Gladiator (2000) Review.

Thoughts: Ridley Scott's Oscar Winning Historical Epic Gladiator, did it really deserved that Oscar? And the answer is yes. Gladiator is a excellent movie that has a good balance of great action and Oscar quality story. This is one of the best movies to win an Oscar for Best Picture. I really like history based movies and Roman history is one of my favorite eras. I have always been fascinating with the Roman gladiatorial games and I have watched many history TV shows and documentaries about it. Although Gladiator is not based directly on history and actually makes its own history. The sets and the portrayal of the Roman culture looked mostly accurate (note: I am not by any means an expert). The recreation of the Roman Colosseum was impressive and it is hard to tell if CGI was used or a large set was made. The main character Maximus Decimus Meridius was a really good character and interesting character. One of the best aspects about Gladiator is the gladiatorial battles. It has some of the best ancient weapons battles filmed. Although Galdiator is rated "R", it is only rated that because of the violence, which I really do not mind since I rather a movie be violent than have profanity or other content.

Directed by: Ridley Scott
Genre: Action, Epic, Revenge, Drama,
Release Date: May 5, 2000 (2000-05-05)
Running Time: 155 minutes
MMPA rating: R


The Good: Excellent action scenes, Great production value, Good acting, Fantastic mix of excellent action and story, Hans Zimmer soundtrack,

The Bad:




Plot: The following plot summery is copied from Wikipedia.com.
In AD 180, General Maximus Decimus Meridius (Russell Crowe) leads the Roman army to a decisive victory against Germanic tribes at Vindobona, ending a long war on the Roman frontier and earning the esteem of the elderly Emperor Marcus Aurelius (Richard Harris). Though he has a son, Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix), the dying emperor wishes to grant temporary leadership to Maximus, hoping eventually to return power to the Roman Senate. When his father tells him of the decision, Commodus, already bitter that Marcus favors Maximus over him, murders his father in a fit of rage and claims the throne.
Maximus realizes the truth about Marcus' death, but is betrayed by his friend, General Quintus (Tomas Arana), who reluctantly instructs the Praetorian guards to carry out Commodus' order to execute Maximus and his wife (Giannina Facio) and son (Giorgio Cantarini). Maximus manages to escape, and races home only to find he was too late to save his family. After burying them, Maximus is found unconscious by slave traders and taken to Zucchabar, a Roman city in North Africa. There, he is bought by Proximo (Oliver Reed), and forced to fight for his life as a gladiator in arena tournaments. During this time, he befriends gladiators Juba (Djimon Hounsou), and Hagen (Ralf Möeller). Juba tells Maximus to have faith that he will be reunited with his family in the afterlife. Watch the movie to see what happens next.


Plot: 8.9/10- Gladiator is kind of a best of both worlds with excellent Oscar worthy story and message with amazing action scenes and set design.

Action: 9.6/10- Although Gladiator is not an action packed movie. The action that is in it is fantastic. Some of the best  it has some of the best ancient weapons battles filmed. My only complaint is that the opening battle was edited a little to choppy and was not lit well enough but other than that the action was excellent.


Acting: 8.9/10- Russell Crowe's performance, that he won an Oscar for, was excellent. The supporting cast was also solid but a few performances were a little too over dramatic.

Special effects: 7.6/10- Some of the CGI landscapes are dated compared today but overall the effects worked.


Soundtrack: 9.4/10- Fantastic Hans Zimmer soundtrack, it added to the scenes.

Comedy: 4.0/10- There was one or two humorous lines.

Would I Watch This Again: Definitely will be watching this again, probably many times.

Overall: 9.2/10- Gladiator is an excellent movie that has almost everything you need in a film with almost no missteps.


Closing comments: Gladiator has something for almost everyone, it is hard not to recommend.

Recommended for: Action fans, Epic fans, Historical fiction fans, Russel Crowe fans,


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