An allegory within an allegory

Rating: 10/10 (6 May 2000)

The last battle to secure Rome's frontier belies the turmoil within; Ridley Scott is stating that it is easy to be fractious and divided when there is no common enemy. The crowds cheer the return of the fights to the death and glorify violence. Are we not individuals in a different kind of coliseum watching a spectacle of violence in a time of relative external peace? This event marked the pinnacle of the Roman empire and the beginning of its demise.