Centurion 2010

Stephen Holden, New York Times: For all its analogies to Afghanistan, Iraq, Vietnam, or wherever, the underlying thrust of Centurion is its celebration of bloodlust. Read more

Keith Uhlich, Time Out: It's prime B-movie material put through the Ridley Scott Cuisinart. Read more

John Hartl, Seattle Times: Occasionally Marshall provides a back story to fill out a role, but too often that's how it comes off: as filler. Read more

Scott Tobias, AV Club: Over time, Marshall's interest in period brutality becomes a grinding obsession. Read more

Wesley Morris, Boston Globe: Flaming arrows, spears, and knives have no problem finding their way to the back of a mouth. The profanity is delightful. And the general atmosphere is grim. The movie just isn't terribly inspired. Read more

Ben Sachs, Chicago Reader: Auteur cinema of a very narrow stripe, this personalizes a familiar genre to advance a singularly pessimistic view of humanity. Read more

Amy Biancolli, Houston Chronicle: There are, by my count, six standard types of violence in film these days: Tarantino, comic book, Scorsese, martial arts, horror and stupid. That's right: stupid. For an example, look no further than Centurion. Read more

Peter Rainer, Christian Science Monitor: Marshall is big on desaturated imagery, which imparts to the film's copious amounts of hemoglobin the look of squid ink. Read more

Cary Darling, Dallas Morning News: Far more entertaining, and infinitely less cumbersome, than its recent big-budget Hollywood counterparts. Read more

Chris Nashawaty, Entertainment Weekly: When it comes to crunchy impalings and messy arterial geysers, Marshall's a maestro. Read more

John DeFore, Hollywood Reporter: Unpretentious swords-and-sandals film crafts a tight survival drama out of Roman Empire lore. Read more

Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times: By turns heroic, fearsome, funny, fateful and, oh, so brutal, with swords hacking off heads at every turn. Read more

Anthony Lane, New Yorker: The film has a resigned bitterness, hard to shake off, that feels right for the experience of tough guys, from whatever period of history, who find themselves at the tattered edge of what they take to be civilization. Read more

Joe Neumaier, New York Daily News: Marshall shows off the breathtaking landscape, but with interiors, he populates the ale houses and encampments with cliches. Read more

Kyle Smith, New York Post: Sack, pillage, repeat. Heads will roll. And bounce. And be stuck on pikes. Read more

James Berardinelli, ReelViews: No one can claim the bloodshed was toned down in the quest for a PG-13 -- and I consider that to be a positive quality. Read more

Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: Most of the characters are so characterless that you can't tell who they are when they get impaled or beheaded, and you can't remember who they used to be after they're dispatched. Not that it matters. Read more

Andrew O'Hehir, Salon.com: It offers riveting storytelling, gorgeous cinematography and scenery, loads of gore, and a politically complicated history lesson. Read more

Rob Nelson, Minneapolis Star Tribune: Bloody well done. Read more

Nigel Floyd, Time Out: No amount of relentless forward momentum, head-smacking violence or CGI-enhanced blood-letting can disguise the anaemic characterisation and obvious contrivances. Read more

Leslie Felperin, Variety: Rousing if slightly predictable. Read more

F.X. Feeney, Village Voice: [A] highly enjoyable action-adventure. Read more

Ann Hornaday, Washington Post: Centurion wraps itself in talk of duty and honor, but really it's just another cinematic death-trip. Read more