The last really big gladiator movie out of Hollywood was Spartacus (1960), starring Kirk Douglas as a rebel who led his fellow slaves in a revolt against the Roman Empire.
It was a great film, particularly in its action sequences and its epic battles. But except for the restored scene in which Laurence Olivier attempts to seduce Tony Curtis, it didn't age well. In particular, Douglas's performance seemed to be modeled after Charlton Heston at his most religiously overwrought.
The most important work about the Roman Empire since then was the classic TV series I, Claudius, which exposed the corruption and debauchery that lay beneath the ideal of Roman nobility.
Ridley Scott's new film, Gladiator, promises to freshen and update the genre, adding the spectacle of the former to the sophisticated political subtext and adult content of the latter and presenting it all with the best special effects money can buy. But it only half delivers on that promise.
Russell Crowe plays Maximus, a Roman General favoured by the feeble, aged emperor Marcus Aurelius (Richard Harris). After witnessing his best general defeating the hordes of Germania, Marcus appoints Maximus the position of emperor-in-waiting with the aim of restoring power to the Senate.
That peeves emperor-in-waiting Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix), who secretly snuffs dad and orders Maximus killed, along with his wife and young son. A wounded Maximus escapes, only to be picked up as damaged goods by Proximo (Oliver Reed), a trader in gladiators.
Maximus, presumed to be a deserter, takes to the trade easily, slaughtering his opponents with the showmanship of Jesse (The Body) Ventura.
That makes him a valuable commodity because Commodus, to gain the favour of the vulgar Roman citizenry, has brought gladiators back to the Roman Colosseum.
Maximus goes to Rome hoping only for the opportunity to kill Commodus. But the opportunity goes beyond mere assassination. Like Jesse Ventura, Maximus must win in the political arena.He needs the assistance of Commodus's sister Lucilla (Connie Nielsen), who grows more apprehensive towards a) her brother's lust for power and b) her brother's lust for her.
Scott reproduces the spectacle of the Colosseum and Rome through the miracle of computer-generated imagery. He also has an advantage in Crowe, who forsakes a biblical acting style in favour of something more gritty and human.
Despite the presence of TV's Claudius (Derek Jacobi) as a senator, the film doesn't offer anything new when it comes to examining the film's political background. Scott turns his back on the riches of political intrigue in favour of a conventional revenge tale. He shows us Maximus killing ... tigers, opponents, whatever. Particularly confounding is that Scott often photographs and edits scenes into an incomprehensible montage ...as he did the battle sequence in G.I. Jane.
The film also decries the violence while clearly reveling in it. The Roman masses are seen as an easily manipulated, bloodthirsty, vulgar throng. But by emphasizing big battles and spilled blood, Scott banks on the hope the movie audience will be no more discerning than the Colosseum's screaming mob.
(This film is rated AA)
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