|
|
|
 |
Reviews |
 |
Source:
rec.art.movies.reviews newsgroup
Rating:
 
|
When at its best, Gladiator is one of the great films of all time. Every moment is exhilarating, every fight engaging and every moral and statement so well thought out and of such a classic nature that they can be appreciated and pondered simultaneously. However, when at its worse, Gladiator's two-and-a-half hour length takes the spotlight off the film's numerous virtues to the point where a slip in the projection gave a preview audience an unintended intermission necessary to tolerate some upcoming moments that would make `Wuthering Heights' seem like a page-turner. Fortunately, the good disproportionately outweighs the bad so much that you should have no reservations about seeing this film if you want to be in-the-loop on Oscar night.
The first person onscreen is, appropriately enough, Maximus (Russell Crowe, setting the bar for this year's Best Actor race), the movie's hero. When we meet him he is a general at war commanding thousands of troops in the name of pre-Nero Rome. Like most great war heroes in the movies, Maximus is humble and wise. His motivation in battle is more to return to his family than to defend Rome. Although, given the benevolent nature of the empire's current Caesar, he has no qualms fighting for the great city.
Maximus' skill, bravery and humane qualities are rewarded when he is informed that he, not the Caesar's son, will inherit the emperorship of Rome. Yet one of the inherit rules applying to just about all of Hollywood's great epics is that the kinder the ruler is, the crueler and less loyal his son. Gladiator isn't an exception. Soon Maximus is no longer a General but rather a slave and no longer fighting for his family but rather the name of the great Caesar who once tried to name him his successor only to be murdered by his blood son that very evening.
Above all else, credit Ridley Scott, the director of the film. And then give John Mathieson, the deft cinematographer, his due as well. The two brilliant behind-the-scenes men have created an ancient Rome that few will have trouble accepting as reality. Thousands of extras are coordinated perfectly down to the most irrelevant details which only a nit-picky critic like myself would pay any heed. As for the scenery and backgrounds, to call them gorgeous would be an enormous understatement – if Dreamworks needs to make any more money off this film, they should have no difficulty selling postcards.
Yet surely Scott and Mathieson wouldn't have been able to accomplish this incredible feat without the aid of a $100 million budget. What does this tell us about Hollywood today? Perhaps those nine figures are the proof that although a fluke like The Blair Witch Project will come around from time to time, enough money combined with the right individuals can create a movie as marvelous and spectacular as Gladiator. Unfortunately, the large sum ultimately makes a little too much movie as the creative duo seem to have gotten caught up in scenery and re-creating the past so much so that they forget to advance the plot at certain points and instead test the audience's patience with a craft that belongs in an art gallery, not on the silver screen.
Gladiator's good guys share a political philosophy of favoring the Senate over a dictator-like emperor. Many of the more loveable characters also put their faith in an afterlife as a form of surviving their less-than-ideal current lives. These issues raise enough debate that Gladiator manages to achieve its final success by crossing the border from being just another heroic epic to being a modern-day classic, not unlike Ben-Hur and Braveheart, even if the film could use some trimming around the edges.
By : Mac VerStandig
|
|
Source:
rec.art.movies.reviews newsgroup
Rating:
|
The reign of Caesar Marcus Aurelius in the mid-second century A.D. is often considered a golden age of the Roman Empire. Marcus was instrumental in securing peace in the nether regions of the Empire, but was also a philosopher of great renown. He died in 180 and rule passed to his son Commodus. The transition was an orderly one; Commodus was recommended to the Senate by Marcus, and indeed had been sharing power with his father since 177. Commodus' rule, however, would go down in the history books as disastrous, with the Caesar's demeanour descending into brutality and ultimately madness. In 182 his sister Lucilla and a group of senators tried unsuccessfully to have him assassinated. Commodus became obsessed with the gladiatorial games, and in 192 his own advisers had him strangled by a popular wrestler.
"Gladiator" is a condensed and largely fictionalised version of the true events. The most notable addition to the story is Maximus (Russell Crowe), a general who leads the Romans to victory against the German tribes to the north. Contradicting real life, Marcus Aurelius (Richard Harris) wants Maximus -- not Commodus -- to be Rome's new ruler after his death, with the aim of eventually turning the empire back into a republic. Before he can proclaim his decision, however, the deceitful Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix) murders his father and orders Maximus' execution.
Maximus escapes and tries to return home to Spain, only to discover that Commodus has had his wife and son killed as well. Gravely wounded in his flight, Maximus is captured and bought by Proximo (the late Oliver Reed) to fight as a gladiator. Initially reluctant, Maximus soon embraces his new role when it gives him a chance to travel to Rome, where the new Caesar has declared 150 days of gladiatorial games to celebrate his ascension to the throne. There, Maximus' efforts to take revenge on Commodus involve him in the machinations of Commodus' sister Lucilla (Connie Nielsen).
The first blockbuster movie of the 2000 summer season, "Gladiator" is a visual feast. Expert set design and computer effects have been exploited in their fullest by director Ridley Scott to bring ancient Rome to life. Shots which pan overhead across the city to the Coliseum, teeming with spectators, are fabulous to behold. It is difficult not to feel transported eighteen hundred years back in time.
In some respects, however, Scott overdoes it with his cinematic trickery. Specifically, he portrays many fight scenes -- both with the gladiators and the legions -- using a choppy, strobe-like technique. Scott is clearly trying to achieve the sense of disorientation in battle that was so successfully conveyed in films like "Braveheart" and "Saving Private Ryan". Instead, he merely makes these sequences disjointed and hard to watch. It is virtually impossible to follow the actions of even the principal characters, and so the viewer is left to try to piece together what is actually happening.
It has been more than thirty years since the last great Roman epic was made. In reviving the genre, the scriptwriters have elected to hew closely to tried-and-true storylines rather than break new ground. "Gladiator" does not deviate much from other examples of the genre, echoing everything from "Spartacus" to "Doctor Who". The mad emperor, the resurgent war hero, and the gladiatorial games as a conduit for revenge are all familiar plot elements. Nonetheless, the story is entertainingly told, and while considerable attention is paid to the gladiator combat which is the movie's main attraction, this is not overaccentuated. "Gladiator" is no "Mortal Kombat", moving from meaningless battle to meaningless battle without pause. The film is very well paced, and the quieter aspects of the plot are not trivialised.
Perhaps as a result of this, "Gladiator" boasts some unusually fine acting for a big-budget action picture. Crowe, although by no means achieving the complexity of his Oscar-nominated performance in "The Insider", brings a pleasant depth to Maximus. The general is a man first and a hero second; he is driven to confront Commodus not by a love of Rome, but rather of a man who was as a father to him, and of a murdered wife and child whose deaths he must avenge. Crowe brings an evenness to the role which makes Maximus seem more real than similar characters in other movies.
Likewise, Phoenix does well not to overplay Commodus. The role of the insane tyrant has often been an invitation to hammy overacting in the past, but Phoenix's portrayal is more subtle. Commodus' burgeoning madness is manifested largely through his body language, rather than any particular statement or deed. Also very good are Reed and Harris in supporting roles. Despite their comparatively short screen time (indeed, Reed actually died before filming was complete, forcing Scott to compensate using clever editing and digital effects), both grant their characters a sense of history and profundity.
Perhaps least successful is Nielsen as Lucilla, despite having what may be "Gladiator"'s most involved role. Lucilla is Commodus' sister, and he obviously harbors inappropriate feelings for her. It is also strongly implied that she is Maximus' former lover. And she is a dispassionate and intelligent schemer, whose allegiances may be pivotal in determining Rome's future. But Nielsen comes across as detached throughout the proceedings, more so than is called for by her character. Even in scenes where Lucilla's reserve breaks, Nielsen feels removed from the action. Given her importance in how the events of the movie play out, this is an unfortunate central weakness.
But all in all, "Gladiator" is entrancing to watch, beautifully acted, and really just a lot of good old-fashioned fun. Although far removed from the greatness of classics like "Ben-Hur", it marks an entertaining and satisfying return of what was once one of Hollywood's favourite genres. Indeed, given the possibilities offered by this age of increasingly sophisticated special effects, "Gladiator" is hopefully just the first of many forays back to the time of the great Roman Empire.
By : Shannon Patrick Sullivan
|
 |
Featured Posters |
|
|
