The First King: Birth of an Empire - Blu-ray Review

[Michael Scott]

The First King: Birth of an Empire



Movie:
Video:
Audio:
Extras:
Final Score:


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Movie
Rome (along with Greece) is probably one of the most well known ancient empires known to man. It spawned the gladiator epics like Gladiator and Spartacus, and has been iconicized (in both good and bad lights) over the years for their problems and glorious conquests. I have a weakness for sword and sandal epics, so I was more than eager to check out Well Go USA’s new foreign release of The First King: Birth of an Empire (originally titled Romulus & Remus: The First King), especially considering it was filled with all Italian actors speaking Latin throughout. Well, at least what we estimate is Latin, as Latin itself is kind of a dead spoken language, and has been altered and adapted so many times to create French, Portuguese, Italian and several other Romanic dialects that it’s hard to really gain an accurate take on the original language (sorry for the nerd moment). The film itself is very solid, with a unique flavor and tone that makes it some thing more like a blend between typical sword and sandal epics and Mel Gibson’s Apocalypto. It’s dark, brutal, and definitely steeped in the ancient mysticism of the times, but also a film that is a bit sluggish and meandering at times.

The story starts off with two shepherding brothers, Romulus (Alessio Lapice) and Remus (Alessandro Borghi) surviving a giant flood that wipes out all of their herd, and nearly kills them in the process. Waking up they are captured by a group of slave traders who use them as sport to fight against other abused slaves. In a twist of fate, the two brothers are able to lead a revolt of the slave traders, slaughtering their master and taking their mystic seer with them, running away from the Alba White Knights who permeate that region of the world.

Carrying his wounded brother with him, Remus heads out into the swamps and wastelands where he declares himself “king” of the surrounding villages that they conquer. However, while Remus is out using his visceral strength to carve out a kingdom for himself, Remus is suffering from the wound he suffered in the battle of the slave traders. With Remus getting out of control with his conquests, the villagers and survivors split into two factions. The first siding with the warrior king Remus, while the more mystically oriented herdsman and farmers with Romulus, leading up to a confrontation where only one brother can be king of what will soon be Rome.

The First King: Birth of an Empire is a solid sword and sandal film. It’s extremely violent at times, making the battle scenes more gory and realistic than ones that we would see choreographed out of Hollywood. The film’s raw style also boils down to the actors as well, who exude a very rough and gritty persona, which is right in line with their limited acting range. I say this not as an insult to them or the movie, but as a compliment, being that it makes the film more grounded and gritty to go along with the medieval era people in the film.

The Latin (or more accurately, Proto-Italic) language is a fantastic addition as well, adding some lovely textures to the movie’s tone. The characters are coated in mud and slime the whole film, and actually look like they’re shot on location instead of a green screen. My only real complaints stem from the pacing of the film. It goes on a bit long, and some of the 2nd act really drags. However, things get really intense in the 3rd act when the prophecy of one brother vs. the other is coming to fruition.




Rating:

Not Rated by the MPAA




Video:

Shot on Arri Alexa cameras and finished at 2K resolution for the master, The First King comes to Blu-ray with a rather stunning looking 2.39:1 framed AVC transfer. The film is very dusky and smoky, with dimly lit forest scenes, and outdoor night shots. There’s a honey amber colored glow whenever firelight illuminates the frame, but there’s almost a hazy, smokey look to the rest of the film that gives it an otherworldly glow. Blacks are deep and inky, with only minor crush and banding, and the fleshtones are startlingly accurate.








Audio:

The disc has both a Latin 5.1 DTS-HD MA track, as well as one in English as well (and both Latin and English Dolby Digital 2.0 supplementary tracks), and I’m going to give a big thumbs up to the Latin one. The Proto-Italic language fits much better with the times portrayed in the film, and gives it a much more authentic tone to it. Not to mention the fact that English dub is not the greatest either. Much like anime, it’s a personal choice, but it’s very obvious that they didn’t choose voices for the dub that matched the characters on screen. That being said, the audio mix is rather nice, with good surround presence as Romulus and Remus explore the countryside, filling the room with rustling forest leaves, shrieking warriors, and the clash of battle. LFE is nice and punchy, but never too aggressive or over used, and the dialog is crisp and cleanly located up front.







Extras:

• Making of The First King: Birth of an Empire
• Well Go USA Trailers
• Theatrical Trailer

Final Score: ​

The First King: Birth of an Empire is a bit of a slow epic, but it’s a very rewarding one as well. The movie’s slow pace is dotted with VICIOUS battles, intense showdowns between characters, and an unrelenting looking at the savagery of humans as they carve out a niche for themselves in the world. The audio and video are really impressive as usual, but sadly the extras are more than a bit sparse (which is pretty typical of foreign films). All in all, I’d give it a solid thumbs up for a watch.



Technical Specifications:

Starring: Alessio Lapice, Fabrizio Rongione, Alessandro Borghi, Massimiliano,Rossi, Tania Garribba, Michael Schermi
Directed by: Matteo Rovere
Written by: Filippo Gravino, Francesca Manieri, Matteo Rovere
Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1 AVC
Audio: Latin: DTS-HD MA 5.1, English DTS-HD MA 5.1, English, Latin Dolby Digital 2.0
Subtitles: English SDH
Studio: Well Go USA
Rated: NR
Runtime: 128 minutes
Blu-Ray Release Date: September 24th, 2019

Recommendation: Solid Watch

 

[tripplej]

Thanks for the review. Never heard of this but after reading the review, will definately check it out.