MovieChat Forums > Pompeii (2014) Discussion > Enough with the invincible characters

Enough with the invincible characters

posted 10 years ago by yolhanson
4 replies | jump to latest

Look, I know the main characters can't die until the end, or possibly at all. I get that.

I'm just sick of seeing the main character as some kind of invincible machine. A CIA agent who kills 12 equally trained men in a gunfight. A gladiator who kills a dozen other gladiators and escapes with barely a scratch. Even a guy who fights with his fists and beats up ten other men of equal size and strength.

Take a bow, Willis, Cage, Schwarzennegger, Cruise, and the rest.

These theatrical feats are usually accompanied by extraordinary luck and foresight. The guy we're cheering for has all the luck and foresight, and the other, nameless, faceless guys (the baddies) have absolutely none of it.

When 20 or so (how many was it?) Roman soldiers attack a bunch of chained-up gladiators and manage to lose, I have to treat the film as a kind of macabre comedy. How can you fail to laugh?

I don't want to detract from anyone else's enjoyment of this genre, but I'll just say that I've had enough of it. This particular film was a pile of garbage.

[–] d-walsh4911 10 years ago

I understand what you're saying but I'm not sure what to tell you. That's a very mainstream thing now. If i could think of a few movies where the character isn't indestructible (other than horror movies), I would name them off for you.

[–] liverpool26 10 years ago

I don't think this movie was as bad as others for it. milo, atticus and the roman guy where equally good so it wasn't like milo was unbeatable. The scene you mentioned didn't bother me much either as milo and atticus climbed onto the rocks taking away the other guys numbers as only 2-3 people could get up there at a time.

The movies that bother me are the ones when you have 20 guys shooting at the good guy from 20 minutes and none of them hit him or the group fights when you can clearly see the other bad guys just standing there whilst the good guy takes them on one at a time in real life the group would all attack at once.

[–] ksinelli 9 years ago

This is exactly why I don't like action movies, yet literally everybody seems to love them and thinks nothing of what you described. I feel like I'm the only one who can't stand the 'invincible hero' trope, but it's good to know I'm not alone.

[–] khangtto 9 years ago

"Equally trained" is an overstatement. Milo was chosen to fight against an arena veteran who was unbeatable for decades. He wasn't some pup they picked up on the street and became champion in couples of weeks. I've seen a black belt Judo 1v10 before, it's possible if the opponents aren't experienced in chaotic combat, or large disparity in skill. Gunfight is a different story though.

The "Romans" in the arena weren't "Roman", they were slaves, clothed as Romans to play the Celtic scenarios, you should pay more attention..