I watched this 2003 movie recently (September 2014). It tells the tale of Boudica, the
Queen of the Iceni tribe in the 1st Century AD. King Prasutagus of the Iceni chose to ally with the Romans, a decision that his wife, Boudica (Alex Kingston), doesn't approve. After the king
died, the Romans opted to take control of the Iceni territory. Boudica was not too keen on the idea. The Romans punished her challenge by
beating her and raping her two daughters. The Romans did not kill her,
which proved to be an error. She assembled an alliance to battle the
Romans, sacking cities, including London. The Romans had retreated
until they could coalesce a sufficient army to trounce Boudica's forces,
which they did. There you have a basic history.
The movie follows this but often does stupid stuff. During one attack, the Iceni managed to burrow under a statue and make it sink into the ground. Really? In that same battle, a bunch of children crawl between the legs of Roman soldiers - who are lined up for battle - and behead the political leader who is standing just behind the line of Roman soldiers. Seriously? Rome plays a big role and we meet both Claudius and Nero. Claudius is a soft hand in diplomacy. The actor did a good job of showing him as a wise frail fellow afflicted with stuttering. Nero is just a nut and there is no subtlety in his portrayal. When Boudica rebels, Nero asks Suetonius what should be done. "Abandon Britain." Yeah, that's the general I'm going to send to save it.
Suetonius does go to Britain and, though he shows constant and unending sorrow and guilt that he must fight the fully-justified Britons, he soundly trounces them despite being heavily out-numbered. If he showed any more sympathy, he would have joined her rebellion.
On several points, the story compresses history. Per the movie, it seems that King Prasutagus made his treaty with Rome and then died a few months later. No, he actually ruled for around 20 years after the treaty. Also, the Druids use actual magic, not distraction and confusion type magic. The Druid makes one of Boudica's daughters invisible! Really? Is this a historical epic or a fantasy movie?
The movie is noteworthy for being Emily Blunt's first. She portrayed one of the raped daughters who supposedly survives to birth future kings, blah, blah, blah. Or maybe she was immortal.
The movie follows this but often does stupid stuff. During one attack, the Iceni managed to burrow under a statue and make it sink into the ground. Really? In that same battle, a bunch of children crawl between the legs of Roman soldiers - who are lined up for battle - and behead the political leader who is standing just behind the line of Roman soldiers. Seriously? Rome plays a big role and we meet both Claudius and Nero. Claudius is a soft hand in diplomacy. The actor did a good job of showing him as a wise frail fellow afflicted with stuttering. Nero is just a nut and there is no subtlety in his portrayal. When Boudica rebels, Nero asks Suetonius what should be done. "Abandon Britain." Yeah, that's the general I'm going to send to save it.
Suetonius does go to Britain and, though he shows constant and unending sorrow and guilt that he must fight the fully-justified Britons, he soundly trounces them despite being heavily out-numbered. If he showed any more sympathy, he would have joined her rebellion.
On several points, the story compresses history. Per the movie, it seems that King Prasutagus made his treaty with Rome and then died a few months later. No, he actually ruled for around 20 years after the treaty. Also, the Druids use actual magic, not distraction and confusion type magic. The Druid makes one of Boudica's daughters invisible! Really? Is this a historical epic or a fantasy movie?
The movie is noteworthy for being Emily Blunt's first. She portrayed one of the raped daughters who supposedly survives to birth future kings, blah, blah, blah. Or maybe she was immortal.
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