Roma / Rome, 1972

Roma / Rome, 1972
Director: Federico Fellini
Cast: Peter Gonzales Falcon, Fiona Florence, Pia de Doses



Roma in short: A virtually plotless, gaudy, impressionistic portrait of Rome through the eyes of one of its most famous citizens. blending autobiography (a reconstruction of Fellini's own arrival in Rome during the Mussolini years; a trip to a brothel and a music-hall) with scenes from present-day Roman life (a massive traffic jam on the autostrada; a raucous journey through Rome after dark; following an archaeological team through the site of the Rome subways; an unforgettable ecclesiastical fashion show)


Preps: As I am generally a fan of Fellini's work, I think this one shouldn't get pass my critical eye. And as the festival turns slowly to its end, my choice should be at least something in historical eyes. Hence, I think this might be a cool thing to see.


Reality: The pictures of Rome are somehow neglected in my eyes. I expected too much, reading about this movie and in my opinion it doesn't offer as much as it is promised in the plot. The italians are italians - in the movie they are too loud for me, but emotional and filled with family love and family passion. Where nothing else comes to the every day routine but food and talking. And passing through the town to another place to drink another drink or eat something else. And pasta pasta pasta. A thin red dot throughout the movie.

The piece is in my opinion overrated. The story doesn't even begin in the first 45 minutes. On the other hand, as it is a picturesque image of Rome, maybe I should indulge in this instead of trying to seek a story no matter what. In a way I am impressed, but to be quite sincere, no interest in perticular evolves within watching this. Maybe you need to be in the right mood to see this. Or my preference simply goes to a solid story and a good background. In this movie I sense, besides photography, there's nothing really special. The scenery of Rome is amazing as it is and praised in the movie. And I don't really like the changes present/past, they don't seem to fit into my perspective and are like a bad theatre show - badly played.


My personal rating: 4,0 (for the sake of beautiful and thoughtful scenery. Maybe a must see for Fellini's admirers, however I didn't indulge into this piece in perticular. And the voices, the loud voices just made me nervous)


Roma on IMDB

Centurion, 2010

Centurion, 2010
Director: Neil Marshall
Cast: Michael Fassbender, Dominic West, Andreas Wisniewski



Stage: home theatre, HD :)
Centurion in short: A splinter group of Roman soldiers fight for their lives behind enemy lines after their legion is decimated in a devastating guerrilla attack.



Preps: Got it from a friend and a recommendation. Has slept in my system for quite a while.


Reality: You are dragged right in the centre of roman world. Fighting, battle, adventurous race to your homeland while being chased by nasty savages. Or are you the savage one? Cannot tell. Cannot diferentiate one battle from another. One thing is for sure - the area where they hold battles seems for real. Also the clothing, the way they interact with each other. The way problems are being sold, judgements fulfilled - the price of one life is so low, you get the feeling that life itself is worthless. And the old proverb from ancients - to die with honour means to die for the cause, even if it costs you your dear life and the life of the ones you love.

The main characters are travelling through rough country, fishing for opportunities to escape revenge-oriented group of savages, chasing them in order to kill them. The differentiation between different battles is almost impossible - the chase happens extremely fast and many lives are taken alongside. I enjoyed the photography and the chosen scenery - the scenario however is poor and maybe the reason behind this is more historical than the fact that the script writer wouldn't have his imagination to write something. All the other things are put aside - only the mere survival and the instinct to kill are set upfront. And nothing else. From the beginning until its ending. No love, no feelings, no other music than battle. Hence the focus stays where the director wanted it to be.

My personal rating: 6,0 (a better combat movie in this period - in my opinion too bloody and I want my focus to run sometimes somewhere else. Nevertheless - a good piece and a genuine feeling you would never want to live in those times).


Centurion on IMDB