Back to a storied past

Chiang Mai, Thailand – Life as we know it in the bustling city seems to grind to a halt in this paradise of rice paddies, brilliantly-colored flowers and never-ending smiles. While the rice paddies remind me of home thousands of miles away, they also make me step back, close my eyes and imagine myself in a time long ago, when e-mail, cellular phones and even computers were unheard-of.

It’s no coincidence that HBO Asia flew in entertainment writers from all over Asia to this bucolic haven where Four Seasons Hotel built a sprawling complex of villas, restaurants and others. Chiang Mai – with its rich history and monuments to a storied past – is the right setting for this press junket on Rome, the cradle of civilization.

Just as Rome, the new dramatic series on love and betrayal (premieres Sunday, Nov. 27, 10 p.m. on HBO, with succeeding episodes Tuesdays at 10 p.m.), takes us back to the time of gladiators and bacchanalian feasts, Chiang Mai reminds us of a long-forgotten place where nature still reigns supreme.

The Asian city’s lush blooms, thick foliage and traditional Thai houses are as primeval as Rome’s arenas, forums, soldiers, togas and leather sandals.

When Rome’s first of 12 episodes opens, you hold your breath as your gaze falls upon men walking around in metal breastplates, helmets, buckles, robes and sandals. The year is 52 B.C., and, eager to return to Rome after eight years of war, Gauis Julius Caesar ends his campaign with a resounding triumph in Gaul – and news of a shattering personal loss at home.

You meet Mark Anthony and Centurion soldiers Lucius Veronus and Legionnaire Titus Pullo. You see them on white horses (as much as 40 in one scene) with a group of men (supporting players who went through a two-week military training in a boot camp) at their beck and call.

You see Caesar’s old friend Pompey, another historical figure who tilts the balance of power later in the series. Your jaw drops to dangerously low levels as you gaze at the ornate columns, the rulers’ patrician looks, the temples, statues and others that remind you of the glory that was Rome.

And you end up asking yourself, what if I lived in that day and age?

The setting maybe 52 B.C., but the times were just as interesting. They were even more challenging than today, as rules make us behave and walk the straight and narrow path.

Rome gives a wakeup call, as it shows us what happens when decadence rules: when an action is judged based on whether people more powerful than you would approve of it or not. Adultery occurred because Romans were allowed to covet another’s wife if it didn’t annoy the wrong person.

Killing was permitted because mercy was a weakness and cruelty a virtue.

Ray Stevenson, who plays Titus Pullo, cringes at the thought of what he did as a loyal foot soldier of the Republic. Thrusting a sword in a man’s stomach and killing him on the spot as Titus Pullo was not fun at all. But it was his job as an actor tasked with playing a warrior. He had no choice.

The 41-year-old actor told Asian journalists surrounding him, "Though it would make me sick in the stomach, sometimes we have to play the truth of something to show and hold the mirror (of society) up."

Playing for the truth may not be easy. But that doesn’t bother Stevenson a bit. In fact, he went the extra mile for it. He brushed up on history by reading Tom Holland’s The Rubicon and visiting the ancient city of Pompeii.

He would shoot scenes in the legendary Cinecitta Studios in Rome (the largest standing set in the world, covering five acres of backlot and six soundstages), then run to the gym to work with stuntmen.

The work can tire the fittest of men, and Stevenson was understandably drained after two weeks of all that running, jumping and fighting. But a good massage and weekends off were luxuries for him and the rest of the actors (numbering 750 in the largest scenes).

No stone was left unturned to make everything – from the 1,250 pairs of shoes and sandals made in Bulgaria, to the 40 leather cuirasses and the 250 chain mail tunics – authentic.

A historian was on call 24 hours a day, the better to ensure that the viewer sees and breathes Rome as it is, thousands of years ago, in scene after scene.

You think that’s enough? Not quite. Executive producers sent 45 cast members to a two-week boot camp run by former British Royal Marine Billy Budd. The HBO bosses insisted that wearing a military uniform as a Roman soldier was not enough. The men had to act like one every step of the way.

As co-creator, executive producer and writer Bruno Heller put it, "It was very important to us to get the facts right, but more important, the spirit of the times, to be very precise about this moment in history."

Thus, the cast members lived a soldier’s life during those hot days in July. A typical day at the camp began at around 5 a.m., with a one-hour physical training 20 minutes before breakfast. Then, they donned their uniforms and learned weapon techniques, maneuvers, marching and military posture. More physical training, camp building and others followed after lunch. It’s a brief dip at the lake for a wash without soap after dinner.

Then, much like a scene taken from HBO’s Rome, trainees sit around a campfire and, surrounded by a sea of tents, talked about the spirit of a soldier.

Swordmaster Giorgio Antonio was hired to teach authentic Roman army fighting techniques. Fabrics used for costumes were authentic to the period and were bought from Italy, India, Tunisia and Morocco. They were purchased in their natural state and dyed on the set.

Indeed, Rome was not built in a day. Filming lasted all of 14 months where the action took place: Rome. An international crew of about 350 worked on the set. The Forum is around 60 percent the size of the original Foro Romano.

Since producers wanted to show Rome warts and all, the structures had to look weathered. Forget the glamour and the white marble. Rome had to be shown as a city not just of bacchanalian feasts and flowing fountains, but of 4,000 slaves.

Thus, if a wall has torch marks on it, or if grass grows among the cobblestone streets, so much the better. Production designer Joseph Bennett would be jumping up and down for joy.

The producers indulged him. The set cost $10-M, the most expensive for TV yet. The whole TV series cost $100-M, HBO’s most expensive after Band of Brothers.

The prolonged shooting days proved providential for the divorced Stevenson, who met his girlfriend Elizabeth in Rome. The amiable Italian who calls him Amore (love) became his landlady.

She was with him at Four Seasons Hotel, and gamely joined the cooking contest held towards the end of the media visit. Elizabeth did as the Romans, er the Asians did – enjoy a soothing Thai massage and bargained with vendors at the Chiang Mai Market. She oohed and aahed at the cheap clothes made from Thai silk and bought one for herself.

Stevenson looked pleased as punch himself. And why not? Like Titus Pullo, the character he plays so well in Rome, the 6’4" tall actor has learned to relax and take it easy.

Finally, 11 years after he confessed to an Australian actor that all he wanted to do in life is act, Stevenson found a role that could fling wide the doors of international recognition for him.

As he says, "Rome is the job that brought me attention, not only in Europe but now beyond the world."

The series brought him to Los Angeles for the first time when it premiered there months back. Now, he has an American agent who can get him roles that will bring him international recognition.

Rome, in other words, is Stevenson’s stepping stone to his dream of a lifetime, his entrance card to a whole new world of possibilities as an actor.

International magazines have lavished praises on the first season of Rome. "All of the acting is excellent," writes Newsweek. Observes Time, "Rome’s lusty intrigue draws you in." From Variety comes the words, "Lavish series that offers many lusty pleasures … an intriguing world."

No wonder the Second Season of Rome is already a done deal. Cameras start grinding again early next year.

Unlike Season One, with its normal birth pains, Stevenson expects a more relaxed pace next time around.

"There was no room for practical jokes on the set. Maybe next year, there will be," he crosses his fingers and grins from ear to ear.

After working so hard and giving his all, Stevenson, the rest of the cast and the production crew can now relax and savor the fruits of their labor. They can very well pat their backs and look at Season Two as a badge of honor, a hard-won trophy for a job well- done.