Gladiator DVD
Universal Studios
Rated: R
Genre: Action & Adventure
Length: 155 minutes
Director: Ridley Scott
Year: (2000)
Britt Gillette's Gladiator DVD Review
Winner of five Academy Awards including Best Picture, and nominated for an additional seven, Gladiator is one of the best produced and directed films of its time. Reminiscent of Mel Gibson's Braveheart, it creates a world so seemingly realistic, that you find yourself drawn backward in time to the glory days of Rome. The musical score, the costumes, and the sets form a synergy that, with lifelike animation, serves to replicate life in early millennial Rome.
The opening scene of Gladiator is simply awe-inspiring as the Roman legions advance on a band of rebels resisting the empire from the outskirts of Gaul. When the commanders signal the order for attack, the fury of hell is unleashed as flaming arrows and iron bars batter the unified front of the rebel fighters. The scene invokes more memories of Desert Storm than an ancient battlefield, and it visually illustrates the overwhelming power that was once the Roman Empire.
The leader of this battle is Maximus (Russell Crowe), a Roman general loved by his men and admired throughout the empire for his impeccable character. When the aging Emperor Marcus Aurelius (Richard Harris) secretly reveals his plan to appoint Maximus caretaker of Rome upon his death - willing him the task of restoring the Senate and eliminating the dictatorial rule of the Caesars, it sparks the ire of his overly ambitious son Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix). When Commodus murders his father, he asks Maximus to provide his allegiance to the newest emperor of Rome. But Maximus refuses, and Commodus orders his death.
A magnificent fighter in his own right, and enjoying the aid of friends in the legion, Maximus manages to escape his death sentence. Traveling thousands of miles to his home only to find his wife and son murdered, a broken Maximus is taken prisoner and sold as a slave to a man named Proximo (Oliver Reed). The older man hopes to profit from his slaves by training them to become gladiators.
At this point, the true action of the movie takes hold, as Maximus (ideal soldier of the Roman Empire) runs roughshod over his opponents in the gladiatorial arena. With every conceivable weapon of the time deployed against him, and sometimes facing down a number of opponents simultaneously, Maximus leaves the ring time and time again as a triumphant victor.
Having enriched his owner, Maximus eventually makes his way back to Rome where he plans to fight as a gladiator in the greatest arena of all - the Coliseum. Meanwhile, Lucilla (sister of Commodus and former lover of Maximus) works as a power broker behind the scenes, attempting to bring the Senate and the army together in order to remove Commodus and restore the power of the Republic. When Maximus defies Emperor Commodus in front of a packed house at the Coliseum, he's forced to remove his mask and announce his true identity to the Roman people. The revelation leads to an unprecedented gladiatorial contest - Maximus versus a sitting Roman Emperor, with the victor acquiring total power. But the sleazy Commodus has a few tricks up his sleeve, and he doesn't plan to give in easily to arch enemy…
As a work of entertainment, Gladiator is second to none. The action sequences provide endless thrills, and the dialogue between the characters is wrought with political intrigue, lust for power, and conflicting realities. Russell Crowe is superb in his role as the hero Maximus. Noble in his intentions and powerful as a leader, Maximus represents the ideal of honor and chivalry. One of those rare films that forces the audience to root for its characters, Gladiator is a definite must-see film. If you liked the movies Braveheart or The Patriot, then you'll love Gladiator…
Britt Gillette
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Posted on 28 January 2005