Legion (2010 film)

Legion is a 2010 American action horror film directed by Scott Stewart and co-written by Stewart and Peter Schink. The cast includes Paul Bettany, Lucas Black, Tyrese Gibson, Adrianne Palicki, Kate Walsh, and Dennis Quaid. Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions Group acquired most of this film's worldwide distribution rights, and the group opened this film in North America theatrically on January 22, 2010, through Screen Gems.[3]

Legion
Theatrical release poster
Directed byScott Stewart
Produced by
Written by
  • Peter Schink
  • Scott Stewart
Starring
Music byJohn Frizzell
CinematographyJohn Lindley
Edited bySteven Kemper
Production
companies
Distributed byScreen Gems
Release date
  • January 22, 2010 (2010-01-22) (United States)
Running time
100 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$26 million[2]
Box office$67.9 million[2]

A television series called Dominion, set 25 years after the end of the film, premiered on the American cable television network Syfy on June 19, 2014.[4]

Plot

The Archangel Michael falls to Earth in Los Angeles and cuts off his own wings. After looting a weapons warehouse and stealing a police car, he travels towards the Paradise Falls Diner, near the edge of the Mojave Desert. Meanwhile, Kyle, a single father driving to Los Angeles, stops at the diner. He meets the owner, Bob Hanson; Jeep, Bob's son; Percy, the short-order cook; Charlie, a pregnant waitress; Howard and Sandra Anderson, a married couple; and Audrey, their rebellious teenage daughter. As the diner's television, radio and telephone fail, the elderly Gladys enters the diner and becomes abnormally hostile before biting a piece out of Howard's neck, whereupon Kyle shoots her. The attempt to transport Howard to the hospital is thwarted by a gigantic swarm of flies that surrounds the diner and isolates its patrons from the outside world.

Michael arrives and arms the patrons as the entire sky turns black. Hundreds of cars approach, filled with possessed people who begin to attack the diner. Michael leads the patrons in the fight, but Howard is dragged away. Later, Michael explains that God has lost faith in mankind and has sent his angels to destroy the human race. He also reveals that Charlie's baby must stay alive, as it is destined to be the savior of mankind; Michael disobeyed God's order to kill Charlie's baby, as he still has faith in humanity.

The next morning, Sandra discovers Howard crucified behind the restaurant and covered with huge boils. She tries to rescue him, but he violently explodes into acid. Percy dies shielding Sandra from the blast. Sandra is driven insane and must be restrained. Meanwhile, the remaining survivors hear a radio transmission that reveals there are other pockets of resistance. One such refuge is nearby, but Michael advises them not to go, since they would be too vulnerable on the move. That night, a second wave of possessed people attack. Kyle is lured into a trap and killed while Charlie goes into labor. Audrey and Michael help to deliver the baby as trumpets sound, signaling the approach of the Archangel Gabriel. In a panic, Sandra breaks her restraints and tries to give the baby to the possessed, but she is executed by Michael. Moments later, Gabriel enters the diner and fatally wounds Bob. Michael urges the group to escape and tells Jeep to "find the prophets, learn to read the instructions".

The hordes of possessed humans are unable to approach Charlie's baby; Jeep, Audrey, Charlie, and the baby go to Michael's cruiser. Gabriel and Michael fight to a standstill before Gabriel stabs Michael through the chest with his morning star. Michael dies and his body disappears. Dying, Bob uses his lighter to ignite the diner's gas main and blow up the diner, incinerating himself and the remaining possessed.

Jeep's body is covered in the same mysterious drawings seen on Michael's body; Jeep concludes that the tattoos are his instructions. Gabriel appears and a scuffle ensues in which Audrey is killed. Eventually Gabriel corners them in the nearby mountains and is about to kill them when Michael descends from Heaven, healed and restored to the rank of Archangel. Michael tells Gabriel that Gabriel gave God what He asked for, but Michael gave Him what He needed, giving humanity another chance; Michael says this was God's plan to test his angels and that Gabriel failed Him. Ashamed, Gabriel leaves. Michael explains to Jeep that he is the child's true protector and that they will see Michael again, before flying away. Charlie and Jeep reach the top of the mountain and see a small town in the valley below.

Sometime later, Charlie, Jeep, and the baby drive away – the shot widens to show that the back of their vehicle is full of weapons.

Cast
  • Paul Bettany as Michael, a fallen archangel, leader of the human survivors, and Gabriel's brother.
  • Tyrese Gibson as Kyle Williams, a divorced man heading to L.A. to battle over custody of his son.
  • Charles S. Dutton as Percy Walker, the diner's religious short order cook. He lost a hand serving as a soldier.
  • Dennis Quaid as Bob Hanson, the diner's atheist owner.
  • Adrianne Palicki as Charlie, a downtrodden, pregnant waitress whose baby is humanity's savior.
  • Lucas Black as Jeep Hanson, Bob's son, who works as a mechanic. He's in love with Charlie.
  • Kate Walsh as Sandra Anderson, Howard's wife and Audrey's mother.
  • Kevin Durand as Gabriel, leader of the angel army sent to destroy humanity, and Michael's brother.
  • Willa Holland as Audrey Anderson, Howard and Sandra's daughter.
  • Jon Tenney as Howard Anderson, Sandra's husband and Audrey's father.
  • Jeanette Miller as Gladys Foster, the possessed old woman who's the first to attack the diner.
  • Cameron Harlow as Minivan Boy, the possessed child who tries to stab Charlie in the stomach.
  • Doug Jones as Ice Cream Man, the possessed man who worked at the ice cream truck.

Production

Principal photography took place in New Mexico in the spring of 2008.[5]

Reception

Box office

Legion was released on January 22, 2010,[6] in 2,476 theaters and took in $6,686,233—$2,700 per theater its opening day.[7] On its opening weekend it grossed $17,501,625—$7,069 per theater and placed second behind Avatar.[8] It placed No. 6 on its second weekend, and grossed an estimated $6,800,000—$2,746 per theater, a 61.1% drop from the previous weekend. The film has come to gross $67,918,658 worldwide.[2]

Critical response

The film received negative reviews from critics. Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes gives the film a score of 19% based on reviews from 104 critics, with an average rating of 3.78 out of 10. The site's general consensus is: "Despite a solid cast and intermittent thrills, Legion suffers from a curiously languid pace, confused plot, and an excess of dialogue."[9] Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average score out of 0–100 reviews from film critics, has a rating score of 32% based on 14 reviews.[10]

Paul Nicholasi of Dread Central gave the film a one and a half out of five stars, saying, "The finished product is shockingly bad. If countless angles of people firing guns with spent shells clinking to the ground is all your heart yearns for, then Legion may be your ideal Saturday night. Hoping for anything more is an exercise in futility. Spare yourself the agony."[11] Brad Miska of Bloody Disgusting gave it 1 out of 5 stars, calling it "a prude film with some potential. It's boring, slow paced and it takes itself way too seriously."[12] Variety film critic Joe Leydon gave the film a mixed analysis. Leydon claimed "Even when the blood-and-thunder hokiness of the over-the-top plot tilts perilously close to absurdity, the admirably straight-faced performances by well-cast lead players provide just enough counterbalance to sustain curiosity and sympathy."[13] Frank Scheck of The Hollywood Reporter also gave the film a mixed review stating, "the goings-on in Legion are seriously silly (not to mention more than a little derivative of endless movies, especially the Terminator series), but director Scott Stewart has provided enough stylish finesse to make the proceedings a real hoot."[14]

Home media

Legion was released on DVD and Blu-ray on May 11, 2010.[15]

In other media

Television
Main article: Dominion (TV series)

In 2014, Syfy began airing the television series Dominion, a sequel set 25 years after the end of the film. Scott Stewart, the writer/director of Legion, served as executive producer. Stewart also directed Dominion's pilot episode, which was written by Vaun Wilmott[16] and aired on June 19, 2014.[17]

References
  1. "LEGION (15)". British Board of Film Classification. January 13, 2010. Retrieved March 8, 2016.
  2. "Legion (2010)". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved July 20, 2010.
  3. "Sony Pics unit ups Shooman". Login.vnuemedia.com. March 27, 2008. Retrieved July 28, 2012.
  4. "Syfy Announces Premiere Dates for 'Defiance' and 'Dominion'". TV By the Numbers. Archived from the original on March 28, 2014. Retrieved March 28, 2014.
  5. Michael Fleming (March 27, 2008). "Quaid, Walsh join Stewart's 'Legion'". Variety. Reed Business Information. Retrieved August 11, 2008.
  6. Miska, Brad (October 16, 2009). "A Whole Lotta 'Legion' Character Banners". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved October 18, 2009.
  7. "Daily Box Office for Friday, January 22, 2010". Box Office Mojo. Internet Movie Database. January 22, 2010. Retrieved January 25, 2010.
  8. "Weekend Box Office Results for January 22–24, 2010". Box Office Mojo. Internet Movie Database. January 24, 2010. Retrieved January 25, 2010.
  9. "Legion (2010)". Rotten Tomatoes. Flixster. Retrieved October 28, 2019.
  10. "Legion: Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved January 27, 2010.
  11. Nicholasi, Paul (January 22, 2010). "Legion (2010)". Dread Central. Retrieved January 22, 2010.
  12. Miska, Brad (January 22, 2010). "Legion". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved October 4, 2015.
  13. Leydon, Joe (January 22, 2010). "Legion Review". Variety. Reed Business Information. Retrieved January 22, 2010.
  14. Scheck, Frank (January 22, 2010). "Legion – Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Nielsen Business Media. Archived from the original on January 25, 2010. Retrieved January 22, 2010.
  15. Barton, Steve (March 15, 2010). "Blu-ray and DVD Specs: Legion". Dread Central. Retrieved December 26, 2013.
  16. Goldberg, Lesley (December 4, 2013). "'Dominion' Ordered to Series at Syfy". The Hollywood Reporter. Nielsen Business Media. Retrieved December 26, 2013.
  17. "Syfy Announces Premiere Dates for 'Defiance' and 'Dominion'". TV By the Numbers. Archived from the original on March 28, 2014. Retrieved March 28, 2014.
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