Compelling

Rating: 10/10 (31 May 2000)

Throw your history books out the window, sit back and enjoy a roller-coaster of a ride through the life of the fictitious Roman general Maximus as he falls from power, only to regain it as the eponymous Gladiator who wins the hearts of the Roman crowds in the arena. There are some faults with this film - some parts of it do drag - but somehow it is completely compelling, and you can forgive them. All that's missing is the old-fashioned Technicolor look - although maybe that isn't a bad idea considering how graphic some of the fight scenes appear to be (it's what isn't shown that counts).