Now Showing: Pompeii

 

Pompeii

Genre: Historical/Drama

Director: Francis Lawrence

Writer: Mark Newton

Based on the novel by Robert Harris

Cast: George MacKay, Emma Watson, Eric Bana, Ian McShane, Tobias Menzies, John Bradley, Eddie Marsan, Matt Nable, Louis Partridge, Miranda Otto, Malachi Kirby, Noma Dumezweni

Plot: Marcus Attilius Primus (George MacKay) is sent from Rome to take over as the lead engineer - or aquarius - for the Aqua Augusta aqueduct which is to provide water for the towns surrounding the Bay of Naples to replace the previous engineer, who has gone missing under mysterious circumstances. The Aqua Augusta is the longest aqueduct in the world, supplying water to nine different towns, including Pompeii. Attilius arrives at the aqueduct's reservoir in Misenum, where the workers - Corvax the overseer (Tobias Menzies), Becco (Matt Nable) the plasterer and Musa (Eddie Marsan) the mason - take an immediate dislike to him as their new supervisor for his youth and baby-faced appearance. On a trip to investigate the source of a potential leak in the aqueduct, Corvax is particularly cruel toward Attilius, commenting that nobody would know Attilius is even missing if anything happened to him. Attilius challenges him, stating that a second missing lead engineer in such a short amount of time would result in a good amount of scrutiny on all the workers. They finally arrive at an underground spring storing water for the aqueduct, noticing that it is far lower than it should be given the time of year. Attilius orders the men to dig into the spring so that the water levels will slowly rise, or at least not completely depleat before the next rain.

Numerius Popidius Ampliatus (Eric Bana), born a slave and now the richest man in the entire region thanks to his cunning and ruthlessness, takes his teenaged son Celsinus (Louis Partridge) with him to check on his valuable fish collection, which are kept in a series of fish farms along the water. Ampliatus proudly tells his son about the moray eels, which are his favorite of all the creatures because of their sharp teeth and vicious nature. When they arrive to the pen containing the most expensive of all the fish - the red mullet - Ampliatus is aghast to discover that they are all dead in a cluster atop the water. Ampliatus orders his son to fetch the slave responsible for feeding them. Just a moment later Celsinus returns with a group of guards violently dragging over the slave assigned to the task, Hipponax (Malachi Kirby). Ampliatus believe that feeding Hipponax to his eels is a proper punishment given the value of the red mullet fish. Hipponax pleads with Ampliatus, insisting that it was not his fault and that the food could not have been what killed them. He begs and pleads that something must be wrong with the water.

Ampliatus' daughter, Corelia (Emma Watson) is alarmed when she hears the screams and cries of Hipponax's mother, Atia (Noma Dumezweni). She pleads with Corelia to do something before Ampliatus feeds her son to his eels. She claims that her son is innocent and that he had shouted to her as he was being dragged away that it was the water that killed the fish. Corelia is sorry, but there's nothing she can do once her father has a notion. Atia asks who she can go to for help. Corelia says that maybe the aquarius could prove that the water is at fault instead of Hipponax. Corelia and Atia run down the hill toward the nearest aqueduct work site hoping that the new aquarius will be there.

Attilius investigates the office of his predecessor Exomnius by the aqueduct work site. When he hears the yells of Corelia and Atia calling out for the aquarius. Attilius exits his office and asks what they need. Corelia is surprised to see someone other than Exomnius, especially someone as young and handsome as Attilius. She gathers her thoughts and asks for his help. Atia explains that her son is about to be executed for some fish dying, but her son insisted that the issue was with the water. Attilius tries to explain that he doesn't really handle fish farm water, just the aqueduct. Corelia pleads with him, insisting that he is the only one who can help them. Attilius notices Corvax and the others snickering nearby, which compels him to get away from the work site and go to town to check out the water.

Attilius, Corelia and Atia all return to fish farms, only to find that the execution has already happened and the moray eels are still eating away at Hipponax's butchered body. Atia cries out in anguish. Celsinus tells his older sister that she's too late and justice has already been served. Ampliatus tells Celsinus to leave his sister be as she clearly cannot help but attempt to be altruistic. Corelia apologizes to Attilius for wasting his time as she should have known that her father would not wait for an investigation of any kind. Attilius takes a sample of the water from the red mullet water, quickly determining that the water has a high level of sulfur. Corelia, who has been watching Attilius work, asks how he can know so quickly. Attilius hands the sample to her and tells her to smell it. She does, and also quickly recognizes the scent of sulfur. Corelia invites Attilius to stay for dinner since she dragged him all the way down here from his office. Attilius agrees.

At dinner, Corelia introduces Attilius to her mother, the put-upon Celsia (Miranda Otto), who is afraid to speak against her husband. Ampliatus tries to be a good host to Attilius, claiming to have been good friends with the former aquarius, Exomnius. Corelia makes a cold remark about Ampliatus putting on a show for their guest after having an innocent man put to death. Ampliatus apologizes to Attilius for his daughter's impetuousness. He tells everyone at the table that he believed the slave was at fault for the death of his valuable fish and simply had to make a difficult decision quickly as a show of strength toward all the other slaves working on his property. Celsia tries to make her husband sound more sympathetic by explaining Attilius that Ampliatus came from nothing - he was a slave long ago, but made a fortune helping rebuild the city of Pompeii following a past earthquake. After dinner, Attilius thanks his hosts before leaving. Corelia walks him to the door, thanking him for his presence making dinner a bit more tolerable that night.

The next day, Attilius continues to investigate the lack of water in the aqueduct. After looking over Exomnius' maps, he suspects that the cause may be traced to the town of Pompeii near Mount Vesuvius. Pompeii appears to have seen a steady supply of water, while it is the surrounding towns that has been primarily affected. Not wanting to draw attention to his investigation, Attilius asks Corelia if she knows anyone who would be willing to help him out getting to Pompeii. She tells him to see Pliny the Elder at the harbor. Attilius asks if she means the famous writer, Corelia says that he is now just in charge of the local naval fleet. Attilius does as she recommended, meeting Pliny (Ian McShane) down by the water. When Attilius explains to him that he needs to investigate the water shortages, Pliny gives him access to a small, fast sailboat to take to Pompeii.

When Attilius arrives in Pompeii, he learns that Ampliatus is constructing public baths in the city, so maintaining the water supply in Pompeii would take priority to someone like him even if it was to the detriment of the other towns in the region. Attilius meets with Ampliatus, who has also arrived in Pompeii to surpervise the work at the baths. Ampliatus hints at giving Attilius a bribe if he turns the other way regarding the water, but Attilius does not bite. Ampliatus plays it off as a joke and promises to help out the other towns if they need water if absolutely necessary.

Attilius returns to Misenum. In his office, he continues looking over Exomnius' records, discovering that he was worried about ongoing phenomenon surrounding Mount Vesuvius. He is paid a visit by Pliny and his nephew Caecilius (John Bradley). Pliny shows him a large amount of Roman coins that Caecilius found dumped at the bottom of Pompeii's reservoir. Pliny suspects that they were a bribe that Exomnius accepted to look the other way about Pompeii hoarding the region's water supply. Attilius visits Corelia and asks if she can help find out if her father paid the former aquarius any bribes to divert for his public baths. She promises to look to help, wishing for her father to be brought to justice for the litany of crimes he has committed over the years in his quest for wealth. Meanwhile in Pompeii, Ampliatus meets with Corax, offering him a large sum of money to assassinate Attilius. Corax happily accepts the job.

Attilius and his crew go to repair a tunnel under Mount Vesuvius, but Corax never shows up for work. He asks Becco and Musa if they have seen him, but they say that he went to Pompeii for business and has yet to return. The manage to unblock the clog in the tunnel, but when the water starts to flow, Attilius nearly drowns as neither of the workers offer him any help. Meanwhile, Corelia sneaks into her father's office in Misenum and steals a series of documents proving that he has been bribing officials, including Exomnius. Around Vesuvius, the earth begins to shake. Attilius immediately begins to suspect that the earthquakes in the region could be a precursor to a large, deadly eruption. Attilius decides to climb closer to the volcano after Becco and Musa both leave the area, done working for the day. Attilius finds the body of Exomnius in a pit of noxious gases. Attilius finds that he had a sack of Roman coins with him when he died. Attilius knows to not get too close to the body as the fumes are highly poisonous. Attilius is then suddenly attacked by Corax. After a struggle, Attilius manages to push Corax into the pit next to Exomnius' corpse. Corax quickly begins suffocating on the fumes and dies.

Attilius starts heading down from the mountain as Mount Vesuvius begins to erupt. Attilius makes it back down to Misenum. By this time the eruption has continued, and the air in the entire region has begun to fill with black smoke and ash. He tries to find Corelia, but learns that Ampliatus and his entire family, Corelia included are currently in Pompeii. Attilius and Pliny quickly set sail to Pompeii. They set sail into the bay, but are forced to land when pumice stone begins to fall from the sky. Attilius leaves to find Corelia in the city. Pliny decides to stay behind, accepting his fate. Pliny begins to document the event as he awaits death.

Attilius finds that Ampliatus is holding his family captive in the public baths in the city as he refuses to leave his riches behind. He insists that the walls of the baths are the sturdiest in the city and they will be safe. Attilius helps Corelia sneak out of the building as the eruption becomes more violent, shaking the city to pieces, as smoke, gas, and rock fall from the sky. Soon lava begins streaming down from Vesuvius. Ampliatus, Celsia and Celsnius all die from the overwhelming heat of pyroclastic flow that takes over the city. Attilius and Corelia continue fleeing into the aqueduct. Attilius, having studied the system of pipes and tunnels extensively, leads himself and Corelia away from Pompeii, taking the underground tunnels all the way back to Misenum. When they finally reach the surface again, they hold each other as they view the the cloud of destruction in Pompeii from the other side of the bay.