The Eagle Review: A Historical Bromance

The Eagle tells the story of a young Roman centurion attempting to uncover the truth of his father’s disappearance as well as that of the famed symbol of the empire, a golden eagle. The film is based on the book The Eagle of The Ninth by Rosemary Sutcliff.

Channing Tatum plays Marcus Aquila, a young Roman commander who chooses Britain as his first assignment because of his father’s disappearance there twenty years ago, along with five thousand men in the dangerous northern side of the country. Marcus intends to reclaim his family’s honor by somehow finding the missing eagle. But the fates aren’t making it easy for him after receiving an honorable discharge from the Roman military because of an injury he sustained while saving his men from an attack from a large angry British mob.

While recovering from his injury at his uncle’s villa (his uncle is played by the talented Donald Sutherland), Marcus saves the life of a British slave who was about to be killed for entertainment at a local gladiator arena. After Marcus’s uncle purchases the slave for him, the former centurion is reluctant to use him but his injuries prove painful for him to function on his own.

Jamie Bell is Esca, the slave who tells Marcus that he hates everything he (Marcus) stands for but because the Roman saved his life he has a debt to repay and must serve him.

The film follows the journey that Marcus and Esca go through as they cross Hadrian’s Wall into what is present day Scotland as they try and find the eagle. There they come across the Seal People, one of the most vicious tribes in the land where tables are turned and Marcus becomes the slave.

The Eagle was a surprisingly enjoyable film that was full of action and explored the themes of honor and loyalty in various circumstances. I really enjoyed seeing Marcus and Esca interact; the Roman first viewed Rome as everything good, noble, and honorable when in reality they also savagely stole lands, killed innocent people, and forced locals into slavery as explained by Bell’s character .

Bell, whom I last remember in the film Jumper, did a fantastic job as Esca. While Tatum was the leading actor, Bell undoubtedly stole the show. My attention was fixed on him as he gave audiences a very honorable and loyal character despite being forced into slavery. He was able to capture the complex emotions going through Esca, a man of integrity but also fully aware of the horrors done to his family and people at the hands of the Romans.

As Marcus and Esca spent more time together, I increasingly felt the bromance blossoming, reaching its climactic moment when they rolled down a hill during a fight. At that point one man was on top of the other and they both just stared into other’s eyes. My thoughts? Oh just kiss already and get it over with already!

This wasn’t Tatum’s best performance by far, but it wasn’t so horrible either that it was painful to watch. Sure there were a few overly dramatic moments where I tried (unsuccessfully) to suppress a laugh. Maybe Tatum has just been seared to my mind as the street dancing Tyler Gage from Step Up that it’s hard to see him as a different character.

Strong supporting performances from Sutherland, Dennis O’Hare as the Roman legionnaire Lutorius and Mark Strong as Guern were a pleasant surprise as well.

The only thing that I really didn’t like was the Romans having American accents. Though I admit it probably would have been more painful to see Tatum try whatever accent was actually historically accurate for the time period. While it can’t be compared to Gladiator, The Eagle exceeded my expectations and is a good time to be had.

Pictures Courtesy of Focus Features