Great

Rating: 9/10 (9 March 2020)

Gladiator is a more modern take on the sword and sandal Roman period epics like Ben Hur and Spartacus. With a big budget and Ridley Scott at the helm, Gladiator is high powered entertainment. Epic in scope with a huge cast and great f/x, this is a marvel to look at and was put together well. A great mix of drama and action with political schemes and battle scenes. The acting was very good all around with character actors like Oliver Reed and Richard Harris. Joaquin Phoenix was a good antagonist and Russel Crowe gave a commanding presence as the lead delivering a powerful performance that won him a richly deserved Oscar for best actor. I remember seeing this at the theater and it completely blew away Mel Gibson's weak attempt to relive the glory of Braveheart with the failed(and very lame) epic The Patriot. Gladiator comes really close to being as good as Braveheart and at times is also very bloody. Gladiator is also bloody good and is well put together all around. This is in my opinion one of Ridley Scott's finest works and like most of his films, stands the test of time and holds up really well.