I love this movie

Rating: 10/10 (23 May 2000)

The first thing I want to say is I love this movie. It is only the second movie I've seen starring Russell Crowe, and in the words of my buddy and fellow movie critic, Robert G. Cash, "I think I'm in love with Russell Crowe." Similar to his character, Bud White in L.A. Confidential, Crowe is soft spoken, hard as nails, and outstanding as the principled and intrepid General Maximus Decimus Meridias.
Maximus is favored by the dying Emperor, Marcus Aurelius (Richard Harris), to take over as the keeper of Rome upon the Emperor's death, and is given the charge to destroy the corruption rampant in Roman society, turn the government back over to the Senate and end the rule of the Caesar's forever. The Emperor's jealous and power hungry son, Commodus, played very well by Joaquin Phoenix, is distraught when he hears of his father's intentions and sets out to destroy Maximus and everything near and dear to the General. (By the way, Commodus is the Latin word for commode. No wonder nobody likes this guy.) Commodus orders the General's death, but is startled when Maximus shows up later in the Colosseum of Rome as a slave and a gladiator, determined to exact revenge on the new Emperor "in this life or the next."
Richard Harris, always one of my favorites, gives a great though short performance as the aging and good hearted Marcus Aurelius Caesar. Connie Nielsen with her classical look is perfect as Commodus' sister Lucilla, forced to keep her unstable brother happy while at the same time aiding her former beau Maximus. It is good to see Oliver Reed again as the slave trader and gladiator trainer Proximo, and even though Reed died part way through the making of this film and they had to digitize some of his scenes, he is still a better actor dead than the entire cast of (we demand more money than we deserve) "Friends".
The battle and fight scenes remind me of Mel Gibson's Braveheart in their realism and brutality of sword combat, however, the scenes seem more surreal than Braveheart and the "cut aways" are often too quick to really see what is happening.
Finally, just my two cents when it comes to movies about ancient Rome in general. Why are there never any Italians? Is Rome not in Italy? Did they not talk like Al Pacino in those days or what?