Movie Review: Legion

What if God’s temper hits boiling point, decides to start-over, and sends His legion of angels to exterminate the human race?

This is the question posed by the film, Legion, directed by Scott Stewart. An advertently disturbing thought and also worth pondering on, how will mankind seek salvation when its creator opts to destroy His own creation? And another thought, on a more contemporary, or Yankee, remark, “how will it go down?”

Quick Scan

Michael (Paul Bettany, The Da Vinci Code), chief archangel and field commander of God’s angelic battalion turns rebel due to a heavenly commission opposing his belief. As dark clouds form, apparently the biblical plagues, covering the world in unknown terror, mankind makes a last stand at a dingy diner, in the middle of nowhere.

Shunning former allegiances, Michael, cuts his cool steel angel wings (did I mention cool?), and teams up with circumstantial ‘armed forces’, also known as, the defenders of human race; a relocating family made up of a troublesome daughter and her troubled parents, a poser posing as a criminal, and a modern Joseph and Mary couple, but without the immaculate conception. As heaven’s army strikes, Michael and the rest of his unenthusiastic, unconvinced, unlikely soldiers are tested; in strength, weakness and faith.

Without Michael at the forefront, God’s army is now lead by archangel Gabriel (Kevin Durand, The Echo) who is bent on ensuring God’s will is imposed, even if it means a battle against his long-time, like an eternity long, friend, Michael. A fated showdown between Michael’s humane form with a stolen pistol for a weapon and Gabriel’s flashy high-tech mace, with multiple pointy-thingy-extension features, and cool steel angel wings with equally flashy battle gear, will decide what Michael is willing to give up to defend man. I somehow felt like I described an action figure, oh well.

The OC

I honestly fell in love with the movie’s concept, prompting me to persuade a few friends of mine to watch it almost as soon as it hit the cinemas. And yet a concept when applied may not always be as great as supposed. The film is not a waste of time and money, at the time, and it doesn’t have a lingering satisfaction either.

Scene transitions are fine, fluid at most, appropriate and aid the storyline—so is the mood and theme. The graphics and visual effects were adequate. I believe the director has achieved the right taste and temperament of creepiness he aimed for.

However, upon finishing the movie, I felt this feeling of discontent gnawing from the insides of my stomach—or maybe I was just hungry. In any case, some scenes scream of foreshadowing, or so we thought, but to the audience’s misfortune, were left unclosed. Certain aspects were also too cryptic, inclusive of portrayal and dialogue delivery.

Warning: Spoilers

A perfect example would be when Michael, before a final bout against Gabriel, tells Jeep (Lucas Black, The Fast and The Furious: Tokyo Drift) to ‘follow the instructions’. These instructions suddenly wrote itself like a tattoo snake around Jeep’s torso while driving. Though it would’ve been funny if Jeep tried to read the instructions while driving, there was almost no time since Gabriel caught up with him and Charlie (Adrianne Palicki, Supernatural). As their road fight begins and ends, the instructions felt like nothing more than cool Vincent-like tattoos.

Another major deal-breaker would be the insufficient explanation, or at least depiction, as to why did man’s fate rest upon the birth of a bastard child, which is similar to the Seventh Sign’s save-the-world-plot.

Gavel Down

If you’re an avid film fan, which means you probably enjoy a fluid plot and well-patched storyline, then this is not for you. But if you enjoy action, a certain weight of creepiness and mystery in a film's overall aura, then you might add this to your movie wishlist. Considering the date of its release, I’d say it wasn’t a waste. This is because the film can still make you squirm, react and nod inside the cinema. However, now that there are other much-awaited movies coming out (i.e. Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief, Clash of the Titans) you might want to reconsider.

image from: www.everythingaction.com