A+ action film, C- epic

Rating: 7/10 (21 December 2007)

In Rome circa 185 AD, General Maximus (Russell Crowe) leads a successful expedition against Germanic tribes in the northern empire. Dying Emperor Marcus Aurelius (Richard Harris) confides that he is to succeed as Emperor, to the chagrin of the vain, ego-maniacal Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix), who kills Marcus and usurps the throne. Maximus is expelled from the army, his family is killed, and he ultimately ends up in Rome as a gladiator for Proximo (Oliver Reed). Defying the will of the Emperor and eager to have his revenge, Maximus becomes a hero to the masses and joins Commodus's sister Lucilla (Connie Nielsen) and a cabal of Senators led by Gracchus (Derek Jacobi) in an attempt to bring down Commodus.
Gladiator is something of a paradox. As a well-made, entertaining action film, it's hard to beat. Its attempts to be something more, however... not so much. It's very entertaining, an excellent crowd-pleaser to be sure, but it's far from the great film it's widely considered to be.
Gladiator wants to be something significant. Its multi-faceted plot, its commentary on society, its distinguished cast of actors, epic battle scenes, and great musical score almost push it there. The movie borrows heavily from "Fall of the Roman Empire" (settings and characters), "Spartacus" and "Ben-Hur" (for the plot). This is not a criticism, merely an observation. And the movie does have an inkling of being something more than just another action movie. And yet it fails, because at heart it is basically "Braveheart" in a toga.
Perhaps I'm just not enthralled by the film's basic storyline. See if this sounds familiar: A successful warrior who wants only to live in peace is roused to ass-kicking action by the death of his family at the hands of cartoonishly evil villains. This is the plot of "Braveheart", "The Patriot", and innumerable Westerns, action films, and Steven Seagal/Chuck Norris slugfests. Death of family members is an easy motivation for a character, and dare I suggest a lazy one. Maximus isn't a thoughtful, conflicted hero like T.E. Lawrence or Spartacus, he's just a man of action who wants to wreak vengeance on those who wronged him. In spite of its attempts to convince us otherwise, the movie is basically a Schwarzenegger or Van Damme flick set in Roman times with a lead actor who can act.
The subplots of the film don't fare much better. The character of Commodus in particular is a disappointment. One of the few good things about "Fall of the Roman Empire" is Christopher Plummer's portrayal of Commodus. Commodus is an egomaniac with delusions of grandeur. He's not horribly complex in that film but Plummer makes it work. Whether it's the script or Joaquin Phoenix's acting, this film's Commodus is a sniveling weakling. I appreciate the effort to give him motivation (his father never truly loved him) but in his big scene with Marcus Aurelius, Commodus doesn't come across as heart-broken, merely insincere. Commodus is a petulant child who lacks menace. David Schofield's duplictious Senator Falco is a much more effective bad guy. The Senate plot against the Emperor is under-developed and comes across as a bad pastiche of "Spartacus".
On a purely action level, the movie is pretty good. The epic battle which opens the film is not particularly impressive in my opinion, but the gladiator combats later in the film are impressive. The visceral thrill of a gladiatorial match comes across well, particularly when Proximo's gladiators "upset" an enemy team. The fight between Maximus and the "Tigress of Gaul" is very well-handled, as is the final duel between Commodus and Maximus. The CGI is of mixed quality. It's impressive in some scenes (notably Commodus's entry into Rome) but in other parts it's murky and distracting. Hans Zimmer's score is haunting and helps drive the film's more powerful moments.
The movie excels largely because of Russell Crowe. FOTRE failed because Stephen Boyd is a block of wood; Crowe, playing a very similar role, excels. Maximus is not a particularly noble hero but he's a fabulous action star, and Crowe does bring a degree of intelligence and complexity to complement the ass-kicking. The supporting cast is mostly under-used. Djimon Honsou, Oliver Reed, David Schofield and Derek Jacobi give the most memorable supporting performances in the film despite very limited screen time. Richard Harris is disappointing as Marcus Aurelius, and Joaquin Phoenix and Connie Nielsen aren't particularly compelling either.
"Gladiator" is one of the best action films ever made, on a purely action level. But in its attempts to be something more... well, not so much, I'm afraid.
7/10