Michael Fassbender: 5 Awesome Performances And 5 That Sucked
When people think of Fassbender, they think of someone who always brings a certain charisma and intensity to a role. It doesnt matter if the part is big or small hes almost always a memorable presence.
One of the few exceptions to that rule is Centurion. He plays Quintus, the leader of a group of Roman soldiers running for their lives in 117 AD Britain. Its a Dirty Dozen like situation where all the surrounding characters are far more exciting than their leader.
They get the best dialogue, the interesting character moments and he's just the straight guy. He has no compelling traits of his own and even though hes technically the hero its difficult to remember why. Plenty of actors have taken a boring role and been able to make something out of it, but Fassbender doesn't look terribly engaged here.
That comes out in his performance where most scenes are played with the same flat and earnest tone. Its not a terrible performance but it does show that hes better off sticking to parts that challenge him somehow.