Review: 10,000 BC
Mar 11th, 2008 by filmbook
10,000 BC
A Film Review by Reginald Williams
Rating: 5/10
10,000 BC is Apocalypto super-lite. 10,000 BC is the popcorn, made for the masses version of Apocalypto. I wanted this film to be good, I wanted to enjoy it but I couldn’t. I never really had my hopes up after the second trailer for the film was released and everyone was speaking English coupled with the fact that Emmerich is a flash, spectacle director, like Michael Bay, and not a substantive one like Terrence Malick.
10,000 BC was not even a disappoint because going in I could tell it was going to be lackluster. I just hoped that I was perceiving the trailers and subsequent commercials wrong. I wasn’t. The fact that I sat through the entirety of 10,000 BC is a testament to my film critic fortitude, the comfort of the theater’s seats and the establishment’s no refund policy.
The basic plotline of 10,000 BC is that a mammoth hunter named D’Leh (Steven Strait) is in love with a girl named Evolet (Camilla Belle), Evolet is stolen by the bad guys, D’Leh goes on an ambulant journey and chases them, vanquishes the bad guys, there is a Hollywood, kissie-face cope out and then the credits roll.
During 10,000 BC, there are three moments of note that I should mention lest you believe I hated the film. When the hunters from the Yagahl tribe, including D’Leh and a character named Tic’Tic (Cliff Curtis), sneak up on a herd of mammoths wearing mud camouflage, the attack by the giant terror birds, Phororhacos Wikipedia informs me, in a forest and when you see the “birds with red wings” the bad guys are apparently going to fly on to get back to their city encampment. These are all high points for 10,000 BC and the Mesolithic time period that it represents. Unfortunately, two of the three mentioned scenes are very short and are over quickly. This is also where a big logic pot hole turns up. Why don’t D’Leh and the other hunters simply follow the river during their chase instead of walking into the desert away from the water? Why not walk along side the river so that everyone can be hydrated, kept alive and strong? Wouldn’t the river lead you to where the captives have been taken? I guess it was assumed that viewers would not think during 10,000 BC’s 109 minute run time.
I mentioned Mel Gibson’s Apocalypto earlier. 10,000 BC is almost the complete opposite, quality wise, as that film. 10,000 BC’s score is not as good, the special effects’ quality consistency varies and the bad buys are given little to no characterization. One of the bad guys is lustful (Affif Ben Badra), another resentful (Macro Khan) and the head honcho has the standard megalomaniac complex (Tim Barlow). They are stereotypical and never distinguish or set themselves apart. Neither do D’Leh or Evolet. D’Leh is your standard (and boring) true blue hero and Evolet is the classic damsel in distress who is given absolutely nothing to do. She simply waits to be won by D’Leh during the first act of 10,000 BC and for the next two acts, waits to be rescued. I do not know if Belle is a good actress or not. I have never seen her in a role that showed off her talent (or lack of). This role is no exception.
10,000 BC was a film I hoped would at least be an entertaining spectacle. With Emmerich’s track record, this was a fair assumption. Unfortunately, we are given a bland, long, uninspired film of epic proportions.
Soundtrack Review of 10,000 BC
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I really want to like this too. I haven’t seen this yet.. or Apocalypto for that matter. I rather liked the score for both movies though and it will be interesting to see it in this movie, especially since the composer also wrote the script for this movie with Emmerich.
You are really generous with the ratings I would say. 6/10 is very good in my book. Maybe I just have low standards ;).
Congrats on becoming the 5oth LAMB!
soundtrackgeek’s last blog post..Great Songs: Conquest of Paradise by Vangelis (”1492? - 1992)
Thanks. I’m glad to be the 50th LAMB as well.
I gave the film a 6 because of those three scenes I mentioned in my review. You could also interpret my rating of 6 as 60 out of 100. That’s a D-.
You have got to see Apocalypto. The score and the film are better than 10,000 BC.
60 out of 100 is really good as well. That would be 3/5 on my scale. Above average.
I will definitely see Apocalypto. Been meaning to see it, just hasn’t happened yet. Maybe I’ll watch it this weekend.
soundtrackgeek’s last blog post..Great Songs: Conquest of Paradise by Vangelis (”1492? - 1992)
I think your right about the rating I gave the film. I was being to generous because of Belle.
Oooh, you did NOT compare this movie to Apocalypto.
Face it, Mel Gibson, may be a sexist, anti-semitic jackass, but at least respected his subject enough to DO SOME GOTDAMN RESEARCH before he made a film about it.
The people behind 10,000 just made shit up. Shoot…Tell me those race issues aren’t intential, my ass.
BLUE EYES HYPNOTIZE ARABS!
..Yeah.
Hot steamy pile of doo-doo = 10,000 BC.
DCMovieGirl’s last blog post..IN BRUGES
I don’t think Mel is sexist but he has some race issues when he drinks. He is a jackass for some of the crap that came out of his mouth though.
There are two ways a director could have gone with a film like 10,000 BC, authentic or a creation of the mind. They chose the latter. 10,000 BC is a film you watch once and then move on to something better.
I noticed you docked 10,000 another point.
As to our contact info, its derrickec@yahoo.com for now. That is one of the many things that need to be changed ASAP, but since we’re a relatively new blog, I haven’t gotten to it yet.
Thx for the contact info.
Hell yeah I docked it. I didn’t realize a 6 was a relative good score.
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The movie heavily reminded me of Stargate. Almost like a prequel actually.
same director btw.
SciFiDrive’s last blog post..Rocketships, Monsters and Flying Saucers: SciFi Cinema of the 50’s
That’s a good observation. I didn’t even think of that. Emmerich should have used something other than a pyramid.
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