Centurion (2010) is set during the Roman Empire’s occupation of Britain, focusing on the legendary disappearance of the Ninth Legion. The film follows Quintus Dias, the sole survivor of a Pictish raid on a Roman frontier fort. After escaping captivity, Quintus joins the Ninth Legion, led by General Titus Virilus, on a mission to crush the Pict tribes and eliminate their resistance once and for all. However, the Romans underestimate the Picts, who ambush them in a brutal and bloody attack, annihilating most of the legion and capturing the general.

Quintus, along with a handful of surviving Roman soldiers, finds himself trapped deep behind enemy lines, relentlessly pursued by a savage Pictish tracker named Etain. Mute and driven by a personal vendetta against the Romans, Etain becomes a symbol of the untamed wild and the fury of a people fighting for their homeland. As the small band of survivors flees across the unforgiving terrain, their camaraderie and will to survive are tested by both the harsh elements and their ruthless pursuers.

The group’s journey transforms into a desperate fight for survival, as they navigate treacherous forests, snowy mountains, and ambushes that whittle down their numbers. Each loss weighs heavily on Quintus, who emerges as the reluctant leader, guiding his men with sheer determination and a growing understanding of the futility of their mission. The film explores themes of loyalty, betrayal, and the brutal cost of imperialism, portraying the Roman soldiers not as invincible conquerors but as vulnerable men far from home, facing the wrath of an indigenous force.

Etain’s pursuit becomes increasingly personal, symbolizing the clash between two worlds—Rome’s iron-fisted expansionism and the Picts’ feral resistance. The tension escalates as Quintus and his remaining comrades attempt a daring rescue of General Virilus, only to be confronted with betrayal from within their own ranks. Survival becomes the only objective, and the line between heroism and savagery blurs in the face of relentless violence.

In the climactic moments, Quintus confronts Etain in a brutal and visceral showdown, embodying the primal struggle between oppressor and oppressed. Though he survives, Quintus is left disillusioned, realizing the Roman Empire’s ambitions come at a cost of endless bloodshed. The film concludes with Quintus abandoning his military life, choosing instead to disappear into the wild, symbolizing a man who has seen too much of war’s horrors and seeks solace in anonymity.