Film Review
Here is an object lesson in how
not to make a historical film drama.
First, have so microscopic a budget that any sense of authenticity or realism has to be thrown
out of the window on the first day of filming. Second, choose an overrated Hollywood
actor and give him the leading part which is clearly beyond his ability (and also get
him to wear the most preposterous false moustache you can find - with any luck, he will be
totally outstaged by this facial augmentation). Third, write a script that is
so bad that you'd swear it was written by a ten year old child “as a joke”.
Fourth, and finally, choose one of the most obscure periods in French history and assume
that everyone has studied the period in great depth, avoiding the need for tedious exposition.
The result of following this recipe could hardly be worse than the risibly bad
Vercingétorix
, a film which makes the dismal
Vatel (2000)
look like a faultless masterpiece.
It's hard to know what audience this film is aimed at. The clinically
clean, bloodless battles, stylised fights and wishy-washy Disney-style sentimentality
suggests it may have been aimed at children. But it's hard to imagine how
anything other than a particularly comatose infant with advanced masochistic tendencies
could sit through two hours of this unutterably bad nonsense. Glaringly obvious
historical inaccuracies in the set and costume design invite the inevitable conclusion
that the film's source is not the history books but the Astérix comic books,
so the film wouldn't even appeal to historians with a keen interest in this period.
The film's only real function is to offer a lifeline to insomniacs when the sleeping
pills run out. If you're still awake after the first forty minutes
of this industry-strength soporific substitute, you probably need medical help -
and fast.
© James Travers 2005
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.
Film Synopsis
In 60 BC, the boy Vercingétorix watches in horror as his father, the Gaul leader
Celtill, is burnt alive - the reward for his ambition to unite Gaul against the
Roman invader. Years later, Vercingétorix the man is driven by his father's
vision. Encouraged by his druid friends, the Gaul warrior attempts to save his people.
Betrayed by the Emperor Cesar, he raises an army and leads them into a battle he cannot
hope to win…
© James Travers
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.