Discovering the 9th Legion

Actually went and saw a good movie this last weekend, one I want to see again, which is the best endorsement I think I can give any flick.

THE EAGLE, staring Channing Tatum ( Stepping Up, GI Joe, Dear John) as a young gallant Roman officer

and Jamie Bell ( Defiance and Jumper)

 as his slave and guide into the wilds of Northern Britannia to retrieve the sacred golden eagle emblem lost by his farther and the infamous but now destroyed 9th Legion of the Roman army.

The Roman's invaded the great island of Britannia around AD 43, they only got so far and today the remnants of Hadrian's Wall,

named for the emperor who had it built to make it difficult for the pagan tribes of the north to invade the Roman controlled south, it was the end of the "known world".

THE EAGLE is not the only movie in recent times to flirt with the mysterious happening behind the wall dividing the "civilized" from "the wild".

CENTURION, a really good little film out of the UK, tells the story of a small group of Roman soldiers, led by Michael Fassbender, ( 300) running for their lives back to the South, after the 9th ultimate defeat, chased by Olga Kurylenko ( James Bond Quantum Solace)

THE LAST LEGION, my least favorite Colin Firth (The Kings Speech, Bridget Jones Diary) movie

 and confirms why I think high action is not his forte, covers the globe from the defeat of Roman to again a small band of soldiers with the responsibility of guarding the young Emperor, taking him to find sanctuary in Britannia. His tutor's name happens to be Merlin and he happens to be the future father of Arthur and there is a very important sword involved.

Which brings us to another mixing of lore, in KING ARTHUR, starring Clive Owen ( Children of Men)and Keira Knightley ( Atonement, Pirates Trilogy) about a distant Roman fortress held by less than motivated indentured soldiers and their interaction with the Pagan tribes around them.

THE EAGLE was also interesting in the development of the Britannia tribes, the most feared being the Seal People who looked a whole lot like the Native American tribes with mud smeared faces and Mohawks, but then why wouldn't they, people's culture is a reflection of the geography around them and why would a native tribe by the sea who hunts seals look similiar no matter what contintent they happen to be on.

All of these Lost Legion movies reminds me of my time in Europe, the summer I graduated from high school and how mostly traveling around France on the Metro, you could see the remnants of their roads, their aqueducts,  their temples and their arenas,

so intrigung to live amongst the ghosts of an ancient civilization, something I post often about on my writing and illustrating blog, Moonflower Musing.
                                  
click HERE for my post about the Castles we have. Also check out the official THE EAGLE website, for a lot of info on the making of the movie and the history of the vanishing 9th Legion.