No Roman Holiday

Rating: Null/10 (7 May 2000)

If you are looking for a movie to compare with the Roman spectacles of yore such as Spartacus, Ben Hur, or Fall of the Roman Empire, you're not going to find it here. And I mean that on several different levels...
As a huge fan of Roman history, I was extremely eager to see how artist-cum-director Ridley Scott would handle my favorite period in world history. I knew from my past experience with historical filmaking that it wouldn't come close to accuracy but as a fan of his work I was hoping with my heart of hearts that it would be Mr. Scott's triumphant return to fine form (ALIEN, BLADERUNNER, THELMA AND LOUISE) instead of something akin to his more recent flops (WHITE SQUALL or the overly mediocre 1492). His latest effort is somewhere in between, a Pyhrric victory: He won the little battles but lost the entire war. The one question I asked myself after leaving the theatre was "How can the same movie shine so brightly one moment then be as dull as rusted iron the next?" The answer...Blame it primarily on the script, blame it somewhat on the director, BUT don't blame it on the actors. Maximus we hardly knew you.
All of Ridley Scott's trademark talents are in full glorious force in GLADIATOR. The editing and cinematography are phenomenal and only add to the already vast panorama of the locations where the film was shot. The CGI effects were a mixed blessing, like the film itself. At once they recreate the splendid decadence and squalor that ancient Rome was but they also could prove unrealistic and distracting at times.
The frequently (and wrongly) criticized opening sequence is astounding and hints at a promising, richly textured classic that never emerges. This is not PRIVATE RYAN or BRAVEHEART. The final battle for Germania owes more to Kurosawa than to Spielberg or any other action director in recent years (except John Woo).
It also asks the questions that resound throughout the entire film: Were the Romans really more civilized than the barbarians they sought to conquer and subdue? Are we any different today? (Replace the blazing forests of Germany with the scorched jungles of Vietnam or gladiator games with boxing, football, and auto racing) The answer is as close as your television, our version of bread and circuses.It was an oddly ironic experience sitting in a theatre full of my fellow citizens while they cheered on Maximus along with the those "depraved" Romans in the Colosseum.I don't believe that Ridley Scott meant this to happen by chance and it is where the film is most effective.
Also effective was Hans Zimmer's haunting score and the brilliant cast of actors.Russell Crowe does his damndest with a character that is at best a rough draft outline. You can see where he wants to take Maximus but he's just not quite given the chance by the script.Joaquin Phoenix is outstanding as the debauched emperor Commodus who somehow manages to come across in a tragic manner. Backing up these fine performances are Richard Harris, Derek Jacobi, and best of all, the late Oliver Reed. These old guard actors lend an air of authority and legitimacy to the classical setting.But again their performances are merely hangers, albeit steady ones, for the limp storyline.Even at 2 1/2 hours most of the main characters remain tragically underused and unexplored.None of them stand a chance because in the third act, the Colisseum swallows them all up and becomes the main actor on the stage. End of story.
Instead of exploring one or two strong issues and developing Maximus further, the story seems to be content to jump from one fight sequence to another with moments of half-hearted debate about (inaccurate) Roman politics thrown in for filler. Who cares if Rome returns to a Republic (as if it could have after 200 years of imperial totalitarianism)? The Roman people certainly didn't seem to and that's one of the reasons Rome eventually fell. Why should we?
GLADIATOR is worth seeing primarily because this is not your grandparent's kind of epic with all of the preaching and preening of 50's Hollywood. It still has its moments of real drama that could move even an old stodge like me. This was not a horrible film as a minority have suggested. I urge any one who's a Russell Crowe or Ridley Scott fan to go see this movie on the big screen, along with all of you history buffs. This was an average to good film that could have been great. What a Roman tragedy.