Movie review: This epic's attributes are 'Legion'

An old-school sword-and-sandal spectacle on an almost-epic scale, "The Last Legion" is such a square and diligent piece of entertainment that it put me in a nostalgic mood for the honest B-pictures they don't make anymore. It boasts tumultuous battle scenes with real stuntmen rather than CGI effects, real locations, a story line as straight and true as a lance with no postmodern ironies, and an expert cast that, even in paycheck roles, delivers honest work before cashing the check.

The film is set at the fall of Rome, with Colin Firth as a general entrusted with smuggling young emperor Thomas Sangster past the plundering hordes. Ben Kingsley, the boy's mentor, accompanies them, telling tales of an enchanted sword that will enable them to beat back the marauding invaders.

Bollywood beauty Aishwarya Rai lends a hand as a warrior maiden who tests Firth's manly reserve and provides the springboard for some mildly risqué innuendo. Pursued by bloodthirsty Goths, the crew travel to Brittania to rally a far-flung Roman brigade to fight for the crumbling empire. When they arrive, they find the legion has gone native, and an old enemy of Kingsley's, now a powerful warlord, attacks them on a second front.

The actors are admirably sincere and committed in roles that could have deteriorated into hamminess. Firth is topnotch as the noble soldier, and his brawling fight scenes are considerably tougher than his scraps with Hugh Grant in the "Bridget Jones" films. His natural comic instincts come into play now and again to excellent effect. When a brigade of warriors attack, he shrugs, "Not as many as I expected," neatly straddling the line between macho boastfulness and an admission that this film couldn't afford to hire the entire Screen Extras Guild.

Kingsley, in flowing robes and hair, seems to be enjoying a role that lets him fight like Gandalf and instruct like Obi-Wan Kenobi. And Sangster (who carries over the rapport he demonstrated with Firth in 2005's "Nanny McPhee"), is one of those young actors with a sense of craft that belies his years.

The fights are neatly constructed pieces that build tension and look good, especially those that show the lissome Rai mowing down hulking berserkers six at a time. There's none of the arterial spray of "300" or "Gladiator" in these rumbles, but haven't we seen enough of that? Put yourself in the proper boy's-adventure mindset and "The Last Legion's" corny moments will just add to the charm.

Colin Covert • 612-673-7186

Colin Covertrating: Pg-13 For Sequences Of Intense Action violence. • ccovert@startribune.com