BBC\'s "Attila the Hun" Trailer

[Theodosius the Great]

This looks like the same production company that made last year's series on the "Battle for Rome" showing 5 episodes on important turning points in Roman history. The Late Roman costumes and armor look identical.

Here is a You-Tube [size=150:18xyeo0d]trailer[/size]

And here is an article.

Most of it is CGI.

Attila wasn't a German. So why do they always cast a white, caucasoid to play Attila ? That's nothing like Priscus' physical description of the Hun : flat nosed, swarthy, wispy beard, beady eyes, etc.... :roll: The least they could do is give the actor some prosthetics to give him mongoloid features. Where's Yul Brynner when we need him :lol:

~Theo

[Robert Vermaat]

Hi Jaime,

Thanks for the link, I'd already stumbled across two dead ones!

Looks like the BBC used their new porps again.

Why not a Caucasian appearance? After all, he had a Gothic name, so we can at least assume that there was some cultural intermingling in his family already.
Besides that, the supposed 'Turkish' or worse, 'Mongol' appearance of the Huns seems to me very much an overstatement.

But I agree, he does not look OK to me - where are the scarred cheeks? This guy has a beard!

Images from the trailer:


Looks like a nice Late Roman battle array to me, although it must be said that 'Roman' armies in mid-5th Gaul probably had more federates in their ranks than Roman units.


Again, looks OK to me if we compare it to recent movies like KA or LL...


Intercicas and pillei pannonicus. OK.

[Robert Vermaat]

Again, not that bad.


Would someone care to comment about the bows?


Ah. Well, I knew it couldn't last forever. Helmet OK, but the earguards are definately wrong... Not to mention the leather shoulder guards.

[Robert Vermaat]

Bad to worse? Odd-looking siege towers, seemingly tied together with strings (which seems to be confirmed in the shot, when the tower is blown apart by one ballista hit)...


Of course, the ubiquitous leather all around...

[Mitra]

For Istvan Bona a 20-25% of hunnic cranes is of mongolic type. The names of ruling class people which appears in the sources is just to 469 of turkish-like origin, Attila included, because Ata means father also in turkish non only in gothic language.

Probably like all the steppes culture, the royal families have a more direct blood link with the original ethnic group.

[Theodosius the Great]

Hi Robert,

Why not a Caucasian appearance? After all, he had a Gothic name, so we can at least assume that there was some cultural intermingling in his family already.
Besides that, the supposed 'Turkish' or worse, 'Mongol' appearance of the Huns seems to me very much an overstatement.

Yes, I believe you're right. I'm sure the Huns started out looking like Mongols but by the time they reach Europe they must have acquired a very mixed appearence ("Eurasian" ?).

But the producers seem to have gone out of their way to find the most Nordic looking actor they could cast for the part of Attila. :?

But I agree, he does not look OK to me - where are the scarred cheeks? This guy has a beard!

That actor would more closely resemble one of Attila's subjects rather than the ruling elite of the Huns. :wink:

You know, Anthony Quinn probably had the best appearence as Attila. At least they gave him very wispy facial hair.

Ah. Well, I knew it couldn't last forever. Helmet OK, but the earguards are definately wrong... Not to mention the leather shoulder guards.

Maybe he's a centurion or a tribune ?

If you watch this presentation soon will you please post your review, Vortigern ? Or just give us the highlights ? It'll probably be months before we in the US get to see it aired on either the History or Military channels.

~Theo

[Graham Sumner]

Anthony Quinn probably had the best appearance as Attila.

Jack Palance was rather good in the role in 'Sign of the Pagan'. He also had eastern European origins and was also facially scarred as a result of burn injuries received in WWII.

Perhaps the worst casting of this type was John Wayne in 'The Conqueror' as Genghis Khan!

Graham.

[Theodosius the Great]

Jack Palance was rather good in the role in 'Sign of the Pagan'.

That's right, I forgot ! I haven't seen it so I can't say if I agree but I'm sure it's true. The 50's and 60's had producers and audiences that were more well read and didn't make the glaring errors we see today in modern epics.

BTW, Graham, you have a great rendition of a Hun in Roman Military Clothing (3) that's based on the descriptions of Priscus.

~Theo

[Carus Andiae]

Ah. Well, I knew it couldn't last forever. Helmet OK, but the earguards are definately wrong... Not to mention the leather shoulder guards.

Maybe he's a centurion or a tribune ?

He was a dwarf jester in the pay of Attila's brother.

This isn't really my period, but the Romans looked a whole lot better than pretty much anything else on the late Empire. There were a couple of 1st C centurions, though, who stood out like sore thumbs.

Attila - and indeed most of the Huns and their allies - looked and sounded like fugitives from 'Braveheart' hock:

[Graham Sumner]

He was a dwarf jester in the pay of Attila's brother.

With a feathered helmet crest very similar to one I illustrated in Roman Military Clothing 3....I wonder.... no perhaps that would be too much! He was however wearing leather body armour but overall much like a figure from the Auxilia Palatina as illustrated in Barker's 'Armies and Enemies of Imperial Rome'.

The centurion's David mentions were just wearing first century helmets with red horsehair transverse crests not the silvered ones of Vegetius.

For once Late Roman cities were defended with walls and towers which did actually look late Roman constructions but sadly the defenders wheeled in a trebuchet at one point. The Huns seemed to do without horses most of the time fighting on foot. I suppose easier to CGI! There were some late Roman cavalry too but mainly escorts and generally also missing from the battles. Would have been nice to see some cataphracts!

A few attempts at Late Roman tunics and cloaks but sadly there was little appreciation of the opulence in costume for emperors and courtiers at this time. Some of the clothes look really rough and ready with the clavi and orbiculi clearly pieces of material sewn on. However the fact that we are talking clavi and orbiculi is a real advance.

Attila was played by the Scottish actor Rory McGann who appeared as Crateros in 'Alexander'. Funny that Gerard Butler, another Glasgow born Scot who played Leonidas in '300' also played Attila in the 2001 movie. So the Huns must have looked liked Scots not Germans Jaime and could also double as Greeks!!! :wink:

Graham.

[Libitina]

I saw this last night. Never knew he was Scottish, learn something everyday! :lol:

I know this sounds stupid but I dont mind the Romans having fairly posh English accents - only because I've become so used to it in films/TV :? But hearing the Irish and Scottish accents last night threw me and was really distracting!

It beat watching something like Eastenders anyway!

[Memmia]

I couldn't take the film seriously from the start when that guy out of Big Train turned up as the Roman emissary. I kept expecting him to turn into an evil hypnotist or a singing chairman Mao.

[Theodosius the Great]

So, visually the production seems like a mixed bag. Not surprising but it can always be worse. But what about substance ? Did they glorify Attila ? Were his atrocities skimmed over ? Was he made to look like a civilized, conscientious ruler fighting a culturally decadent Roman empire ?

With a feathered helmet crest very similar to one I illustrated in Roman Military Clothing 3....I wonder.... no perhaps that would be too much!

Wow, please tell us which plate you're refering to Graham. "A", "C", or "G" ?

The Huns seemed to do without horses most of the time fighting on foot. I suppose easier to CGI!

Maybe they were Gothic or Germanic subjects of the Huns. The bulk of their forces must've been from subject tribes, IMO.

However the fact that we are talking clavi and orbiculi is a real advance.

Yeah, the only other time I've seen LR tunics was when I watched 'Constantine and the Cross' (1960).

Attila was played by the Scottish actor Rory McGann who appeared as Crateros in 'Alexander'. Funny that Gerard Butler, another Glasgow born Scot who played Leonidas in '300' also played Attila in the 2001 movie. So the Huns must have looked liked Scots not Germans Jaime and could also double as Greeks!!!

Another Scot, eh ? Well... a lot of Norsemen settled in Scotland :wink:

So, despite its shortcomings, was the docu-drama worth watching ?

I know this sounds stupid but I dont mind the Romans having fairly posh English accents - only because I've become so used to it in films/TV

I wouldn't have it any other way . The reason why American directors used English accents for the Romans was because the Romans were the elites of their time. Not because, as some think, they are usually cast as the villians. So, Englishmen should feel quite flattered, not offended. I'm offended that Rome is almost always portrayed in a negative way by Hollywood.

~Theo

[Libitina]

I know this sounds stupid but I dont mind the Romans having fairly posh English accents - only because I've become so used to it in films/TV

I wouldn't have it any other way . The reason why American directors used English accents for the Romans was because the Romans were the elites of their time. Not because, as some think, they are usually portrayed as the villians. So, Englishmen should be quite flattered, not offended. I'm offended that Rome is almost always portrayed in a negative way by Hollywood.

~Theo

That's what I like to think but I'm biased, my accent is quite similar! :lol:

I couldn't take the film seriously from the start when that guy out of Big Train turned up as the Roman emissary. I kept expecting him to turn into an evil hypnotist or a singing chairman Mao.

:lol: We had a "oh, it's him!" moment too lol

[Kate Gilliver]

This may sound churlish given that it's always good to get Roman history, and especially late Roman history, on tv, but I found it a bit boring and was disappointed at the reinforcement of Roman anti-Hun prejudices. Thought the late Roman cities were quite good, and actually looked a bit like late Roman cities, but laughed at the siege engines and was very disappointed with Chalons and the way infantry battle was portrayed.