Against all odds

If you're looking for a film that deals with betrayal, love, pride, fear and lots of gore, then this is one not to be missed.

Set during the reign of the Roman Empire, this movie follows the Ninth Legion on an impossible mission against the native Picts. The Romans must fight their way back home through hostile territory and daunting odds.

Although the Roman Empire is the greatest army in the world, they seem to be having a little trouble taking control of Scotland (they should've tried luring the Scots with deep fried Mars bars) thanks to the strong and passionate inhabitants who have had enough of being walked all over.

Centurion (yes, that's the title) Quintus Dias, the sole survivor of a raid on a Roman frontier fort, is rescued by the Ninth Legion after being captured by the Picts and amazingly makes his escape through the snow with his hands bound and without a shirt.

The Legion, which is lead by the rugged Titas, has been ordered into Caledonia to eradicate the Picts and kill their king, Gorlacon.

Titas is a great soldier who is brave and loved by those in his command and he takes delight in asserting his authority, even against impossible odds. So when the Legion is almost entirely wiped out during a raid and he finds himself kidnapped, he finds it a bit hard to except. Even in the face of certain death he still manages to keep his cool and throw a few one line wonders at his captors.

It's now up to Dias and the small band of remaining soldiers (and a cook) to rescue their noble leader and fight the Picts on their home turf ... a task which proves much easier said than done. The Picts also have the invaluable skills of Etain, an expert tracker with a serious personal grudge against the Romans, who wants nothing more than to defend her homeland and kill as many people as possible ... a real shame because she's an absolute stunner!

What I really liked about this film was the dialogue which, although a little rough around the edges and definitely not suitable for children (or some adults for that matter), had a real charm and sincerity about it.

The characters were all given a chance to shine and each had their own back story that was really easy to empathise with. Each character was able to develop with the plot and because of this, there were definitely moments where I almost felt akin to some of them.

The shining light of this film was that the ending wasn't at all predictable (I genuinely mean that without a hint of sarcasm) and it's up to the audience to decide if it's a happy or sad ending. This is definitely one of the best films I've seen this year.