Movielogr

Rating: 3.5 stars

All movies seen on 02/26/2011

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The Eagle (2011)

Directed by Kevin Macdonald

Action

Most recently watched by Kyrandia, seanCduregger, nwesterhouse, noahphex, jenerator

Overview

In 140 AD, twenty years after the unexplained disappearance of the entire Ninth Legion in the mountains of Scotland, young centurion Marcus Aquila arrives from Rome to solve the mystery and restore the reputation of his father, the commander of the Ninth. Accompanied only by his British slave Esca, Marcus sets out across Hadrian’s Wall into the uncharted highlands of Caledonia - to confront its savage tribes, make peace with his father’s memory, and retrieve the lost legion’s golden emblem, the Eagle of the Ninth.

Rated PG-13 | Length 114 minutes

Actors

Channing Tatum | Mark Strong | Jamie Bell | Donald Sutherland | Denis O'Hare | Tahar Rahim | Dakin Matthews | Douglas Henshall | Paul Ritter | Pip Carter | Ned Dennehy | István Göz | Bence Gerö | Zsolt László | Julian Lewis Jones | Brian Gleeson | Jon Campling | Aladár Laklóth | Granville Saxton

Viewing History (seen 1 time)

Viewing Notes

I HATE it when I waste a theater watching experience on something that doesn’t deserve it. Such was the case with The Eagle. I can sum this up in one tiny sentence:

Watch Centurion instead.

Timing, and trying to take in something with the family, conspired to get us into the theater for this one. I was angling for Unknown, but the times didn’t work for us.

You know a movie’s bad when you have to point to Channing Tatum’s acting as the highlight over the positively awful performance of Donald Sutherland. I guess Sutherland needed a paycheck, but nothing else explains his presence, and terribly casual dialogue, in this movie.

The worst part however is the shitty cinematography. If you’re going to tell a story about Roman Centurions in the Scottish Highlands, then PULL THE FUCKING CAMERA BACK AND GET SOME LONG SHOTS FOR GOD’S SAKE! Seriously, probably 90% of the time the camera spends within two feet of someone’s head or other body part. There are hardly any establishing shots; almost all of the action is shot close and tight, making it confusing and downright boring to watch.

By far, the cinematography was my biggest issue with this movie. The sad part is that Anthony Dod Mantle is an Oscar winning Cinematographer with some truly great movies under his belt, including 28 Days Later, Slumdog Millionaire (for which he won the Oscar) and Antichrist.

Which leads me to believe that the best shots were probably left on the editing room floor.

So seriously, do yourself a favor and watch Neil Marshall’s Centurion. FAR BETTER.

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