Legion

Starring: Paul Bettany, Lucas Black, Tyrese Gibson, Adrianne Palicki, Willa Holland, Kate Walsh, Charles S. Dutton, Jon Tenney, Kevin Durand, Dennis Quaid
Directed by: Scott Charles Stewart
Rating: R
Genre: Action, Thriller
2010

Times Seen:
Tim: 2

Summary: A group of strangers in a small gas station in the middle of nowhere are attacked by an army of angels sent by God to kill an unborn child who could determine the fate of mankind. The humans are helped by Michael (Paul Bettany), a former angel who turns against God to help humanity.

Review:

Tim: In some ways, I may forever hate director Scott Charles Stewart. Legion should have been one of my all time favorite movies. The film is about angels waging war against humanity. That is one of the coolest things I have ever heard of- that premise alone guaranteed I'd see this movie in theaters. I think that is so fascinating, and I would love to see more movies of a similar theme.

So, Legion could have been a masterpiece. The idea is different, unique, controversial, and exciting. And yet, Scott Charles Stewart gives us an incredibly large waste of time. Stewart is excellent at special effects, where he has spent most of his career. He should have stayed there. This was his feature film debut, and it clearly shows. Stewart has almost no talent as a director or a writer- this film is a giant mess of sloppy events, awful dialogue, massive plot holes, and ridiculous, absurd events. Stewart took a truly amazing concept and created a giant turd. I will always hate Stewart because he squandered the opportunity he had with this movie. This film should have worked, and I should have loved it. Instead, he gave us an absurd bomb that makes me very, very sad.

There are some aspects of this movie that I did like. Paul Bettany was absolutely the right choice for the angel Michael. Bettany makes a surprisingly badass action hero. He was very, very good in the film. He is easily the brightest spot here, and I really enjoyed watching him in the film. I also like Kevin Durand as Gabriel. Durand is an enjoyable screen presence, and I bought him in the role. The Bettany/Durand Michael/Gabriel battle was one of the coolest ideas I've ever seen. The actual fight was pretty disappointing, but watching two of the most famous angels battle each other with humanity in the balance was cool, no matter how much cooler it should have been.

I also like the idea of a small band of diverse characters stuck in an isolated location. This idea can work when done right (see The Mist). The setting is appropriately chilling, yet Stewart completely fumbles the execution. The characters were mostly well cast, yet their performances are ruined by a terrible script. I love that Dennis Quaid was in this movie. This was a brilliant move, but made worthless because of the incredibly stupid dialogue that he utters every time he opens his mouth. He deserved better. Lucas Black was boring and dense, and I really wish people would stop casting him in movies. Tyrese Gibson was fine, and I expect him to be in movies like this. I thought Adrianne Palicki was actually pretty terrible. Besides doing an impressive job of the opening and closing voice over, her acting was pathetic. Charles S. Dutton is always, always welcome, and did a mostly good job. Jon Tenney, Kate Walsh, and Willa Holland were well cast as a fractured family, but their dialogue is so dumb and cliche-ridden that they added very little to the film.

Being that I have never made a movie, I don't really know how hard it is. However, I can't imagine that it is so impossibly hard that few can achieve it. Stewart took a very lazy approach to this movie. There are so many plot holes and gaps in logic that I have to believe he just didn't care very much. There are so many stupid cliches and problems throughout this movie. The whole idea of weak-willed people being possessed by angels is fine, but did they have to be the most worthless villains in the history of cinema? Why should we be afraid of them, when they are so blatantly easy to kill? The writers had to invent truly absurd ways for people to die, because the villains were so weak.

I didn't hate Legion as much as I should have, because I still love the idea of angels battling humans. A few scenes throughout the movie were enjoyable, and in some fashion, I am glad that this movie exists. There is some pleasure to be had from it, but it is completely guilty pleasure. There is absolutely no excuse for this movie being as bad as it was. I feel bad for Paul Bettany, who gave a very, very good performance, but couldn't save the movie by himself. While I was kind to this movie, I can't really recommend it. Damn you, Scott Charles Stewart.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 5.5



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