A throwback to the historical epics of yesteryear,
"The Eagle", directed by Kevin Macdonald (
"State of Play",
"The Last King of Scotland"), is a competent adventure flick that will appeal to those who want to enjoy a good action flick, but also to those who like a little historical depth to go along with the epic fights. Macdonald, being a documentarian at heart, makes this much more than just a mindless violent version of history. The level of detail he displays here is the best thing about this movie. The Blu-Ray and DVD releases also include the Unrated edition which basically adds or extends scenes containing graphic violence, which would have raised the rating from PG-13 to R in theaters. Even so, don't expect it to be as violent as, let's say,
"Centurion".
