Centurion

Synopsis: Britain, A.D. 117. Quintus Dias, the sole survivor of a Pictish raid on a Roman frontier fort, marches north with General Virilus' legendary Ninth Legion, under orders to wipe the Picts from the face of the Earth and destroy their leader, Gorlacon.
Director(s): Neil Marshall
Production: Magnolia Pictures
  1 nomination.
 
IMDB:
6.4
Metacritic:
62
Rotten Tomatoes:
60%
R
Year:
2010
97 min
$122,288
Website
1,126 Views


My name is Quintus Dias.

I'm a soldier of Rome.

And this is neither the beginning

nor the end of my story.

Two years on the frontier.

This place is the arsehole of the world.

Even the land wants us dead.

Centurion Dias, it's too damn cold

to be standing watch.

It's not my watch.

I'm just wondering what's out there.

The patrol returns at dawn.

You should get some sleep.

The longer we stay, the deeper the cold

and damp soaks into our bones.

And the rain makes way only

for the stinging bite of the north wind.

While we lose brave men

to foot rot and frostbite,

the Pict king Gorlacon

sends his war parties

to raid along the frontier at will.

- Gentlemen.

- Evening, sir.

A cold night on the front.

My father believed

that to truly defeat an enemy,

you must know him better than yourself.

I know this enemy well.

They play only to their strengths,

and will not be drawn into open combat.

Instead, they pick at the scab

until we bleed,

hiding in the shadows like animals,

striking hard and fast

then falling back into the night.

Come the dawn, we count our losses

and sow the earth with our dead.

This is a new kind of war,

a war without honour, without end.

Come on! Come on!

Marcus, ride to Agricola!

Gate. Move!

Move, soldier!

- Gratus.

- Save yourself.

Virilus! Virilus!

The winner.

- That's the way!

- Yes!

Again!

Enough!

You put up a good fight,

now you drink with me.

Septus, more ale.

Again, Virilus.

You're a drunk. An ugly drunk.

And not too bright.

Isn't ten times enough

to know when you're beaten?

Damn you! Again!

Once more!

Septus, your ruling.

And watch my flank.

Come on!

Come on!

- Virilus! Virilus! Virilus!

- You beat him.

Virilus. Virilus.

Sore loser.

Septus?

What are you waiting for, an order?

Get stuck in there!

Damn, that'll sober a man up quick!

When will people learn

not to f*** with the Ninth?

Some say it's irregular for you to be

seen drinking with the men of the Legion.

Septus, my old friend, they forget.

I am a man of the Legion.

- Soldier, have you been fighting?

- Fighting is my job.

I have a message for your general.

Now, point me in his direction

before I have you flogged.

Who are you?

I'm the personal envoy

of Governor Agricola.

I suggest you get down off that horse

and give me your message

before I have you flogged!

General, sir!

It would be my pleasure.

All leave is cancelled.

Agricola is mobilising the Ninth.

We're going to war, Septus.

Alert the senior legates to break camp

and prepare the men.

- Sorry, General, sir...

- Return to Agricola at once.

- Tell him we rode out within the hour.

- Yes, General.

Bastard!

Aeron.

Gorlacon. He was a farmer

until his wife was killed.

Then he put down the plough

and took up the sword.

He changed the way the Picts fought.

It worked.

He turned the tide,

so they made him king.

What does Agricola intend

for my people?

- Damn you, Pict!

- When will he send his armies north?

I am a soldier of Rome! I will not yield!

Rome will make you bleed for this.

You first, Centurion.

I don't care how you do it

but wipe them out.

And bring Gorlacon before me in chains.

Governor, you're the politician,

I'm just a simple soldier.

But I'm not so simple that I can't see

you're looking for a way back to Rome.

My bones ache for Rome.

This place is the graveyard of ambition.

And men.

And I won't sacrifice mine

to be pawns in your game.

I see.

Let us be frank, General.

The conquest of Britain is a lost cause.

With one bold stroke,

we could change all that.

With the Ninth Legion at your command,

we can crush this enemy.

You and your men could retire

with wealth and honour.

My men have honour enough.

Enough to disobey a direct order?

Well...

To kill the snake,

you have to cut off its head.

I need to find Gorlacon.

For that, I have someone special in mind.

General Virilus, meet Etain,

my Brigantes tracker.

Can't speak a word, but she can hunt

anything over any terrain.

I swear she's part wolf.

I apologise for the theatrics,

but I wanted to prove a point.

Slaves cost nothing.

Trust is priceless.

I don't know whether to fight her or...

She's mute, not deaf!

- I have my own scouts.

- Not like her!

She knows the Picts. Knows their ways,

knows their hideaways.

She will guide you into the mountains.

What's she sitting over there for?

- She's been looking at you all night.

- I've spotted it.

Can't take her eyes off you.

Come on, you.

She's speechless, you daft bastard.

She's got no tongue in her head, you fool.

I wouldn't get too close.

No tongue, that's perfect,

she'll have... more room for this.

- You be careful.

- Oh!

I think that's Pict for "f*** off".

She must be a good scout

if she can find your cock.

I think it's love.

I'll have a go with the mutt this time.

Report.

Three Pict riders and another,

a prisoner, on foot.

I think he might be Roman.

Centurion Remus,

take the column!

Stay down! Stay down!

Stay down!

We'll get nothing out of him.

We can't take prisoners on the march.

You know what to do.

Head or ship?

Head.

I win.

Sorry, mate. Orders are orders.

Hey?

Thank the gods you found me.

Not the gods you should thank. It's her.

Etain, our Pict scout. She found you.

What's your name, soldier?

I'm Quintus Dias.

Second in Command.

Inch-tuth-il frontier garrison.

Well, sorry we couldn't get here sooner.

Rate this script:0.0 / 0 votes

Neil Marshall

Neil Marshall (born 25 May 1970) is an English film director, editor and screenwriter. Marshall began his career in editing and in 2002 directed his first feature film Dog Soldiers, a horror-comedy film which became a cult film. He followed up with the critically acclaimed horror film The Descent in 2005. Marshall also directed Doomsday in 2008, and wrote and directed Centurion in 2010. He has also directed two prominent episodes of US television series Game of Thrones: "Blackwater" and "The Watchers on the Wall", with particular acclaim for his direction on both occasions, as well as a nomination for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series for "The Watchers on the Wall". more…

All Neil Marshall scripts | Neil Marshall Scripts

0 fans

Submitted on August 05, 2018

Discuss this script with the community:

0 Comments

    Translation

    Translate and read this script in other languages:

    Select another language:

    • - Select -
    • 简体中文 (Chinese - Simplified)
    • 繁體中文 (Chinese - Traditional)
    • Español (Spanish)
    • Esperanto (Esperanto)
    • 日本語 (Japanese)
    • Português (Portuguese)
    • Deutsch (German)
    • العربية (Arabic)
    • Français (French)
    • Русский (Russian)
    • ಕನ್ನಡ (Kannada)
    • 한국어 (Korean)
    • עברית (Hebrew)
    • Gaeilge (Irish)
    • Українська (Ukrainian)
    • اردو (Urdu)
    • Magyar (Hungarian)
    • मानक हिन्दी (Hindi)
    • Indonesia (Indonesian)
    • Italiano (Italian)
    • தமிழ் (Tamil)
    • Türkçe (Turkish)
    • తెలుగు (Telugu)
    • ภาษาไทย (Thai)
    • Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese)
    • Čeština (Czech)
    • Polski (Polish)
    • Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian)
    • Românește (Romanian)
    • Nederlands (Dutch)
    • Ελληνικά (Greek)
    • Latinum (Latin)
    • Svenska (Swedish)
    • Dansk (Danish)
    • Suomi (Finnish)
    • فارسی (Persian)
    • ייִדיש (Yiddish)
    • հայերեն (Armenian)
    • Norsk (Norwegian)
    • English (English)

    Citation

    Use the citation below to add this screenplay to your bibliography:

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "Centurion" Scripts.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Mar. 2024. <https://www.scripts.com/script/centurion_5253>.

    We need you!

    Help us build the largest writers community and scripts collection on the web!

    Browse Scripts.com

    The Studio:

    ScreenWriting Tool

    Write your screenplay and focus on the story with many helpful features.