AHAHAH, the way he says with an almost straight face at 19:00: "Sadly, the full and complete biography of the life and times and achievements of Biggus Dickus have not survived to us today", lol!
I remember in the commentaries on the DVDs they mention that they knew the stirrups weren't historically accurate but the combination of the insurance requirement and that very few actors who know how to ride know how to ride without stirrups necessitated their use, so they just tried their best to cover them up.
@@PieterBreda you'd have to if you want historical nomads and semi-nomadic peoples though West doesn't really LIKE adapting Cimmerians, Scythians and Sarmatians without making them Conan the Barbarian (often literally).
7:00 Anyone who has read the historical works of the Gaulish warrior "Asterix" would know that accounts of Vercingetorix's surrender included him throwing his arms *on* Caeser's feet.
My college professor for History of Roman Empire loved the Life of Brian scene so much 😂 Just about every History Class I had it was either Monty Python or Mel Brook's quotes and movies.
18:54 If there is any reason to be an archaeologist, it would be to recover the life and times of Biggus Dickus. And, of course, his wife Incontinentia Buttocks.
@@zulazhar1259It was the most expensive series ever made at the time. Unfortunately the graft by the Italian studio bigwigs added many, many millions more onto the bill and made them end the series after the second season instead of the planned five seasons.
I love how in the opening scene the Romans are quiet. It was said that it was upsetting for the opposition that they would not shout or otherwise express emotion when engaging in combat.
The Greeks copied that from the Persians (where the Greeks wrote how impressive they were by that) who then were copied by the Romans. You'll see that over and over again when it comes to Persian/Greek/Roman culture.
The only issue is that we don’t have any record from the others that the Romans fought against so, much like the Greeks, we have histories of stoic and ordered fighters against the wailing and whooping savages but that only comes from Roman sources and archaeology is proving that doubtful.
@@DidMyGrandfatherMakeThis Roman military procedure was to be as efficient with your resources and save them as much as possible. So pointless shouting and yelling during combat were also a waste of energy, which the Roman legions very much had to save untill the battle was won. That's also why every soldier only is about 1 or 2 minutes in actual combat, untill the whistle and he falls back to the back of the formation, while the soldier behind him steps up to engage the enemy. With let's say 8-10 soldiers in a row and only the front one fighting, every soldier had 8 to 15 minutes of rest.
The Life of Brian bits are so good. They show the hypocrisy of "both sides," at least in the context of history as we know it. There's good and bad in everyone at all times.
PLEASE let Dan Snow get an honest review of Napoleon off his chest. He interviewed Ridley Scott before the release / he was able to see it himself, and he deserves the justice of voicing his review. We all know there’s no way in hell he would have consented to promote that movie if he saw it beforehand.
Man that movie sucked ass. One of the greatest generals in history and they hardly showed any battles. It was just him and his wife whining the whole film.
Ahh, I was hoping to see the series Spartacus here, although it might have needed permanent blurring, considering the amount of gore and nudity on display. Absolutely amazing, apart from the wonky early season CGI, and would've been interesting to see someone with extensive knowledge about Rome take a look at it. Also, John Hannah must have been a Roman in a past life, he's pretty good at playing one.
Another commenter below mentions "I, Claudius" - superb series. Lots of Game of Thrones-style political intrigue and violence, only without the dragons. A lot to chew on for a brief vignette, though - it stretches all the way from Caesar Augustus to Nero.
Well vercingetorix should have been played by a French actor so Italian probably isn’t too far off but a famous Roman being portrayed by an Irish actor. Yeah that’s a bit odd
Pullo's love interest Eirene, of barbarian origin, was also played by an Italian actress. It's my personal theory that the Italians wanted to show the world that there are many Italians who do not look like the movie clichés. So while all of the top stars are foreigners, at least the barbarians are played by Italians.
ohh, I argued heavily with my history teacher over her treating Quo Vadis (book) as a historic source. Somehow, her brain just refused to compile that 19th century writer, running serial production of historical adventure novels, may not prioritze historic accuracy for them, and even if he did, had rely on far more "trust me bro" sources, than anyone doing serious research nowadays has to.
I really enjoyed the series Rome, so I am glad to hear it stacks up! Would be fascinating for you to analyse even more of it, as the series covers a lot of ground 🙂
Two of my favourite scenes in Life of Brian is the Stoning Scene, where no women are allowed and the scene where a Roman officer catches Brian writing in terrible Latin " Romans Go Home " The officer then schools him on how to properly write the phrase in Latin and orders him to write it 100 times by sunrise
@@BrandonHernandez-tg5ql I watched it pirately...and the movie seriously sucks. To lazily made and too stingy. The made the Battle Of Watling Street looks like some mod fighting in bushes.
We watched _A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum_ in a Roman history class I took in 1987. There wasn't as large a selection available then. Maybe it's nostalgia, but I thought it was a wonderful movie. The best chase scene in any movie I've ever watched.
In the clips from 'Doctor Who', when the family of Caecilius are scrambling to prevent the busts, etc. from falling, it's very reminiscent of the Banks family's efforts every time Admiral Boom fires his cannon in 'Mary Poppins'.
Well spotted! It’s the Hottentots! What I thought of when I heard the name Caecilius was my daughter’s Latin textbook and the phrase “Caecilius est in horto”.
This was a really good collection of clips to have an expert talk about. I love that you had silly and serious media, and I got to learn something from all of them. I'd love more of these.
Was kind of hoping both Domina (a excellent series about Livia Drusilla) and Barbarians (a German series about the battle of Teutoburg Forest) might be included. Both excellent and more recent entries.
I can attest to the fact that on-board ships (ex-USCG), many tasks are announced through what's called a "Bosun's Whistle". It was in someways similar to Morse Code in that it used a combination of short and long "notes" to signify a particular task. I think it would not be out of the realm of possibilities that the Romans used this to direct battlefield maneuvers.
I stand with you. It was a cool mix of Arthurian Legend with the Fall of the western Roman Empire. Obviously one big take away was them mentioning Eastern Roman Emperor when in that period there was no such thing. Romans simply saw the 2 Emperors as just that not West and East.
I have seen all of this selection and would entirely agree with your assessment of each. There is one thing worth watching the Last Legion for, the stunning performance of Bollywood star, Aishwarya Raj! 😉👍
I’m a Roman history buff but since it’s a vast subject I’m attracted to the Republican Era. Most of the movies, TV shows and documentaries are very inaccurate in their representation of Roman warfare or how it changed over Roman history. Probably the two most accurate depictions I have seen is the Legionary Army confronting Spartacus Army in Spartacus and Caesars legions fighting the Gauls in HBO’s Rome. Both were probably realistic depictions based on the ancient writings of Legionary and Unit combat of the early post Marian years.
You should watch: The First King: Birth of an Empire, an Italian movie which is all in Archaic Latin. When i saw this movie I was amazed, i couldnt believe that an Italian movie could be so historically accurate. From religion to the villages, the movie is the most accurate representation of iron age Italic people yet.
Just wanted to let you know in case you didn't HistoryHit, HBO cancelled ROME during the early stages of production for season 2, as a result the creator was forced to re-write season 2 so he could squeeze in the events of season 3 into the last 6 episodes so the show could have an ending instead of ffinishing on a cliffhanger, which is why season 2 isn't as good. Season 2 would of otherwise been as well paced as Season 1 with battle scenes. Season 3 would of done a full depiction of the events of the siege of Alexandria. There was supposed to be 5 seasons in total.
@@bertharius9518because people are changing their spelling to match the pronunciation. In instances like this, "have" is pronounced like "of" (uv). People are spelling out their spoken accent, not realizing it's an accent not the actual word. It is not the correct word or grammar though. It's just people writing their accent. I believe reading more printed books would help, but most people only read regularly on social media. Writing on social media is supposed to reflect spoken word and tone more than to be proper and formal grammar however. So in a way it actually makes sense to type out your accent instead of the real word when using social media. Just as long as people know that when writing a formal paper, professional email, or other piece of writing they use "have" instead of "of" I do not see the problem with it in social media
Surprised "The Eagle" wasn't on the list. I can't think of a finer representation of what outpost duty on a hostile frontier must have been like - not just the danger but the boredom and complacency, too.
@@KasumiRINA how many greek words for 'nongreeks' do we have in modern circulation? how many words for nonRoman do we have... barbarian.. savage ? vandal? goth... what are the laws fro introducing new customs in greek state? how many times did greek state change its fundamental rules? (example) how many times did Roma say "NO EMPERORS" how long did roma say this? and then... a bald man came in painted h himself red wore purple and said 'i emperor!' and everyone accepted it. change happens slowly in xenophobic nations right? ....starting to see your point. what are the laws fro citizenship in each country? was it easier to become a 'greek' or was it easier by law to become a roman? which 'greek' are we speaking ov? are we using the modern country by defined by our maps? preHellanic 'greeks' like Plato, Arastoal... or going back to Homeric terms Argives, Panhellenes, Achaeans.... we can even go b ack to the tribes that predate the citistates if you like don't get me started bubbles. your googlefu is no match for my 'i watch documentories and museum presentations on archilogy digs for fun' but nice use ov a greek word to defend your strawman argument! wont be so easy if you continue. most ov english is latin.... which goes back to the romans.
I know The Eagle Of The Ninth was not super historically accurate but, for a very young me, it (the television adaptation, at least) was the catalyst for an undying love of history. For the last forty-plus years, I've been absolutely enthralled by our collective stories of who did what to get us where we are today
32:59. One thing he doesn’t mention that I learned semi-recently is that the Pompeii set in this Doctor Who episode is actually the Rome set from HBO’s Rome being reused. Really cool detail. They went to all that effort to create this huge Rome set, might as well get future use out of it.
BTW Caesar would be considered a figure akin to the infamous austrian painter under modern scrutiny, in that he was a cruel invader and the comander of a genocide who saw his race as above all others.
He was seen as a tyrant even during his own time, hence the association, but I really hate the Rome = Reich comparisons because that's what NS want, they identify themselves with Romans and pretend things like Roman salute were a thing in antiquity, while in reality they were far more insane.
We think of whistles as made of metal or plastic but the whistle very briefly shown in the clip seems to be carved from wood. Are the archeological examples mentioned also made of wood? This might explain why no examples have been found on battlefields as wood rots quickly in the ground.
Fun fact about the Doctor Who episode, the names of the family were the real names of the members of one of the households excavated in Pompeii. My Latin textbook in high school used the same names as well.
Gladiator has a whole video dedicated solely to it, so I think it was wise to leave it off here. It’s so mainstream that any history fan likely knows it and has seen it, and it’s nice to give that airtime to titles some of us might not be familiar with.
@@PazLeBon True, familiarity is a good learning environment, but redundancy only creates boredom. As I said before, a video all about how accurate Gladiator is has already been done recently by this channel (by the same presenter no less). This video likely exists because subscribers like me were interested in hearing about other titles that don’t already dominate the algorithm. Gladiator is very popular, but it’s been done to death at this point.
@@CarterElkins somewhat depends on the demographics I suppose and the goals. The percentages of those that know nothing at all to the ones that have some interest already :)
The Eagle us based on the Young Adult novel, "The Eagle of the Ninth" by Rosemary Sutcliffe, so historical embellishments should always have been expected. The only really significant issue is how the Seal People of Argyll were portrayed as Neolithic cavemen. THAT was criminal because they were likely kin to the Gaels (or Gaelicized Irish Picts) that established the kingdom of Dalriata there shortly after
We all love Gladiator (and look past it's inaccuracies) because it fueled passion for ancient history as kids. Not gonna see Gladiator 2 it looks like it's trying to be nostalgic.
I think the difference between Gladiator and Napoleon is that Gladiator takes place thousands of years ago, - at a time where myth or PR might overtake the truth - and less people are aware of it. But Napoleon was only two hundred years, Or seven generations ago. And far more documented. And the exact story is more compelling than the fiction.
@@JackChurchill101 Eh, Ridley Scott butchered Exodus, trying to make it "realistic" in modern sensibilities way, showing Moses as a madman and hiring Brits to play Middle Easterners not due to color blind casting but arguing that PEOPLE WON'T WATCH A MOVIE WITH A NON-WHITE ENOUGH LEAD really added to the failure. So it's not about how old story is but how up his own arse the director is, Ridley is the most hit and miss movie guy for me, I LOVED Matchstick Men, first Alien and Blade Runner but his other movies seem to be pretentious bore fests.
Oh my God. The Life of Brian. Bigus Dickus. And “What has Rome ever done for us. Well besides roads and schools and… What has Rome done for us lately?” ❤
@@JackChurchill101 were they ironic or actually thought that bullcrap? Because Romans are famously known for sacking Jerusalem and killing or deporting basically every native there, also OF COURSE middle East had sanitation before Rome was even built. At this point I have no idea if those old Englishmen were actually this imperialist or just mocking themselves, it's Poe's law with Python (same with the scene about strange women in ponds).
15:59 It's a comedy! Why is it even included? ADDENDUM: It's very interesting that a comedy was so accurate in it's depiction when the dramas use so much artistic license. I thought it would be the opposite.
A similar thing is said about Holy Grail iirc. It probably helps that many of the Python troupe had degrees in History and were Cambridge educated to boot.
@@lordofuzkulak8308 Cambridge must have ran on textbooks written by White Man's Burden guys from Victorian era if they claimed that Middle East didn't have water or sanitation before the colonizers massacred everybody in Jerusalem.
You said that Caesar not only named Octavian primary beneficiary in his will but also adopted him as his son. The first part was correct. Octavian after Caesar’s murder got the Senate to make him legally Caesar’s son (he had the support of Caesar’s armies and Cicero and other Senators had used him against Antonius and made him a consul despite his age). It was not legally possible in Rome to adopt someone posthumously. But Octavian needed to be legally Caesar’s son to he could get his clients loyalty so pushed the Senate to make it completely official. Maybe Caesar would have adopted Octavian after Parthia but who can tell
Fun fact you probably already know lol, that snicker after Biggus Dickus joke was completely real, like the guy could not hold his laughter back lol, and they just continued with it lol. So genuine laugh, guys!
23:39 Roman governors were almost universally hated because while they were members of the aristocracy and senatorial class and supposed to uphold “Roman virtues” and “Roman justice” in practice they pursued a different, much more ruthlessly selfish purpose. Roman provincial governors term limit was one year. One year before they would be moved to different job perhaps with much less autonomy of action. This extremely short duration was supposed to prevent corruption, but in reality merely intensified it’s effects. Almost all Roman governors were ruthlessly focused on the extraction of as much wealth from their province as possible in collusion with the non-noble equestrian class private enterprise “small business” Roman “publicani” tax collectors there. The “publicani” were the hated and feared “muscle” of the Roman tax collection institution. These enterprising equestrian class Romans had bid to win the five-year contract to act as tax collectors in a province, and, critically, had to PREPAY the majority of the taxes they expected to collect from the province BEFORE being granted the contract. This was to insure Rome’s tax revenues ahead of time. It also was a matter of practicality since transporting large amounts of gold back to Rome risked loss. This meant in practice again though that the winning publicani sought ruthlessly to extract as much wealth from the conquered province as quickly as possible, since THE PUBLICANI COULD KEEP FOR THEMSELVES any wealth “legally” extracted in excess of what they had already paid to win the contract. And since the amount of money needed to win these contracts was often beyond the means of lower class equestrians, they partnered with rich aristocratic land owners back in Rome who expected to be repaid, often with multiple centesimae (a form of monthly simple interest added to the amount borrowed … risky loans like publicani could have to pay two to four centesimae … which would amount to as much as 48% simple interest per year) the governor was just as interested in watching over his “class interests ” (investment by the rich aristocractic class in the equestrian publicani) as in the “administration of Roman law and justice” in his province. Roman governors were in practice presiding over boiling pressure cookers of wealth extraction from the conquered provincial populations trying to avoid outright economic rebellion from below while keeping the collectors satisfied by leaving them free to be as ruthless as possible in doing their work. Including transporting those who couldn’t pay their taxes (and their wives, daughters and children) back to Rome as slaves. And like today’s CEO class, the governors expected to take a handsome cut of the wealth of the region (in the Roman governors case illicitly and unofficially of course) for this short term job, no matter the outcome for the publicani. Success being gauged only by the maximum number of debt slaves (yes … provincials who couldn’t pay the taxes demanded by the publicani could be taken into slavery. Or … sell a wife or child(ren) to cancel tax debt demanded by a publicani) sent back for Rome for sale to the public there, and the avoidance of civil disturbances and especially by avoiding having ever to spend Roman money to send a legion to quell any open rebellion. This vicious cynical, corrupt and violent system of brutal oppression and wealth extraction and enslavement was why Roman governors (the “justice”) and tax collectors were so hated and despised in the provinces. The success of this exploitative, colonialist and imperialist system (imperialist in nature even before the Roman Republic finally became the Empire it had been, in everything but name, for at least a century by around 30 BCE) was also the reason for the death of the Republic. SO MUCH WEALTH and the displacement of citizen small farmer / craftsman / paid laborers by hundreds of thousands of unpaid slaves into the Roman economy promoted the rapid growth of a massive inequality of wealth and income and a consolidation of land ownership among the very richest Romans with predictable results. Wealth inequality built upon systematic “legal” means inevitably produces civic unrest and the eventual death of egalitarian democratic republican societies. “Roman values” became a punch line and political banner of the rich ruling class who cared only about the accumulation of wealth and power and the “virtue” of increasing one’s status amongst one’s peers. After a century of low level economic class conflict in the Roman republic and eventually large scale civil war, the Republic died and was replaced by the Empire which was the embodiment of the ruling class’s ideology of wealth by military conquest, oppression and tax extraction to benefit a small ruling class growing spectacularly more wealthy by the year. The dictatorial , ultra-rich elite dominated Imperial form of government was merely the codification of the ideology of the Roman ruling class they’d been consolidating for almost a century. The Empire, Emperor and “Augustus” just made it official. An empire which ruled its provinces by violence, fear, and wealth extraction, and Rome itself by the famous “bread and circuses” principle. By keeping the unruly and impoverished hand-to-mouth working class Roman citizen distracted with a very basic system of food welfare (“the bread” … which itself came from from a conquered and dominated foreign Kingdom / Province … Egypt) and shows of spectacular political public performances, and the viscious deadly but equally spectacular moralizing and class-enforcing games, all presented in the glorious “HD 1080p” of its time … glowing polished stone and marble theaters and stadiums with rich colorful dyed banners … etc. … the “circuses”. When you consider how the last half century of the U.S. has unfolded and try carefully to enumerate the similarities it makes one wonder how long it will be until the last shreds of democracy and egalitarianism are stripped away from the U.S. empire, just as they were in the Roman Republic in 27BCE.
A very entertaining watch, thank you! I remember enjoying the HBO series ‘Rome’, as well, of course, for pure comedy, ‘Life of Brian’. Love your t shirt - where did you get it???
Please let him review the German Netflix Series "Barbarians" which is the only series/film which has the romans talk in (reconstructed) classical latin and it's brilliant.
Love the experts views on films and this one is very good. Would like to see your take on much earlier films about Rome, like the robe, cleopatra and Spartacus.
In Dr. Who, the father shouting "positions " with the earthquake also mirrors the scenes in Mary Poppins just before "Admiral Boom" fires his time gun, though it is the mother in "Mary Poppins" who shouts "places!"
I do enjoy these film analysis episodes. It's great to know the degree of factual accuracy you get along with your entertainment. It's also really nice to see that even very learned experts are still able to appreciate a good battle scene or a bit of classic silliness. I've added 'Rome' and 'Centurion' to my list of historical dramas to watch after seeing them praised here. The content of the video aside, I think that between his intelligence, listenable voice, and dry sense of humour; I'm developing quite a crush on the presenter! 😅
If you do another of these, I'd love to see your thoughts on: Caligula (1979) I, Claudius (TV Mini Series 1976) Spartacus (1960) Dragon Blade (2015) Masada (TV Mini Series 1981) Ben-Hur (1959) Cleopatra (1963)
I love the sentiment on display when he is talking about Centurion. Things like that are great gateways into, in this case ancient Rome. For me I had known some Roman history from school and had thought it interesting but never really pursued it. Then came Rome: Total War. 20 years on and I bet that I could put together a decent survey course for Roman history through the fall of the West. (I don't stop there, Rome didn't really fall until 1453, but that would be a new course given how we treat the Byzantines as if they weren't the Eastern Roman Empire for whatever reason.)
Here to watch the full version on Metatron's recommendation after his recent video about this one. I'm glad he did both (the video and linked recommendation). Subscribed and excited to check out the existing works.
FUN FACT- At 2:14 in the video, when the guy is talking about the use of Whistles, he mentions a “Dr.Ben Kane” who told him about the whistles and gave some insights. That very same Ben Kane, is an author of a lot of really Good and very historically accurate Ancient Roman Military History. Highly recommend you look up his books. His books range from the Rise of Caesar, Punic Wars with Hannibal, The Tutenbourg Forrest, Crassus and the battle of Carrhae and a lots more. Lots of combat and a decent stories and in the end of each book, Ben does a nice deep dive into the historical context of the story you have just read, his research material and so on. Highly recommend.
What does it say that I am now learning that there is a film called The Last Legion, which was made 3 years after King Arthur and is another film depiction the theory of King Arthur being a Romano-Briton?
Last Legion imo at least took a part of history that is mever touched and springled Arthurian, Roman and other myths and legends of Briton into one. I wish we got to see more films set around the fall of the west
I am still in awe by the monumental "Marching up - Scene" of the legion in the last battle in Stanley Kubrick's "Spartacus" (1960) with Kirk Douglas. Thousands of extras in disciplined formation. There we actually see a full Roman Legion marching!!!11!
I like the Astrix version of Vercengetorix' surrendor, where he throws his shield down onto Caeser's foot, and Caeser ends cup comically holding onto his hurt foot while hopping on one leg in pain.
Love the respect for Life of Brian. I remember some eminent theologian being interviewed about it, and admitting that it was probably closer to reality than many hand-wringing fairy-worshippers would like to admit
"Stwike him, centwurion, vewy wouffly"
it never gets old
"So, your father was a wōman?" is what gets me.
Biggus Dickus, a fine upstanding member of Roman society
True. A bit thick though
Together with his wife Incontinencia, of course!
Any relation to Rockhardus Cockus?
@@philippekogler Incontinencia . .Buttox 😅😅
@@philippekogler And their under fed slave titus beltus.
AHAHAH, the way he says with an almost straight face at 19:00: "Sadly, the full and complete biography of the life and times and achievements of Biggus Dickus have not survived to us today", lol!
But then later he says there was evidence of phalluses all over the place!
We do know he ranked as high as any in Rome
His biography is a long hard read
@@tripsaplenty1227 omg. that killed me 😂😂🤣🤣
I took issue with the use of stirrups in Rome, which otherwise took such care with accuracy. Turns out it's an insurance requirement!
I remember in the commentaries on the DVDs they mention that they knew the stirrups weren't historically accurate but the combination of the insurance requirement and that very few actors who know how to ride know how to ride without stirrups necessitated their use, so they just tried their best to cover them up.
How many horsemen can ride without a saddle. The Roman saddles were quite different with the four hornes but even then..
@@PieterBreda you'd have to if you want historical nomads and semi-nomadic peoples though West doesn't really LIKE adapting Cimmerians, Scythians and Sarmatians without making them Conan the Barbarian (often literally).
@@KasumiRINA Weren't stirrups invented by some nomadic people?
It's interesting just how many anachronisms in period dramas are down to safe labour laws. 😅
7:00 Anyone who has read the historical works of the Gaulish warrior "Asterix" would know that accounts of Vercingetorix's surrender included him throwing his arms *on* Caeser's feet.
🤣🤣🤣
how did he throw if he removed his arms?
I didn't quite get where that was supposed to have happened. Alesia?
I don't know where Alesia is! No-one knows where Alesia is!
@@sebastianwolfmayr Historians re pretty sure it was in France. there is a monument in Vercingétorix
@@PazLeBon Yes, but the location wasn't known when Goscinny wrote this
Obviously "Life of Brian" is the most accurate one.
Well clearly it's not meant to be taken literally, but refers to any manufacturer of dairy products.
@@JackChurchill101 What´s so special cheese makers?
He didn't take on the Roman arc of MST3K
who knew have an historian (Terry Jones) writing the script and acting in it would have a positive result on the authenticity of things?
@@nunyanunya4147 "Romanes Eunt Domus"!
My gods, I'm sure that scene gave thousands of Brits night terrors remembering their Latin lessons from school,
My college professor for History of Roman Empire loved the Life of Brian scene so much 😂 Just about every History Class I had it was either Monty Python or Mel Brook's quotes and movies.
We used to watch it at a catholic school in religion class. No better education than a subversive one
18:54 If there is any reason to be an archaeologist, it would be to recover the life and times of Biggus Dickus. And, of course, his wife Incontinentia Buttocks.
The fact that the correct armor (lorica hamata) for the period was used in the series Rome, was a portend of good things to come.
If they had done more to the series, they would make a LOT more money.
and Port-style bronze helmets without the neckplates that the later Imperial ones made of iron had
Until HBO gutted the series, what could have been…
Good armour, I wish they had used Montefortino style helmets as well.
@@zulazhar1259It was the most expensive series ever made at the time. Unfortunately the graft by the Italian studio bigwigs added many, many millions more onto the bill and made them end the series after the second season instead of the planned five seasons.
I love how in the opening scene the Romans are quiet. It was said that it was upsetting for the opposition that they would not shout or otherwise express emotion when engaging in combat.
Quite true, apparently. Also, they were ordered not to make noise so commands could be heard.
The Greeks copied that from the Persians (where the Greeks wrote how impressive they were by that) who then were copied by the Romans. You'll see that over and over again when it comes to Persian/Greek/Roman culture.
so dumb romans is more about noise than intelligence
The only issue is that we don’t have any record from the others that the Romans fought against so, much like the Greeks, we have histories of stoic and ordered fighters against the wailing and whooping savages but that only comes from Roman sources and archaeology is proving that doubtful.
@@DidMyGrandfatherMakeThis Roman military procedure was to be as efficient with your resources and save them as much as possible.
So pointless shouting and yelling during combat were also a waste of energy, which the Roman legions very much had to save untill the battle was won. That's also why every soldier only is about 1 or 2 minutes in actual combat, untill the whistle and he falls back to the back of the formation, while the soldier behind him steps up to engage the enemy. With let's say 8-10 soldiers in a row and only the front one fighting, every soldier had 8 to 15 minutes of rest.
You didn't confirm if being "thrown roughly to the ground" was an accurate Roman Punishment.
The Romans had to adapt in Judea, as crucifixion was seen by some as "a doddle"..
Obviously not, but being 'thwown' was
Thwown wuffly, more like 😂😂
They didn't get all of Gaul,one tiny village wasn't conquered do to a magic potion 🤣 I hope you get the joke
Did you ever see the movies?
Lol 😂
Getafix tbh
It is all lies. Asterix was Scottish
@@julianshepherd2038 Since when?
The Life of Brian bits are so good. They show the hypocrisy of "both sides," at least in the context of history as we know it. There's good and bad in everyone at all times.
Romani eunt domum!
@@mpetersen428
Conjugate the verb to go . boy !
@mpetersen428 Romans they go the house? This is motion towards boy!
no, some are all god or bad but others perceive then how they perceive them
@@davidsullivan7743
"No, not dative! Accusative! Accusative! "Domum", sir. "Ad domum"."
But "Romans, go home" is an *order*, so you must use the...?
PLEASE let Dan Snow get an honest review of Napoleon off his chest. He interviewed Ridley Scott before the release / he was able to see it himself, and he deserves the justice of voicing his review. We all know there’s no way in hell he would have consented to promote that movie if he saw it beforehand.
Trench Warfare in 1815? 😉
Maybe let someone other than Captain Nepotism himself get the chance? :)
@@VictorHarderHesel Captain Nepotism ?
Man that movie sucked ass. One of the greatest generals in history and they hardly showed any battles. It was just him and his wife whining the whole film.
@@toby099 The* greatest general in History, according to track record. 😉
🦁☀️🐝⚡🦅⚡🐝☀️🦁
Ahh, I was hoping to see the series Spartacus here, although it might have needed permanent blurring, considering the amount of gore and nudity on display. Absolutely amazing, apart from the wonky early season CGI, and would've been interesting to see someone with extensive knowledge about Rome take a look at it.
Also, John Hannah must have been a Roman in a past life, he's pretty good at playing one.
That Doctor Who episode was filmed on the sets of HBO’s Rome
Just wanted to write the same. Cinecittà Studios.
Didn’t Plebs also use the same sets? In Hungary or Czechia.
Another commenter below mentions "I, Claudius" - superb series. Lots of Game of Thrones-style political intrigue and violence, only without the dragons. A lot to chew on for a brief vignette, though - it stretches all the way from Caesar Augustus to Nero.
John Hurt was so funny and frightening. I miss him.
Robert Graves’ book is tremendous
Surely GoT has lots of I Claudius moments, not the other way round.
@@Chris-mf1rm GRRM has said himself characters in ASOIAF take inspiration from characters/performances in I, Claudius so you're very correct.
Enjoyed this very much. Was kinda hoping you would have covered the great miniseries I, Claudius.
Interesting fact: In HBO Rome Vercingetorix is played by an Italian actor while Caesar is played by an Irish actor very mind boggling 😅
Well vercingetorix should have been played by a French actor so Italian probably isn’t too far off but a famous Roman being portrayed by an Irish actor. Yeah that’s a bit odd
It would be nice to see more Italians playing Romans, but there are at least some great Italian films set in Rome from 50s and 60s
Pullo's love interest Eirene, of barbarian origin, was also played by an Italian actress.
It's my personal theory that the Italians wanted to show the world that there are many Italians who do not look like the movie clichés.
So while all of the top stars are foreigners, at least the barbarians are played by Italians.
All ancient Romans spoke English with British accents, don't you know?
Humiliation ritual
I refuse to believe that The Life of Brian is anything but 100% completely accurate!! So there! ;-)
And that includes the Ufo.
Wait till Biggus Dickus hears of this!!
It would be interesting to see your take on old films. _"Ben Hur" , "Quo Vadis", "Spartacus", "Cleopatra", etc._
I agree, the classic films are pretty amazing
"The Robe" and it's Sequel "Demetrius and the Gladiators"! Jay Robinson's Caligula is a Hoot!
ohh, I argued heavily with my history teacher over her treating Quo Vadis (book) as a historic source. Somehow, her brain just refused to compile that 19th century writer, running serial production of historical adventure novels, may not prioritze historic accuracy for them, and even if he did, had rely on far more "trust me bro" sources, than anyone doing serious research nowadays has to.
Rome deserves a deep dive all on its own
I'd second that
The History Buff channel did a really good one!
Lex just did so recently
To quote a famous Gaul : Ils sont fous ces romains
I really enjoyed the series Rome, so I am glad to hear it stacks up! Would be fascinating for you to analyse even more of it, as the series covers a lot of ground 🙂
Two of my favourite scenes in Life of Brian is the Stoning Scene, where no women are allowed and the scene where a Roman officer catches Brian writing in terrible Latin " Romans Go Home " The officer then schools him on how to properly write the phrase in Latin and orders him to write it 100 times by sunrise
Romani Ite Domum!
What's funny is i believe the girl in centurion that you said reminded you of Boudica, actually played boudica herself in a later movie.
And the Boudicca movie sucks megaballs, lazily made. And terrible.
@muhammadahmad1851 I've never watched it, actually. Only seen clips. It's not available on American Netflix
@@BrandonHernandez-tg5ql I watched it pirately...and the movie seriously sucks. To lazily made and too stingy. The made the Battle Of Watling Street looks like some mod fighting in bushes.
She's also Ukranian and not even remotely of Celtic ancestry lol
@@nathanthomson1931 that doesn't bother me honestly. That's why it's called acting.
We watched _A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum_ in a Roman history class I took in 1987. There wasn't as large a selection available then. Maybe it's nostalgia, but I thought it was a wonderful movie. The best chase scene in any movie I've ever watched.
Maybe the best comedy cast in any movie, including Mad, Mad World.
With the excellent Zero Mostel as Pseudolus, the smart slave. The film is loosely based on the play by Plautus.
Not as good as Carry on Clio and the immortal line: infamy, infamy. They’ve all got it in for me. 😆
It's based on the oldest complete comedy we have, Pseudolus, and incorporates characters and themes from many other Roman comedies.
@@rcrawford42 Including Miles Gloriosus
The Life of Brian is a documentary
And some serious latin grammar education.
That's why the church is so against that movie. They don't want us to know!
In the clips from 'Doctor Who', when the family of Caecilius are scrambling to prevent the busts, etc. from falling, it's very reminiscent of the Banks family's efforts every time Admiral Boom fires his cannon in 'Mary Poppins'.
Well spotted! It’s the Hottentots!
What I thought of when I heard the name Caecilius was my daughter’s Latin textbook and the phrase “Caecilius est in horto”.
@@Chris-mf1rm Peter Capaldi is in the garden?
Thank you, I was wondering why it was so recognisable.
Yes anyone who learned Latin using the Cambridge books recognised the names Caecilius and Matella
I was wondering why they didn't talk about the episode where The Doctor finds out what really happened to the 9th legion.
'Stwike him! Vewy woughly!'
The slap that follows is one of John Cleese's best pieces of work.
This was a really good collection of clips to have an expert talk about. I love that you had silly and serious media, and I got to learn something from all of them. I'd love more of these.
Was kind of hoping both Domina (a excellent series about Livia Drusilla) and Barbarians (a German series about the battle of Teutoburg Forest) might be included. Both excellent and more recent entries.
Barbaren is very interesting on the language perspective.
HBO rome is probably one the most underrated shows of all time, I've watched it probably 8 times. RIP Rolo.
I strongly agree with the choice of the movie Centurion and another of my favorites is Ben Hur with Charlton Heston.
Greatest chariot race, evah!
Haha, what a great t-shirt, Tristan is wearing! ,D
I can attest to the fact that on-board ships (ex-USCG), many tasks are announced through what's called a "Bosun's Whistle". It was in someways similar to Morse Code in that it used a combination of short and long "notes" to signify a particular task. I think it would not be out of the realm of possibilities that the Romans used this to direct battlefield maneuvers.
Seeing that clip, my mind went immediately to WWI, where it was used in the trenches for giving orders.
@@lordofuzkulak8308 Witness the final scene in 'Blackadder Goes Forth'...
You mean a bosun's whistle.
A boson's whistle would be for launching photon torpedoes.
@@tulliusexmisc2191 oops🙄
wonderful, really especially enjoyed the discussion of the ninth Legion, I didn't know of the later discoveries of them being relocated
"Life and Times of Biggus Dickus".
I'd read that scroll!
He spent much time dealing with those Seven seditious scribes, from Cesaria.
I stand alone in defending "The Last Legion". It was entertaining and had some striking CGI. It was just a fun, feel-good movie.
Don't know the movie, but I know the enjoyment, that good clean fun can bring to ones life. I Stand with you ;-)
I stand with you. It was a cool mix of Arthurian Legend with the Fall of the western Roman Empire. Obviously one big take away was them mentioning Eastern Roman Emperor when in that period there was no such thing. Romans simply saw the 2 Emperors as just that not West and East.
I have seen all of this selection and would entirely agree with your assessment of each. There is one thing worth watching the Last Legion for, the stunning performance of Bollywood star, Aishwarya Raj! 😉👍
Just realized that, like the Doctor originally did, Capaldi stole the Tardis years before he became the Doctor.
Lol yes he did. Ah yes a Roman with a scottish accent :)
My all time favorite historical film/tv depiction is Masada with Peter Strauss and Peter O'Toole.
I would love to get his view on it.
I've been listening to Tristan since the start of Lockdown, finally I can put a face to the voice. :-)
He had more hair in my imagination but I’m not disappointed!
His T shirt is exactly what I imagined though
I’m a Roman history buff but since it’s a vast subject I’m attracted to the Republican Era. Most of the movies, TV shows and documentaries are very inaccurate in their representation of Roman warfare or how it changed over Roman history.
Probably the two most accurate depictions I have seen is the Legionary Army confronting Spartacus Army in Spartacus and Caesars legions fighting the Gauls in HBO’s Rome.
Both were probably realistic depictions based on the ancient writings of Legionary and Unit combat of the early post Marian years.
You should watch: The First King: Birth of an Empire, an Italian movie which is all in Archaic Latin.
When i saw this movie I was amazed, i couldnt believe that an Italian movie could be so historically accurate.
From religion to the villages, the movie is the most accurate representation of iron age Italic people yet.
Thank you! I will try to find it now. Sounds great to watch.
Caecilius (in the Doctor Who segment) was the Pompeii merchant in the popular Cambridge Latin Course, wasn't he?
Flashbacks to high school Latin 😂
I think he was. I also love how that actor later became the Doctor later on :)
Caecilius est in horto
Really love the T-shirt!
What about "I, Claudius"?
What about Up Pompeii?
@@afitzsimons Titter ye not!
ahem... Don't you mean "I, CLAVDIVS"?😉
@@heneagedundaswoe, woe, and thrice woe!
@@afitzsimonswhat about the Prologue?
Just wanted to let you know in case you didn't HistoryHit, HBO cancelled ROME during the early stages of production for season 2, as a result the creator was forced to re-write season 2 so he could squeeze in the events of season 3 into the last 6 episodes so the show could have an ending instead of ffinishing on a cliffhanger, which is why season 2 isn't as good. Season 2 would of otherwise been as well paced as Season 1 with battle scenes. Season 3 would of done a full depiction of the events of the siege of Alexandria. There was supposed to be 5 seasons in total.
I'm seeing this more and more - why has "of" replaced "have"?
@@bertharius9518 Because people are iliterate.
@@bertharius9518because people are changing their spelling to match the pronunciation. In instances like this, "have" is pronounced like "of" (uv). People are spelling out their spoken accent, not realizing it's an accent not the actual word. It is not the correct word or grammar though. It's just people writing their accent. I believe reading more printed books would help, but most people only read regularly on social media. Writing on social media is supposed to reflect spoken word and tone more than to be proper and formal grammar however. So in a way it actually makes sense to type out your accent instead of the real word when using social media. Just as long as people know that when writing a formal paper, professional email, or other piece of writing they use "have" instead of "of" I do not see the problem with it in social media
@@bertharius9518Yes!! 'Would of, could of, should of'. Seems quite a recent thing....but it is really irritating.
Thank you! I was so sad when it ended only after 2 seasons, but didn't know the exact reason for that.
The HBO show "Rome" was the best.
Came here because of recomondation from Metatron, Great Video well done.
“Infamy infamy, they’ve all got it in for me”
Always be the goat
Classic insight to the relationship between Rome and the exotic east.
Surprised "The Eagle" wasn't on the list. I can't think of a finer representation of what outpost duty on a hostile frontier must have been like - not just the danger but the boredom and complacency, too.
Yes I thought for sure it would be there
Also the use of formations like the testudo
i was supprized by how good that was too. a little too 'if not roman all are animals' but it was very good
@@nunyanunya4147 ah, modern filmmakers trying to backport Third Reich values onto Rome never gets old... Romans weren't even as xenophobic as Greeks!
@@KasumiRINA how many greek words for 'nongreeks' do we have in modern circulation?
how many words for nonRoman do we have... barbarian.. savage ? vandal? goth...
what are the laws fro introducing new customs in greek state? how many times did greek state change its fundamental rules? (example) how many times did Roma say "NO EMPERORS" how long did roma say this? and then... a bald man came in painted h himself red wore purple and said 'i emperor!' and everyone accepted it.
change happens slowly in xenophobic nations right? ....starting to see your point.
what are the laws fro citizenship in each country? was it easier to become a 'greek' or was it easier by law to become a roman?
which 'greek' are we speaking ov? are we using the modern country by defined by our maps? preHellanic 'greeks' like Plato, Arastoal... or going back to Homeric terms Argives, Panhellenes, Achaeans.... we can even go b ack to the tribes that predate the citistates if you like
don't get me started bubbles. your googlefu is no match for my 'i watch documentories and museum presentations on archilogy digs for fun'
but nice use ov a greek word to defend your strawman argument! wont be so easy if you continue. most ov english is latin.... which goes back to the romans.
I know The Eagle Of The Ninth was not super historically accurate but, for a very young me, it (the television adaptation, at least) was the catalyst for an undying love of history.
For the last forty-plus years, I've been absolutely enthralled by our collective stories of who did what to get us where we are today
Intercontinentia Buttox !
Cmon where I Claudius ?
32:59. One thing he doesn’t mention that I learned semi-recently is that the Pompeii set in this Doctor Who episode is actually the Rome set from HBO’s Rome being reused. Really cool detail.
They went to all that effort to create this huge Rome set, might as well get future use out of it.
BTW Caesar would be considered a figure akin to the infamous austrian painter under modern scrutiny, in that he was a cruel invader and the comander of a genocide who saw his race as above all others.
He was seen as a tyrant even during his own time, hence the association, but I really hate the Rome = Reich comparisons because that's what NS want, they identify themselves with Romans and pretend things like Roman salute were a thing in antiquity, while in reality they were far more insane.
We think of whistles as made of metal or plastic but the whistle very briefly shown in the clip seems to be carved from wood. Are the archeological examples mentioned also made of wood? This might explain why no examples have been found on battlefields as wood rots quickly in the ground.
Fun fact about the Doctor Who episode, the names of the family were the real names of the members of one of the households excavated in Pompeii. My Latin textbook in high school used the same names as well.
Was hoping Gladiator and The Eagle would be included. Both films took a great deal of leeway with history, but they were both interesting
Gladiator has a whole video dedicated solely to it, so I think it was wise to leave it off here. It’s so mainstream that any history fan likely knows it and has seen it, and it’s nice to give that airtime to titles some of us might not be familiar with.
@@CarterElkins I thought the exact opposite for those very reasons :) familiarity is always a good learning environment
@@PazLeBon True, familiarity is a good learning environment, but redundancy only creates boredom. As I said before, a video all about how accurate Gladiator is has already been done recently by this channel (by the same presenter no less). This video likely exists because subscribers like me were interested in hearing about other titles that don’t already dominate the algorithm. Gladiator is very popular, but it’s been done to death at this point.
@@CarterElkins somewhat depends on the demographics I suppose and the goals. The percentages of those that know nothing at all to the ones that have some interest already :)
The Eagle us based on the Young Adult novel, "The Eagle of the Ninth" by Rosemary Sutcliffe, so historical embellishments should always have been expected. The only really significant issue is how the Seal People of Argyll were portrayed as Neolithic cavemen. THAT was criminal because they were likely kin to the Gaels (or Gaelicized Irish Picts) that established the kingdom of Dalriata there shortly after
We all love Gladiator (and look past it's inaccuracies) because it fueled passion for ancient history as kids. Not gonna see Gladiator 2 it looks like it's trying to be nostalgic.
I think the difference between Gladiator and Napoleon is that Gladiator takes place thousands of years ago, - at a time where myth or PR might overtake the truth - and less people are aware of it.
But Napoleon was only two hundred years, Or seven generations ago. And far more documented. And the exact story is more compelling than the fiction.
@@JackChurchill101 Eh, Ridley Scott butchered Exodus, trying to make it "realistic" in modern sensibilities way, showing Moses as a madman and hiring Brits to play Middle Easterners not due to color blind casting but arguing that PEOPLE WON'T WATCH A MOVIE WITH A NON-WHITE ENOUGH LEAD really added to the failure. So it's not about how old story is but how up his own arse the director is, Ridley is the most hit and miss movie guy for me, I LOVED Matchstick Men, first Alien and Blade Runner but his other movies seem to be pretentious bore fests.
Oh my God. The Life of Brian. Bigus Dickus. And “What has Rome ever done for us. Well besides roads and schools and… What has Rome done for us lately?” ❤
Brought peace?
@@JackChurchill101 were they ironic or actually thought that bullcrap? Because Romans are famously known for sacking Jerusalem and killing or deporting basically every native there, also OF COURSE middle East had sanitation before Rome was even built. At this point I have no idea if those old Englishmen were actually this imperialist or just mocking themselves, it's Poe's law with Python (same with the scene about strange women in ponds).
@@KasumiRINA The movie is set well before the uprisings during the late 60s AD and the revolt from Hadrian's reign.
I'd stepped away for a moment. But I knew the music from The Life of Brian! I love that film!
Oh I would love a The Last Legion review
Even Uruk in Mesopotemia had a sewer system long before B.C..
15:59
It's a comedy! Why is it even included?
ADDENDUM: It's very interesting that a comedy was so accurate in it's depiction when the dramas use so much artistic license. I thought it would be the opposite.
A similar thing is said about Holy Grail iirc. It probably helps that many of the Python troupe had degrees in History and were Cambridge educated to boot.
@@lordofuzkulak8308 Cambridge must have ran on textbooks written by White Man's Burden guys from Victorian era if they claimed that Middle East didn't have water or sanitation before the colonizers massacred everybody in Jerusalem.
Carry on Cleo a good movie if not 100% accurate.@@lordofuzkulak8308
Wot, no Asterix? These TH-camrs are crazy....
You said that Caesar not only named Octavian primary beneficiary in his will but also adopted him as his son. The first part was correct. Octavian after Caesar’s murder got the Senate to make him legally Caesar’s son (he had the support of Caesar’s armies and Cicero and other Senators had used him against Antonius and made him a consul despite his age). It was not legally possible in Rome to adopt someone posthumously. But Octavian needed to be legally Caesar’s son to he could get his clients loyalty so pushed the Senate to make it completely official. Maybe Caesar would have adopted Octavian after Parthia but who can tell
Fun fact you probably already know lol, that snicker after Biggus Dickus joke was completely real, like the guy could not hold his laughter back lol, and they just continued with it lol. So genuine laugh, guys!
I REALLY enjoyed this, thank you!
23:39 Roman governors were almost universally hated because while they were members of the aristocracy and senatorial class and supposed to uphold “Roman virtues” and “Roman justice” in practice they pursued a different, much more ruthlessly selfish purpose. Roman provincial governors term limit was one year. One year before they would be moved to different job perhaps with much less autonomy of action. This extremely short duration was supposed to prevent corruption, but in reality merely intensified it’s effects. Almost all Roman governors were ruthlessly focused on the extraction of as much wealth from their province as possible in collusion with the non-noble equestrian class private enterprise “small business” Roman “publicani” tax collectors there. The “publicani” were the hated and feared “muscle” of the Roman tax collection institution. These enterprising equestrian class Romans had bid to win the five-year contract to act as tax collectors in a province, and, critically, had to PREPAY the majority of the taxes they expected to collect from the province BEFORE being granted the contract. This was to insure Rome’s tax revenues ahead of time. It also was a matter of practicality since transporting large amounts of gold back to Rome risked loss. This meant in practice again though that the winning publicani sought ruthlessly to extract as much wealth from the conquered province as quickly as possible, since THE PUBLICANI COULD KEEP FOR THEMSELVES any wealth “legally” extracted in excess of what they had already paid to win the contract. And since the amount of money needed to win these contracts was often beyond the means of lower class equestrians, they partnered with rich aristocratic land owners back in Rome who expected to be repaid, often with multiple centesimae (a form of monthly simple interest added to the amount borrowed … risky loans like publicani could have to pay two to four centesimae … which would amount to as much as 48% simple interest per year) the governor was just as interested in watching over his “class interests ” (investment by the rich aristocractic class in the equestrian publicani) as in the “administration of Roman law and justice” in his province. Roman governors were in practice presiding over boiling pressure cookers of wealth extraction from the conquered provincial populations trying to avoid outright economic rebellion from below while keeping the collectors satisfied by leaving them free to be as ruthless as possible in doing their work. Including transporting those who couldn’t pay their taxes (and their wives, daughters and children) back to Rome as slaves.
And like today’s CEO class, the governors expected to take a handsome cut of the wealth of the region (in the Roman governors case illicitly and unofficially of course) for this short term job, no matter the outcome for the publicani. Success being gauged only by the maximum number of debt slaves (yes … provincials who couldn’t pay the taxes demanded by the publicani could be taken into slavery. Or … sell a wife or child(ren) to cancel tax debt demanded by a publicani) sent back for Rome for sale to the public there, and the avoidance of civil disturbances and especially by avoiding having ever to spend Roman money to send a legion to quell any open rebellion.
This vicious cynical, corrupt and violent system of brutal oppression and wealth extraction and enslavement was why Roman governors (the “justice”) and tax collectors were so hated and despised in the provinces.
The success of this exploitative, colonialist and imperialist system (imperialist in nature even before the Roman Republic finally became the Empire it had been, in everything but name, for at least a century by around 30 BCE) was also the reason for the death of the Republic. SO MUCH WEALTH and the displacement of citizen small farmer / craftsman / paid laborers by hundreds of thousands of unpaid slaves into the Roman economy promoted the rapid growth of a massive inequality of wealth and income and a consolidation of land ownership among the very richest Romans with predictable results. Wealth inequality built upon systematic “legal” means inevitably produces civic unrest and the eventual death of egalitarian democratic republican societies.
“Roman values” became a punch line and political banner of the rich ruling class who cared only about the accumulation of wealth and power and the “virtue” of increasing one’s status amongst one’s peers.
After a century of low level economic class conflict in the Roman republic and eventually large scale civil war, the Republic died and was replaced by the Empire which was the embodiment of the ruling class’s ideology of wealth by military conquest, oppression and tax extraction to benefit a small ruling class growing spectacularly more wealthy by the year. The dictatorial , ultra-rich elite dominated Imperial form of government was merely the codification of the ideology of the Roman ruling class they’d been consolidating for almost a century. The Empire, Emperor and “Augustus” just made it official. An empire which ruled its provinces by violence, fear, and wealth extraction, and Rome itself by the famous “bread and circuses” principle.
By keeping the unruly and impoverished hand-to-mouth working class Roman citizen distracted with a very basic system of food welfare (“the bread” … which itself came from from a conquered and dominated foreign Kingdom / Province … Egypt) and shows of spectacular political public performances, and the viscious deadly but equally spectacular moralizing and class-enforcing games, all presented in the glorious “HD 1080p” of its time … glowing polished stone and marble theaters and stadiums with rich colorful dyed banners … etc. … the “circuses”.
When you consider how the last half century of the U.S. has unfolded and try carefully to enumerate the similarities it makes one wonder how long it will be until the last shreds of democracy and egalitarianism are stripped away from the U.S. empire, just as they were in the Roman Republic in 27BCE.
A very entertaining watch, thank you! I remember enjoying the HBO series ‘Rome’, as well, of course, for pure comedy, ‘Life of Brian’. Love your t shirt - where did you get it???
Please let him review the German Netflix Series "Barbarians" which is the only series/film which has the romans talk in (reconstructed) classical latin and it's brilliant.
In the next batch pleas include Netflix "Barbarians" about the Arminus and HBO " those about to die" for the Flavians.
did not know John Hannah had done "roman" movies before he did Spartacus, he is such a great actor
Curious about the German TV show "Barbarians" it looks pretty authentic to me 🙂
Sparticus Blood and Sand? Great series with, apparently, only four historical errors.
Really enjoyed this and all of your history hits content!
Love the experts views on films and this one is very good.
Would like to see your take on much earlier films about Rome, like the robe, cleopatra and Spartacus.
In Dr. Who, the father shouting "positions " with the earthquake also mirrors the scenes in Mary Poppins just before "Admiral Boom" fires his time gun, though it is the mother in "Mary Poppins" who shouts "places!"
I do enjoy these film analysis episodes. It's great to know the degree of factual accuracy you get along with your entertainment. It's also really nice to see that even very learned experts are still able to appreciate a good battle scene or a bit of classic silliness. I've added 'Rome' and 'Centurion' to my list of historical dramas to watch after seeing them praised here.
The content of the video aside, I think that between his intelligence, listenable voice, and dry sense of humour; I'm developing quite a crush on the presenter! 😅
My favourite Romans owned a bar. They were called Calidius Eroticus and Fannia Volupta.
Would love to see a reaction to the German Netflix series Barbarians (like the use of Latin by the Romans) 👀
Doctor Who's Pompeii was filmed at Cinecittà Studios on the HBO Rome sets.
If you do another of these, I'd love to see your thoughts on:
Caligula (1979)
I, Claudius (TV Mini Series 1976)
Spartacus (1960)
Dragon Blade (2015)
Masada (TV Mini Series 1981)
Ben-Hur (1959)
Cleopatra (1963)
I miss HBO's "Barbarians" (1st season only)
I love the sentiment on display when he is talking about Centurion. Things like that are great gateways into, in this case ancient Rome.
For me I had known some Roman history from school and had thought it interesting but never really pursued it. Then came Rome: Total War. 20 years on and I bet that I could put together a decent survey course for Roman history through the fall of the West. (I don't stop there, Rome didn't really fall until 1453, but that would be a new course given how we treat the Byzantines as if they weren't the Eastern Roman Empire for whatever reason.)
Here to watch the full version on Metatron's recommendation after his recent video about this one. I'm glad he did both (the video and linked recommendation). Subscribed and excited to check out the existing works.
I wonder if he has read and if so what he thinks of The Masters of Rome series by Colleen McCullough?
FUN FACT- At 2:14 in the video, when the guy is talking about the use of Whistles, he mentions a “Dr.Ben Kane” who told him about the whistles and gave some insights. That very same Ben Kane, is an author of a lot of really Good and very historically accurate Ancient Roman Military History. Highly recommend you look up his books.
His books range from the Rise of Caesar, Punic Wars with Hannibal, The Tutenbourg Forrest, Crassus and the battle of Carrhae and a lots more. Lots of combat and a decent stories and in the end of each book, Ben does a nice deep dive into the historical context of the story you have just read, his research material and so on. Highly recommend.
Cheers, great video!
What does it say that I am now learning that there is a film called The Last Legion, which was made 3 years after King Arthur and is another film depiction the theory of King Arthur being a Romano-Briton?
Last Legion imo at least took a part of history that is mever touched and springled Arthurian, Roman and other myths and legends of Briton into one.
I wish we got to see more films set around the fall of the west
The guard in the thumbnail laughing at Palin in Life of Brian doesn't get much work anymore after his sick crimes, he's called Chris Langham.
I am still in awe by the monumental "Marching up - Scene" of the legion in the last battle in Stanley Kubrick's "Spartacus" (1960) with Kirk Douglas. Thousands of extras in disciplined formation. There we actually see a full Roman Legion marching!!!11!
I believe those extras were a unit of the italian army.
Love Tristan!
I like the Astrix version of Vercengetorix' surrendor, where he throws his shield down onto Caeser's foot, and Caeser ends cup comically holding onto his hurt foot while hopping on one leg in pain.
The Netflix show Barbarians should've been included
Love the respect for Life of Brian. I remember some eminent theologian being interviewed about it, and admitting that it was probably closer to reality than many hand-wringing fairy-worshippers would like to admit