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Spartacus: Blood and Boobs

Coinciding nicely with my current Roman empire binge I managed to catch the first two episodes of Spartacus Blood and Boobs Sand. This heavily advertised series scores strongly on graphic violence and nudity scales. The violence in particular tends towards the ridiculous with the mildest of blows cleaving through sinew and bone like butter, and literally filling the screen with volcanic spurting of blood. It took me a while to cotton on to the fact that this is actually graphic novel style transposed to the screen. Once you realise that the over the top style makes a lot more sense.

The series has strong characterisation and the storyline seems to be developing nicely even though we all know how it will turn out in the end. There is plenty there to keep me watching. I do have one gripe about the stilted "oldie worldie" accents that all of the cast affect. I guess they are trying to portray the terseness of Latin expression but none of the actors are able to pull it off to my taste.
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Stabs said…
Can I recommend Conn Iggulden's Caesar trilogy (books)? Very well-written historical novels.
11:38 am
mbp said…
Hi Stabs, yup I read and enjoyed them. I am a bit of a sucker for all things Roman. The funny thing is I wouldn't really like to have lived during those times and there is much to dislike about Roman civilisation yet it is all just fascinating stuff.
11:56 am
Cap'n John said…
It sounds like it borrows from the Japanese movies of yesteryear, Zatoichi, Lone Wolf & Cub, etc., with their all-too-easily detached limbs and their buckets of blood. It was so over the top that a sword slash down someone's back would result in a spray of blood, while wounds from severed limbs would gush blood like a fire-hose.
2:20 pm
mbp said…
Yup Cap'n John that sounds pretty similar. Typical battle scene (which actually occurs in first episode): Wounded Hero lying on ground swipes his sword at the legs of an approaching gladiator legs and slices clean through bone and muscle lopping both legs neatly off about calf height. Cue grizzly scene of crippled gladiator trying to drag his bloody stumps away to safety. Needless to say he doesn't make it.
2:35 pm
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