The Last Legion 2007

Nathan Rabin, AV Club: Though it's never wise to underestimate the power or universal appeal of Rai's cleavage and lustrous hair, that's about all that sets the doggedly mediocre The Last Legion apart from every other sword-and-sandal epic about the origins of Camelot. Read more

Wesley Morris, Boston Globe: The movie rarely feels fresh. Even an absurd cage-match like 300 cared enough to be both rousing and handsome. There's no fun to be had here. Read more

Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly: Every once in a while, though, Firth's eyebrow hints, Can you believe I'm wearing this dorky leather breastplate? Read more

Mark Bourne, Film.com: There are, after all, aimed at young audiences plenty of movies more mean-spirited, indiscriminate and obnoxious than The Last Legion. But at the same time there are plenty that are, alas, less frustrating. Read more

John Monaghan, Detroit Free Press: Ultimately, The Last Legion isn't horrible, certainly not bad enough to keep it away from critics, which its distributors have unfortunately done. Read more

John Anderson, Newsday: Despite the occasional gleam of wit, very little is to be taken seriously -- not the story, not the acting and certainly not the history. Read more

Lisa Rose, Newark Star-Ledger: Even though the film clocks under two hours, it seems longer than a Lord of the Rings marathon played on slow motion. Read more

Jack Mathews, New York Daily News: I have too much respect for Kingsley and Firth to believe they did this for anything other than the money, and to their credit, they give their best efforts. Read more

James Berardinelli, ReelViews: Firth is horribly miscast. I'll buy him as a romantic lead or the main character in a drama, but he's almost laughable as an action hero. Read more

Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star Tribune: Put yourself in the proper boy's-adventure mindset and The Last Legion's corny moments will just add to the charm. Read more

Liam Lacey, Globe and Mail: All are given swords to swing and mouthfuls of fake archaic dialogue to speak and none of it makes a whisper of sense. Read more

Geoff Pevere, Toronto Star: In The Last Legion, Rome doesn't fall. But it does look like it would rather be lying down and taking a nap. Read more

Jonathan Crocker, Time Out: Crudely mangling Arthurian legend into Roman history, this creaky swords 'n' sandals romper trundles forward like a hurriedly upholstered TV movie. Read more

Joe Leydon, Variety: The chief problem with The Last Legion stems from the filmmakers' apparent inability to decide what kind of pic they wanted to make, and what sort of audience they wanted to target. Read more