I have seen a good number of so called "sandal movies". Okay, I'm not sure if this term is universally used, but what I mean by it are depictions of stories from antiquity, particularly Greek / Roman history. Just as so many of us, in my school days I have been fed an overload of info about the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire, especially the times of the former transitioning into the latter. This experience was not made much better by the numerous films created about this epoch, as most of which carry the fake and distant feel of schoolbook translations with them.
For these reasons I was at first rather doubtful about the series Rome, aired between 2005 and 2007 on HBO, BBC, and the Italian network RAI 2. After the first two episodes, however, I was totally convinced, as I was thoroughly enjoying this new approach to a seemingly overexploited subject matter.
Historical Names and Fictional Charaters
As expected, the show starts off with the historically most important time period the Roman Republic, its final years. Julius Caesar returns from his Gallic Wars, crosses the Rubicon, fights a civil war, becomes a dictator, until he's assassinated at the Ides of March. All that is handled in the plot-line of the show, but then there is so much more. We get to know interesting characters involved in the historical happenings through relationships and intrigues, just as you would expect it to have happened in real life.
Apart from such recognizable names as Caesar, Cicero, Marc Anthony, and Cleopatra, the cast is filled with heavily fictionalized and partially historical characters, such as Atia of the Julii, a powerful Roman matron based on two distinct historical personages, of whom fairly little is known. The most important characters, however, are two completely fictional Roman soldiers, Lucius Vorenus and Titus Pullo. It is through their eyes we are introduced to the historical context, and get to experience the reality of history.
The Dirty Underbelly of Rome
Probably the most important reason why I really liked this series was the way it illustrated the normality of ancient Rome. Before Christian prudery created a whole new normal, it was simple common sense that two retired legionaries would open a brothel in order to become upstanding members of society. And given a lack of a police force, it would require a patron with good liquidity, and sufficiently armed forces, to protect an establishment. Practical examples of what we learned of patron and client relationships in theory, and how it directly evolved into mafia practices.
Only Two Seasons, But Certainly Worth It
The only bad thing I can think about this show, is that it was cancelled after the first two seasons. So disappointing! And it seemed to be set up so ideally: the first season was about Caesar, the second one about Augustus, so it just offered itself to look at the lives and times of Tiberius, Caligula, Nero, etc. Unfortunately, this never happened. Citing high production costs, due to a prohibitively large cast and a maticulously well detailed set that burned down in an accident, the last three seasons were scrapped. That's fine, though, this kinda thing seems to befall many great shows.
As for the quality of it, I am by no means the only one who liked it. It was nominated for an incredible number of awards, many of which it even won. The hope of the multitudes of fans, disappointed by the cancellation of this show, was kept alive of possibly seeing a movie version of this particular series, but it seems like none if this happened. Since it's been almost a decade since then, chances are, it never will. So oh well, you could say. Still, the two seasons that have been released are fantastic, and certainly worth watching. Take a look at the trailer here:
Take a Look at the Previous Posts in my Binge On This Series:
Carnivàle: A Throw-back to the Thirties
Weeds: The Hillarious Alternative to Breaking Bad
Mr. Robot: Hackers, Freedom, and Mental Issues
Das Boot: A Real German WWII Series
Black Sails: Pirate Lore Galore
Twelve Monkeys: Time Travel and Pandemic
The DocsMX 2020 Film Festival