Alexander which has 14%, so in a way it is more successful than I imagined it would be. It still flopped at the box office - I don't think it's even near the Top Ten.

 

Has anyone seen it? I'm not even sure if I'd bother seeing it.

 

I saw it a few months back some my memory of it isn't really that fresh but from what I remember it was a descent show, reminding me more of a long tv series episode then a movie, but then again I've seen far worse movies. It's hardly comparable to Alexander, they're every unlike each other in everything from style, script, setting, shooting technique etc.

 

I should add a general warning thou, my taste in movies is well known back home for how bad it is.

 

I would say that if you have 2 hours left some day nothing better to then surfing the net randomly, you might just as well see this movie.

[Titus Maccius Plautus]

I didn't know they made a film based on the book. I've just seen the trailer and it sort of reminds me of super-commercial films such as 300 or Alexander ( which was made apparently based on Manfredi's trilogy ). I've read The Last Legion about a year and a half ago, and I thought Manfredi's 'theory' about the possible destiny of Romulus Augustus was compelling. In the end, is it worth watching?

Edited August 25, 2007 by Titus Maccius Plautus

[Klingan]

I didn't know they made a film based on the book. I've just seen the trailer and it sort of reminds me of super-commercial films such as 300 or Alexander ( which was made apparently based on Manfredi's trilogy ). I've read The Last Legion about a year and a half ago, and I thought Manfredi's 'theory' about the possible destiny of Romulus Augustus was compelling. In the end, is it worth watching?

 

It's not very much like either of those movies. It's far more standardized Hollywood. Imagine any modern action movie but with swords.

Edited August 26, 2007 by Klingan

[caldrail]

In the trailer there is a line about Caesar. The word is pronounced as SEE-SAR instead of KAI-SAR. Do you count it as an error?

 

SEE-SAR is the accepted pronounciation and two centuries of latin teachers can't be wrong

 

The hard 'C' sound is often mentioned but it appears to me that some latin words had variable pronounciations much the same way modern english does - no suprise really, since latin is used wholesale in modern english (Expert opinion someone please).

 

KAI-SAR is a very germanic style I would say.

Edited August 27, 2007 by caldrail

[Ingsoc]

In the trailer there is a line about Caesar. The word is pronounced as SEE-SAR instead of KAI-SAR. Do you count it as an error?

 

SEE-SAR is the accepted pronounciation and two centuries of latin teachers can't be wrong

 

The hard 'C' sound is often mentioned but it appears to me that some latin words had variable pronounciations much the same way modern english does - no suprise really, since latin is used wholesale in modern english (Expert opinion someone please).

 

KAI-SAR is a very germanic style I would say.

 

On the contrary, Caesar contemporaries knew him as Yoolius Keyssar just as Cicero was know as Keekero. this is the right way to pronounce theire names, however writers in English has this habit of Englesize non English names.

[The Augusta]

In the trailer there is a line about Caesar. The word is pronounced as SEE-SAR instead of KAI-SAR. Do you count it as an error?

 

SEE-SAR is the accepted pronounciation and two centuries of latin teachers can't be wrong

 

KAI-SAR is a very germanic style I would say.

 

Then you must have had a very poor Latin master, Calders Mine always made the distinction that the name would have been pronounced 'Kaissar' in original Latin and we had to jolly well make sure we pronounced it that way in verbal exercises and readings from the dreaded 'Civis Romanus' (a course book made up of original Latin texts such as Tacitus, Cicero etc.) However, our teacher did also make the point that in modern English, the pronunciation 'Seezar' had become the accepted form.

Edited August 27, 2007 by The Augusta

[Nephele]

Mine always made the distinction that the name would have been pronounced 'Kaissar' in original Latin...

 

My Latin teacher, too, told us it was kai-sar. Which was fine with me, because at that early age in my life I might not otherwise have made the connection with the German word kaiser as readily.

 

What did bug me, though, was my Latin teacher's insistence on pronounding "salve" as "sal-way" and "vale" as "wal-lay". It may have been technically correct, but pronouncing that "v" as a "w" always sounded like baby talk, to me. Plus, saying "wal-lay" at the end of every class as we were leaving made me feel like... well, a wally.

 

Haven't seen The Last Legion yet. Will probably wait for the DVD. Some of you saw this online? Yikes, I don't think I could sit in front of my computer that long, to watch an entire movie online! Can you pause it to take bathroom breaks?

 

-- Nephele

[Skarr]

The film has been released in the US and not surprisingly it was universally panned by the critics. Rotten tomatoes has given the film a rating of 19% based on the collected reviews of the film. It might not be as bad as Alexander which has 14%, so in a way it is more successful than I imagined it would be. It still flopped at the box office - I don't think it's even near the Top Ten.

 

Has anyone seen it? I'm not even sure if I'd bother seeing it.

 

I saw it a few months back some my memory of it isn't really that fresh but from what I remember it was a descent show, reminding me more of a long tv series episode then a movie, but then again I've seen far worse movies. It's hardly comparable to Alexander, they're every unlike each other in everything from style, script, setting, shooting technique etc.

 

I should add a general warning thou, my taste in movies is well known back home for how bad it is.

 

I would say that if you have 2 hours left some day nothing better to then surfing the net randomly, you might just as well see this movie.

 

Just returned from a long 3 week trip overseas (unfortunately, couldn't visit Rome) and saw this thread. In my area, the only show is at 10 pm and it looks as if the public is staying away from this film. There's hardly any publicity for it and I'm wondering if it's worth my while even if I have 2 hours to spare. Maybe it's best that I wait for the DVD to come out or better, wait for the free broadcast on satellite (if they decide to air it).

 

Somehow, I wasn't impressed by this production from the very start and knew they'd botch it up big time, just reading through the production notes on this film from a year ago. I'm waiting for the Hannibal film to be made / released. I haven't heard anything in a while after some initial excitement a year or so ago based on Vin Diesel's interest in the project. If anyone has newer information on this, please post.

[Klingan]

I'm waiting for the Hannibal film to be made / released. I haven't heard anything in a while after some initial excitement a year or so ago based on Vin Diesel's interest in the project. If anyone has newer information on this, please post.

 

The IMDB information was updated about one month ago. I don't know it's really very much new thou.

 

(Was is really used to be called Hannibal the Conqueror? )

 

Hannibal the Conqueror at IMDB

[Titus Maccius Plautus]

^Oh my! Vin Diesel... This should be interesting; or not. What's all this fuss about historical movies lately? Ok, I agree with the special effects and their commercial 'appearance', but do not change the historical truth and introduce another round of Hollywood myths! The masses watching this movies might as well have something to learn from them, if the 'books' option is old school.

[Northern Neil]

I quite liked Manfredis book, despite the implausible plot. It had all the things in it, which I really bought the book for - namely, a classical scholar's take on conditions at the end of the classical world. Manfredi depicts the following beautifully - Decay of Latin in rural areas, influence of Germans in the Imperial court, the semi-romanisation of barbarians - and the attendant dangers resulting thereof, decay of urban centres on the fringes of the empire, and the fact that in more peaceful areas such as Neapolis hardly anyone knew things had changed.

 

This film was BRILLIANT - it managed to miss out ALL these things, and like other recent hollywood pics depicting Roman/sub Roman Britain, re designed Hadrians Wall - when we KNOW what it looked like - AGAIN!!!!

[AndrewLC]

I didn't really like this movie. and if I remember correctly, the Romans went into close combat in Testudo

[G-Manicus]

I didn't really like this movie. and if I remember correctly, the Romans went into close combat in Testudo

I read this too quickly and thought it said "Toronto."

 

Now THAT would be quite a movie! Beauty, eh?

[Titus Vulcanius]

Not bad.

 

I liked how they weaved the King Authur legend in with the rest of the story. Unlikely but interesting. McKidd is a bad ass, he's so kind in the TV show the Journeyman(difference of night&day).

 

***** out of 10

 

Titus

[M. Demetrius]

I didn't really like this movie. and if I remember correctly, the Romans went into close combat in Testudo

They would use the testudo formation if they were either moving to ram a gate or somesuch, and didn't take time to build a proper "attack tunnel", or anytime they were facing significant amount of missile attack, slingers, archers, javelineers. It's a pretty hard way to move around, as only the front rank can see what's happening, and it is fairly suffocating (not literally) for the men in the middle.

 

They did not, however, break ranks and come screaming down the hillsides waving their swords around like Hollywood actors lacking real battle training.