I adore movies and series set in the Dark Ages ... but I must admit it takes some effort to find them.
Over the years I've devoured material set in this time period. Experts typically argue about what period the 'Dark Ages' actually covered. My definition is fairly broad. For me it's anytime from the 1st to the 11th Century. In Britain that covers the Roman occupation of right up to the Norman conquest in 1066 AD. Some historians include the Medieval period in the Dark Ages, but I don't. Even without including the Middle Ages, it's a huge period, and yet there isn't enough (in my opinion) movies and series set there! Maybe they need to make one of my books into movie or Netflix series!
A couple of these movies (The Eagle and Centurion) deal with the mysterious disappearance of the Ninth Legion ... which is a coincidence because my secret project (out mid-2020) starts with this too!
Here are some Dark Ages films and series worth checking out!
MOVIES
King Arthur
King Arthur is a 2004 historical adventure film that reinterprets Arthur as a Roman officer rather than a medieval knight. Despite these departures from the source material, the Welsh Mabinogion, the producers of the film attempted to market it as a more historically accurate version of the Arthurian legends, supposedly inspired by new archaeological findings. The film also replaces the sword in the stone story with a more dark and tragic backstory of how Arthur claimed his sword Excalibur.
Watch the King Arthur movie trailer.
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By Source, Fair use,
https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=709504 |
Centurion
Centurion is a 2010 British historical action-war film, loosely based on the disappearance of the Roman Empire's Ninth Legion in Caledonia in the early second century AD. In ancient Scotland, the Ninth Legion liberates a Roman officer named Quintus Dias from his Pict captors. The soldiers are in pursuit of the Pict leader, and Quintus joins their quest. Soon afterward, the Romans' Pict guide betrays them, resulting in the slaughter of all but a handful of men. The Roman survivors try desperately to reach safety, as the indigenous warriors pick them off one by one.
Watch the Centurion movie trailer.
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By Source, Fair use,
https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=27146480 |
The Eagle
The Eagle is a 2011 epic historical drama film set in Roman Britain adapted from Rosemary Sutcliff's historical adventure novel The Eagle of the Ninth (1954). The film tells the story of a young Roman officer attempting to recover the lost Roman eagle standard of his father's legion in Scotland. The story is based on the Ninth Spanish Legion's supposed disappearance in Britain.
Watch The Eagle movie trailer.
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By Source, Fair use,
https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=29553317 |
Boudica: rise of the warrior queen
Boudica: rise of the warrior queen is the story of a queen who led an uprising against the might of Rome. Boudica is an innocent sixteen-year-old girl forced into an arranged marriage by her father, the leader of a Celtic Tribe. However her mother will do whatever it takes to protect her daughter; so much so that she takes Boudica and persuades her to flee the village and live in her childhood home, away from an arranged marriage and a miserable life. It is only a matter of time before the past catches up with everyone and Boudica must transform from a girl into the warrior queen of legend.
Watch the Boudica movie trailer.
SERIES
The Last Kingdom
The Last Kingdom is a British historical fiction television series based on Bernard Cornwell's The Saxon Stories series of novels.The story is set in the late 9th century AD, when England is divided into seven separate kingdoms. The Anglo-Saxon lands are gradually attacked, plundered, and effectively ruled by Viking Danes in many areas. The Kingdom of Wessex remains the last major stronghold against the Danes.
Watch The Last Kingdom trailer.
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| By Source, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=48327395 |
Vikings
Vikings is a historical drama television series inspired by the sagas of Viking Ragnar Lothbrok, one of the best-known legendary Norse heroes and notorious as the scourge of England and France. The show portrays Ragnar as a farmer who rises to fame by successful raids into England, and eventually becomes a Scandinavian King, with the support of his family and fellow warriors. In the later seasons, the series follows the fortunes of his sons and their adventures in England, Scandinavia and the Mediterranean.
Watch the Vikings trailer.
