The remake of The Eagle of the Ninth, based on the 1954 book by Rosemary Sutcliff, is in post-production amidst rumours that it is likely to be invited to show at the 2010 Cannes Film Festival this summer.
Directed by Kevin MacDonald, much of the film was shot in Glen Sloy, in the hills within the grounds of the Glen Sloy hydro electric power station on the north west shores of Loch Lomond, beneath Ben Vorlich.
The film is based on the legend of the ‘lost legion, the renowned Ninth Legion. No one can be sure why, but sometime after 108 AD, the ninth legion pretty well vanished from the records. This oddity has produced a range of theories, all of which have served to elevate the status of the Ninth to the mythical.
An enduring proposition is that the legion, then some 4,000 men strong, was sent to conquer the Picts of what is now Scotland – and mysteriously never came back.
The reality is probably mundane enough – the legion was most probably disbanded or sent to another theatre of conflict where it may have been defeated – but because its end is not recorded, the myths persist.
In his new film, Kevin MacDonald has an eye to today’s America as his projection of the imperial ambitions of the Roman Empire.
The clash of cultures between a Roman Superpower and an occupied people reverbrates, of course, in any colonised nation and, in MacDonald’s film, the parallels between ancient Rome and America today are not coincidental.
If the rumours are right and The Eagle of the Ninth will indeed be invited to Cannes, it will give the MacDonald film a boost over its rival film, Centurion, directed by Neil Marchall and shot at virtually the same time, based on the same legendary story.
Mind you, The Eagle of the Ninth has Donald Sutherland as Aquila.
The Eagle of the Ninth is not so much about the lost ninth itself as the quest of the commander’s son for the lost Eagle, and to restore his father’s reputation The original book was by Highland-loving Rosemary Sutcliff (see http://www.rosemarysutcliff.wordpress.com)
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
i read this book at the time of publishing as a school boy, its a great story. how i wish i’d been able to be an extra involved in it, but heard about it too late, perhaps there be a part two, who knows. i wonder who plays the part of esca the brit ?
Like or Dislike:
0 
0