Pompeii (2014)
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Critics Consensus: This big-budget sword-and-sandal adventure lacks the energy and storytelling heft to amount to more than a guilty pleasure.
Critics Consensus: This big-budget sword-and-sandal adventure lacks the energy and storytelling heft to amount to more than a guilty pleasure.
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Movie Info
Set in 79 A.D., Pompeii tells the epic story of Milo (Kit Harington), a slave turned invincible gladiator who finds himself in a race against time to save his true love Cassia (Emily Browning), the beautiful daughter of a wealthy merchant who has been unwillingly betrothed to a corrupt Roman Senator. As Mount Vesuvius erupts in a torrent of blazing lava, Milo must fight his way out of the arena in order to save his beloved as the once magnificent Pompeii crumbles around him. -- (C) Sony- Rating:
- PG-13 (for intense battle sequences, disaster-related action and brief sexual content)
- Genre:
- Drama , Action & Adventure , Mystery & Suspense
- Directed By:
- Paul W.S. Anderson
- Written By:
- Janet Scott Batchelor , Lee Batchelor , Michael Robert Johnson , Janet Scott Batchler , Lee Batchler
- In Theaters:
- Feb 21, 2014 Wide
- On DVD:
- May 20, 2014
- US Box Office:
- $23.2M
Cast
-
Emily Browning
as Cassia -
Kit Harington
as Milo -
Carrie-Anne Moss
as Aurelia -
Adewale Akinnuoye-Ag...
as Atticus -
Jessica Lucas
as Ariadne -
Jared Harris
as Severus
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Critic Reviews for Pompeii
All Critics (143) | Top Critics (29) | Fresh (41) | Rotten (102) | DVD (2)
Is it wrong to root for the volcano?
Parmageddon is nigh in this cheesy action melodrama that feels both overheated with plot developments, yet strangely curdled from a lack of histrionics that might have redeemed it as fun trash.
Narrative has never been Anderson's strength; the story here is a corny overhaul of James Cameron's already-corny Titanic.
No matter how much lava is afoot, there's always time to impale one more person with a sword.
A mindless but watchable fondue pot of high-calorie visuals and ready-made plotting ...
More fun than any civilization's fiery extinction should ever be, Paul W.S. Anderson's Pompeii 3-D is gloriously exciting kitsch - a poor man's Titanic crossed with an even poorer man's Gladiator.
Sure, every character beat is hammy and predictable, but hey, not everything can be fine dining. Sometimes you just want a good cheeseburger and fries.
Rapidly burnt by a volcanically ludicrous story, Pompeii rumbles and crumbles, over-baking itself into a frothy crisp--puffery on the outside and clichéd passions within.
A rousing, crowd-pleasing noise-maker that delivers on what it promises.
The lava is the only thing that flows in this misfiring affair.
Rubbish, then, but laughable rubbish - often more "with it" than "at it".
If the violence and tragedy of Pompeii's destruction by a projectile vomiting Mount Vesuvius in 79AD is hard to imagine, harder still is a fan of Paul W.S. Anderson.
By positioning CGI, meticulously rendered with veritable 3D textures, inside elegant, spatial compositions, W.S distinguishes Pompeii amongst the current trend of garish blockbusters: obsessed with vapid, digitized carnage.
If you thought the famous eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD matters because of the mass destruction and the tragic loss of thousands of lives then think again.
It's not just the ancient Roman city that gets burned to the ground here - careers are also convincingly incinerated by Paul WS Anderson's pitiful excuse for a historical disaster movie.
Absolute nonsense, highly entertaining (on certain camp levels) - and never boring.
Browning, while indubitably beautiful, can't act very well. She sounds like a varsity netball player after a heavy defeat.
It's all preposterously enjoyable, far more so than those impervious superheroes chucking each other about yet again.
Like an ancient Roman version of 2012, this disaster epic is a pure guilty pleasure, sparking plenty of laughter along with the massive effects-based carnage.
Lifts shamelessly from Gladiator and Titanic, yet without an ounce of conviction or genuine feeling, the picture is oddly bereft of suspense but I think I know why. It's because we couldn't care less.
Undoubtedly watchable.
Finally, Mount Vesuvius erupts in a fury, possibly in response to the dialogue it has been forced to hear, and all of Pompeii resembles an explosion in a crematorium.
Thankfully, with its hokily enjoyable mix of sword-swinging heroics and CG pandemonium, Pompeii doesn't blow it.
Better than it had any right to be.
Instantly forgettable but more than passable as a diversion; solid B-movie cheese that's like Titanic-lite meets Gladiator-lite.
Anderson goes to town with his recreation of Pompeii... and then he unleashes a tsunami of dramatic clichés and a lava stream of cheesy dialogue that lay waste to everything in their paths.
Audience Reviews for Pompeii
The volcano ain't the only disaster vying for screen time in this block-bust of a flick. Chief among the disasters is Kiefer Sutherland, who puts on ill-fitting airs and an absurd British accent that seems to have been developed to entertain the minions at a children's garden party in North Hollywood. Kit Harington has lost any luster rubbed off from the Game of Thrones series, deadpanning his way through the muddle. The script is silly and defies probability. However, the special effects are pretty awesome with lots of hell fire and explosions to entertain the otherwise bored audience.
MoreSuper Reviewer
Dumb, pointless junk that feels like it was made inside an arcade machine. With a compelling piece of history like the eruption of Mount Vesuvius and the destruction of an entire city this piece of tripe is the best they could do?
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Super Reviewer
Where were you in 79 AD? Well, if you had the bank account, think of historic Pompeii as sort of the Las Vegas of that era, only a) by the seaside and, b) next door to a volcano. Let's go vacation!
Anderson, the director, is meticulous about historical detail (or somebody was) cause the feeling of "this must be what it was really like" is the film's saving grace. Too bad though that no one spent as much work on the story, which is instantly recognizable as sadly derivative of better works. As it is one is still left with summer style, popcorn munchin' fun.
And remember: what happens in Pompeii stays in Pompeii.
Forever.
Super Reviewer
No warning. No escape. Great Film! It's pretty much impossible to say that "Pompeii" is a flawless film. It's love story is cliché and and its lighting at times leaves much to be desired. On the other hand, I believe the term "guilty pleasure" fits perfectly here, as I certainly enjoyed this movie enough to recommend it. The last act of the film is among one of the most thrilling disaster scenes I have ever scene in recent years. Fans of disaster movies will likely be pleased by all of the mindless carnage and destruction, and like "2012," the visual grandeur is seat-grippingly epic. "Pompeii" is nowhere near a high-quality film, nor is it free from typical Hollywood clichés. However, this was not a film that left me feeling insulted or just jaded. Rather, this was actually a memorable disaster/action period piece that I could easily recommend taking some friends to see. The experience alone is pretty damn cool. Set in 79 A.D., POMPEII tells the epic story of Milo (Kit Harington), a slave turned invincible gladiator who finds himself in a race against time to save his true love Cassia (Emily Browning), the beautiful daughter of a wealthy merchant who has been unwillingly betrothed to a corrupt Roman Senator. As Mount Vesuvius erupts in a torrent of blazing lava, Milo must fight his way out of the arena in order to save his beloved as the once magnificent Pompeii crumbles around him.
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Super Reviewer
Pompeii Quotes
- Cassia:
- Now, I don't know, I don't know where I'm a gonna go when the volcano blow.
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