Scottish director Kevin Macdonald (The Last King of Scotland, State of Play) has a knack for crisp storytelling and is in true form with his latest film, The Eagle. Set in 120 A.D., legionnaire Marcus Flavius Aquila (Channing Tatum) is assigned his first command, garrison leader of a fort dangerously close to Hadrian's wall - or the end of the known Roman world. We find out that Aquila has specifically requested this most dangerous duty. His beloved father, commander of the ninth legion and five thousand of his men, vanished mysteriously here several years before. This event brought great shame to Rome and has haunted Aquila his entire life. He is obsessed with finding out the fate of the ninth, and their symbol, a golden eagle his father carried atop his staff. Aquila's heroics lead him to a captured Brittish slave, Esca (Jamie Bell); who has been across the wall and can speak the native tongues. Together they embark on a quest to recover the eagle and learn what really happened to the lost legion.

The Eagle is adapted from a 1950's children's novel. Having never read the book, I'll assume that Macdonald stuck with the spirit of it by not making this film wall to wall bloody action. It is more a tale of loyalty, friendship, and character. Aquila is essentially a mythic hero, a brave warrior, uncorruptable, fighting for honor; but able to grow. Aquila and Esca face numerous obstacles in their journey, but what they learn about each other is the moral of the story, and ably delivered here.

Likes or dislikes about The Eagle will be based on how you feel about Channing Tatum. This guy gets a lot of heat from critics and fans. Yes, he was a model, and did make some 'tween' films. But I think he's underrated, and if given a chance can be a good lead actor. Tatum was fine in The Dilemma, Dear John, and - feel free to call me out - G.I. Joe as well. All of these films had a high cheese factor, but Tatum turned in performances that made them work. The Eagle is his best film to date. He proves he can be the action hero, but also capable of the emotional nuances to make you believe in Aquila.

The Eagle is an adventure film the entire family can see. It is violent, but not gratuitous. In fact, there are vast stretches of pure dialogue as the pair undertake the quest. If I had kids, this is the kind of film they would love without being like Braveheart or Rob Roy. In summary, not perfect, or especially rousing, but definitely worth seeing in the theater. Give Tatum a chance and you'll be pleasantly surprised.