Review of Pompeii (2014) by Adam P — 25 Jul 2014

'Pompeii' follows' Milo (Kit Harington) a gladiator whose parents were killed at the hands of Senator Corvus (Kiefer Sutherland) falls in love with the a very high in power lady, Cassia (Emily Browning) while in the city of Pompeii where he is to fight in battles for people's entertainment. Before a battle, Milo becomes friends with a fellow gladiator (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje) who is set to be released from slavery soon after one last battle. And then the volcano of Pompeii erupts. Milo is forced to rescue the girl who was lost amiss all the ciaos, and hopefully get off the island of Pompeii.

Another disaster film filled with multiple subplots. There are more subplots then I'd care to watch, but I was held against my will. There is one with Kiefer Sutherland who wants to marry Emily Browning. Another with Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje who is supposed to be set free. Another with Kit Harington whose parents were murdered by Kiefer Sutherland. And another with Emily Browning and Kit Harington, where they fall in love, 'Titanic' style. And another with some supporting character who's brother was killed by Kit Harington. There are way TOO MANY subplots. And above all these subplots we have two more. The volcano erupting and everyone trying to escape. It's too much.

Not to mention that with all these subplots you'd think you'd get an ounce of characterization but you don't. I would assume that one is supposed to feel something for these characters we are introduced to as they all start being picked off one by one, but we don't. Characterization is set aside for endless subplots and gladiator fighting and a clichéd love story between the two leads. Emily Browning's character is about as one dimensional as a damsel in distress could possibly be. And don't get me started on the action hero Milo figure. He's about as thin and boring as a lead character could be. Milo is basically made up of several different people mashed into one. We got Russell Crowe's character in 'Gladiator', we have Leonardo Decaprio's character in 'Titanic', I mean this list could go on forever.

And then you have all those characters pump out cringe worthy dialogue, and it truly does a double take on you. The script just completely side steps the story and characters for mindless action and a romantic subplot that just doesn't work. It comes out soapy, and like a television mini-series. If the script devoted more time to developing this romantic plot like 'Titanic' did, it may have been successful. But it didn't, it used it as a subplot, and at the end the script still wants you to believe the love between the two leads but to no avail.

And to top of that one note character is an actor whose performance is as wooden as a log. 'Kit Harington's performance was beyond unbelievable. The guy looks like a model onscreen and flirts with any on screen woman he has lines with. He was unconvincing as some strong, heroic warrior man. Sure, his six pack were displayed prominently in almost every scene he's in, but in every other possible aspect... And Emily Browning was only so-so. There wasn't much she could do with her character. The supporting cast by far outshine the leads. 'Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje' is a stand out. He is convincing and I enjoyed his presence in the film. And veteran performances by 'Jared Harris' and 'Kiefer Sutherland' are a must.

Visually, 'Pompeii' makes good use of its 80 million budget. When the volcano erupts, it erupts with tremendous eye-catching beauty. When buildings collapse and fire balls fly out and a surge of lava spread across the city of Pompeii... it truly leaves you breathless.

All and All 'Pompeii' is a mistake. Its script lacks characterization and instead boost's multiple action scenes and way too many subplots, without devoting time to justify any of them. Visually 'Pompeii' is eye-popping and the supporting cast is believable but they aren't enough to help lift 'Pompeii' up from the ashes. D+ 6/23/14.

'Pompeii' is rated PG-13 for intense battle sequences, disaster related action, and brief sexual content. Be aware people die. A lot of people die. This is definitely not for the younger audience who definitely want to watch this. Kids 13 and over could check this out.