Pompeii

**
UK Release Date: May 2nd 2014

A slave-turned-gladiator finds himself in a race against time to save his true love, who has been betrothed to a corrupt Roman Senator. As Mount Vesuvius erupts, he must fight to save his beloved as Pompeii crumbles around him.

Director: Paul W.S. Anderson (Resident Evil, AVP: Alien vs. Predator, Death Race)

Starring: Kit Harrington, Emily Browning, Kiefer Sutherland, Carrie-Anne Moss, Jared Harris, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje

Click here to watch the trailer

Pompeii is a spectacular disaster, not a spectacular disaster film. It's one of those films I hoped would do well, but with Resident Evil veteran Paul W.S. Anderson at the helm (and the appalling movies he's made in the past) its future isn't bright. The only bright and moderately interesting thing is the volcano's eruption.

The acting has had a major dent because of the shoddy script. Names are said too often in sentences, and they don't go down smoothly as they're so damn long! Kit Harrington struggles as front man Milo due to bad dialogue. His 300 style abs can't save him here. Even Jack Bauer cannot save the day (Kiefer Sutherland for those who haven't traversed the world of 24).

The inevitable doom that dominates the second half is jaw-dropping. Needless to say Pompeii's characters have very little development, so when the doom eventually arrives, I found myself hardly caring. The 3D aspect is pointless. A few boulders thrown your way means it's not worth paying the extra for this wasted use of technology.

I've been informed that Pompeii has a lot of historical inaccuracies. Judge for yourself if you know its history. Look out for a critical continuity error. One character is hit by the volcano's eruption before the other, even though the other had spent the second part of the film heading away from it.