We all know what kind of cinema Roland Emmerich likes. It has to be big, loud, fast, epic, and there is no word “subtle” in his dictionary. Struggles in space or fights with supernatural monsters in such a convention are a pleasure to watch. But “Those about to die” is a series that simply suffered from it.
“Those about to die” greet you, Vespasian
The plot is as simple as a Roman road and combines themes of family drama, managing a large organization, PR training and effective use of violence. In the background, of course, romances, corruption, conspiracies and probably all the Roman maxims, uttered by Anthony Hopkins, that the scriptwriters managed to recall from their studies.
Here, Emperor Vespasian (Hopkins) is approaching the end of his life. He has brought Rome to its knees, but it is not so easy to tame. It is not only his two sons who are greedily eyeing Vespasian’s legacy. Great families and those who, instead of being born, can boast considerable wealth will eagerly claim power again. It is hard to avoid associations with “Game of Thrones” or “The Dragon’s Blood”, but Emmerich has no way of avoiding them either. His series hits TV screens right in the middle of “The Dragon’s Blood”, where you can watch the bloodiest battles and the most brutal fighting. What is worse, the political situation in Rome looks a bit… pale in comparison to Westeros.
New Movies and Series Coming to VOD in July: ‘Those About To Die’ Photo: Prime Video
From the first episode it is quite predictable. You know right away how the Namibian thread will end, so you can ignore it. The brothers’ conflict even provides quite a lot of emotions, although it is hard to root for either side. The fight between them is supposed to drive the dynamics of the ten-episode series, which it does with varying results. The brothers do not like each other and the game is really about who will oppress the other more and in what way. From the beginning, you know how this kind of conflict ends, and if in the film the climax would fall in the second hour of the story, here you have to wait ten hours. What is worse, we know from the beginning that there is nothing that one of the brothers will not do and no – the proper punishment for cruelty will not come here.
Between the brothers, Tenax (Iwan Rheon), agile and slippery as an eel, maneuvers, gracefully playing the rich as he wants. He becomes, quite unexpectedly for the powerful, the main player on the board. And because it is really hard to avoid comparisons to “Game of Thrones”, Iwan Rheon (playing the disgusting Ramsay Bolton in the HBO series) is close to Lord Littlefinger here – allying with one of the warring brothers gives him new opportunities, which he eagerly uses.
New Movies and Series Coming to VOD in July: ‘Those About To Die’ Photo: Prime Video
Although “Those About to Die” should focus on the fates of enslaved people and gladiators, who provide joy to the crowd, this thread of joy provides viewers with very little. There is not much pleasure in watching the oppression of people already oppressed by fate. This is why “Game of Thrones” is able to defend itself – because there are very few stories of the lowly. Here, the stories of slaves are not very attractive and even when conspiracies and digging holes under themselves also occur in their environment, it has a less attractive tone than the holes dug under the powerful of this world.
Of all the colors, only sepia counts
Conspiracies, Rome, blood and sweat are bathed in monotonous sepia tones. This too could have its charm if it were a film. But these are ten episodes that are very similar in terms of sets – whether Ostia or Namibia, the battlefield or the Coliseum. Contrary to historians’ findings, it has been assumed that ancient times were bleached of color.
The budget was eaten up by special effects, trained animals and Anthony Hopkins, whose role is disappointingly microscopic – he may steal the show whenever he appears on screen, but it’s far too little to feel satisfying. “Those About to Die” would like to be “Gladiator”, “300”, “Game of Thrones” and “Rome” all at once, but it came out somewhere in between and ultimately bland. It’s more Emmerich and the writers’ idea of how they think ancient Rome worked, multiplied by an additional dose of excessive cruelty, devoid of human reflexes and copying ideas from better, earlier series.
Anthony Hopkins to Star in ‘Game of Thrones’ and ‘Gladiator’ Combination. It’s Going to Be a Powerful Session (illustrative photo) Amazon Prime Video Promotional Materials
Is it watchable? Of course, yes, even without a great deal of pain and frowning, if someone doesn’t mind the gushing guts and heads being torn off as a counterpoint to sex and intrigue. There’s a lot of action here, there are fantastically shot scenes of chariot races, beautiful costumes, conflict between brothers and games at the top of power provide the right amount of emotion every now and then and can keep you glued to the screen. But then we see this artificial background generated by a bad computer, dead Rome in the wide shot, simple and predictable as the construction of a flail behavior of the characters less clever than Tenax (i.e. most) embellished with scenes like from a porn stylized as antiquity…
“Those about to die” is rather a production for the most ardent fans of Rome, but mainly those who are tolerant of changes in historical realities. Those who like conspiracies and intrigues can safely turn on another series. Unfortunately, two, at most three characters with any motivation for a production in which several dozen people played, is a bit too little, and the violence itself – or “games” – cannot be hidden, that there is too little expressive and fresh “bread” in this series. What came out was a cracker soaked in blood – supposedly edible, but when other bakeries are open, there is no point in struggling, it is better to turn on something else in the evening and wait until autumn, when the second part of “Gladiator” will hit the cinemas.
Source: Gazeta
Bruce is a talented author and journalist with a passion for entertainment . He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the industry.
