Before I get into a blow by blow description of this epic, I want to acknowledge that it is subject to inevitable comparison with Samuel L. Bronston’s Fall of the Roman Empire which covers much the same story but with a different ending. One should see that movie as well before making up their mind fully as to their opinion of Gladiator.
Gladiator is nothing less than an epic tale, fully capable of standing on its own two feet among the better movies of the genre, including Spartacus, Ben Hur, and Fall of the Roman Empire. That said, what makes it great is mostly the vision of the director, Ridley Scott.
Gladiator takes a larger than life story of a man against the machine, fighting a losing battle against a hopeless cause. This is a story that has been told before and will be told again, the difference is in this one, rather than being a nobody like Spartacus, Maximus (Russell Crowe) is the leading general of the Roman Army, hand picked successor to Emperor Marcus Aurelius (Richard Harris). So Maximus starts out at the top of his game but loses everything to become a slave gladiator when heir-apparent Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix) decides to make his life interesting.
Director Scott sets up his action in epic scenes, including spectacular outdoor shots of huge armies engaging in no-quarter battle, huge opulent interiors of palaces, and grim no-nonsense dungeons, and the most spectacular venue of all, the Arena. The sets are well made and convincing, whether they were real or computer generated I could not tell. Photography is without a blemish. Similarly, the costuming is beyond reproach, with both noble and peasant decked out just as they should be for AD 180. A recent innovation it seems in film-making is a more honest attitude towards dirt. When an army moves, it leave a track of mud in its wake. Scott’s army does the same and the characters display a good percentage of dirt, unlike the heroes in older films whose laundry always seemed clean-pressed.
Similarly, the action was breathtaking and made me flinch more than once. From the opening moments when the Roman Army launches a fiery attack on the barbarian Germans to the scenes in the blood-soaked arena, there is nothing to fault in Scott’s depiction of mayhem. The swords look substantial and very sharp.
The one area I would criticize was the acting, particularly in the lead roles of Maximus and Commodus. Russell Crowe did a competent job as the protagonist Maximus, but he was no Kirk Douglas or Charlton Heston, actors to which he must surely be compared for a role of this gravity. Similarly, Joaquin "Leaf" Phoenix was only a marginal Commodus, one of histories true baddies and absolutely despicable and without merit. Phoenix’s Commodus had some pathos and I couldn’t tell if it was his performance or the script – but it was out of place. Christopher Plummer played Commodus in the Fall of the Roman Empire and was deliciously evil. Phoenix was pathetic, again maybe it was the script.
The supporting cast was headed up by superb performances by Richard Harris (Marcus Aurelius), Oliver Reed as gladiator trainer Proximo, Derek Jacobi as Senator Gracchus, and Connie Neilsen as Commodus’ abused sister Lucilla. The cast of thousands was also great and very convincingly portrayed.
So there you have it. Apart from a bit of weakness in the starring roles this is a superb example of epic film-making and deserves four stars.
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