The Last Legion Review
by Homer Yen (homer_yen AT yahoo DOT com)August 19th, 2007
"The Last Legion" - At Half-Strength but Trying
by Homer Yen
(c) 2007
Young Romulus Augustus (Thomas Sangster) makes a
disturbing point while having a tender moment
with his mother. "In the last five years, there
have been five Caesars," he observes. He has
good cause to be concerned. At the innocent age
of 12, Romulus is about to be the sixth Caesar in
as many years. His mother doesn't have an easy
answer for him. She hopes that her son will be
reassured that there will be an army of
protectors to ensure his long life ahead.
That may sound comforting to the young Caesar,
but the audience then sees that the commander of
the army is Colin Firth, and it's a tough casting
decision because from the films that I've seen
him in, one would think that he would be more
capable of handling lines of poetry than a sword,
spear, and pike. Firth plays Aurelius, who is a
wily veteran of the Roman forces. Russell Crowe,
this guy ain't. But he is loyal to his Empire,
he is a dutiful leader, and he doesn't fear
battle. However, as warrior leading men go, his
character doesn't really rev up the energy level
of those around him. Aurelius would get his butt
handed to him easily by King Leonidas from "300".
Even King Arthur (Clive Owen) could easily
humiliate him. In fact, I think that Captain
Kirk even stands a good chance of beating him.
The setting takes place during the demise of the
Roman Empire as barbarians descend upon the land.
The young Caesar is captured, and Aurelius must
assemble together what he can to mount a rescue
mission. But the political tide within the Roman
capital has swung considerably, and Aurelius
finds that he and his men can not return home.
Out of desperation, they travel to the land of
Britannia where they hope to locate a legion of
supporters, hence the film title's name: "The
Last Legion". The story gets sidetracked at this
point as another villain is introduced with whom
they have to contend, which mires the plot with
an unnecessary storyline.
The focus of the film is more about their
survival. However, I would've preferred to see,
for example, what makes Aurelius tick. His
entire demeanor seems pretty dispassionate. Why
does he lay down his life for a 12-year old
beyond the perfunctory duty/job description?
Why are people attracted to him? In many scenes,
Aurelius looks less like a commander and more
like a puzzled bloke trying to set the timer on
his VCR.
The other cast members hold their own, most
notable of whom is Ben Kingsley who plays a
philosopher trying to guide the young Caesar in
the right direction. For Thomas Sangster, it's
hard to imagine that a 12-year old actually
understands the gravity of his destiny. Yet, his
spoken dialogue is very mature. And the film
features the recently-voted Most Beautiful Woman
in the World, Aishwarya Rai. This won't be her
definitive piece that introduces her to American
audiences. But when a film can boast the
inclusion of the Most Beautiful Woman in the
World, box office receipts could rise.
"The Last Legion" seemed like a dietetic version
of "300" or "King Arthur". It's as if the
producers knew that their audience would be
limited, and they had to find ways to cut back.
For example, for an epic battle film featuring
Romans versus Barbarians, this whole feature was
surprisingly bloodless. Well, minimizing special
effects should keep the budget manageable. The
battle sequences hold your attention, although
none are remarkable. In some of the scenes, WWE
wrestlers could script a more convincing melee.
Yet, while it had its drawbacks, I liked it
enough to give it a marginal recommendation. You
get to see the Most Beautiful Woman in the World.
Every now and then, there's always room for a
Roman epic flick. And, it has more action than,
say, Rush Hour 3.
Grade: B-
S: 0 out of 3
L: 0 out of 3
V: 2 out of 3
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