Four years on and still as strong

Rating: 8/10 (9 August 2004)

Upon release this film set the world on fire. It was an amazing achievement. Four years on and it has lost some of its original charm but most of what made it great still remains. Russell Crowe deserves to be a superstar based on this performance alone. He controls the screen with such ease he was destined for good things from this moment onwards. This film also kick-started Ridley Scott's second career high which is a good thing for the movie world as he can be one of the best directors when he wants to be. The score by Hans Zimmer is as amazing as usual, I can't recall the man creating a bad soundtrack for a movie.
Now for the downside. The film is only really good when Crowe is on screen. Joaquin Phoenix put in an amazing performance as the new Emperor but that didn't help the scenes in Rome from being very boring. I also can't help but cringe at the ending, only because watching the slaves walk out into the coliseum and stand around while Connie Neilsen badly acts being sad was a terrible way to end such a good film.
8/10