October 12, 2005
mini-review of Rome
I recently saw my first episode of Rome, the HBO series, in the home of a friend who has cable.
I've always been a sucker for the historic stuff and even though this series seems more soap opera than historical epic, I enjoyed it. I have a feeling I'll be renting it on DVD once it comes out when the season is over.
I was, as I often am these days, impressed by the opening credits. I like how the animation was mixed in with the film, and how it focused on the ubiquitous grafitti--remarkably like the modern equivalent--on the walls of Rome. Then, like now, it was a form of dissident media, probably the only one available to the plebes and other resisters.
This is referenced in the episode I saw. Enemies of Julius Caesar initiate a campaign to undercut and mock him by covering the city with grafitti which exposed Caesar's affair with Servilia. The whole city finds out about it, making it clear that grafitti was in fact a viable medium at the time. All classes read it.
(I might also say something about curse as communications medium. After all that "bad press," Caesar dumps Servilia. She responds by going to the temple and putting an elaborate curse on Caesar. We'll see, in later episodes, whether curses were a viable medium at the time. At the very least he his Ides of March coming).
I went to the web site for the series. I was disappointed that, though there are promo clips for episodes, the opening credits were not there to be downloaded. Don't they know they have a very innovative and interesting bit of media on their hands?
The site has the usual stuff (cast and crew, episode guide, along with video clips and t-shirts). It also had something that may be usual, though I've not yet come across it: an interactive "community" site where fans can come together and post messages to a message board. I recently heard about this re: Lost, but I didn't know it was so widespread now. There are also downloads such as computer wallpapers, screensavers, and browser, allowing members of this community to have a very rich media environment for their fantasy life in Rome.
And here at the bottom of the second page that most folks don't get to, I'll admit that I think James Purefoy, who plays Marc Antony, is really hot. More like the power-hungry bad of his character in Resident Evil than the "mad, bad, and dangerous to know" Byronic bad of Vanity Fair, but I still enjoy watching him (especially in the de riguer half-naked-bathing-outside-in-the-courtyard scene).
Posted by jeb at October 12, 2005 7:11 PM | TrackBack