Awesome!

Rating: 10/10 (16 May 2000)

Wow! That's all I can say after watching "Gladiator". And you know what? I'm not writing this review immediately after watching the movie like I usually do. I'm writing this review after watching the movie for the SECOND time. Yep, I saw this movie on opening night and then went and saw it again two days later.
Gladiator is about a Roman General who's a hero that becomes a slave, then becomes a gladiator, and finally a hero again. General Maximus (Russell Crowe) refuses to support the young Emperor Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix) as he suspects foul play after it is discovered that the current Emperor and father to Commodus is found dead. Maximus becomes an outcast and eventually a slave as he is bought by Proximo, a man who engages in the sport of gladiating by supplying the slaves that will eventually be killed in these gruesome competitions. To Proximo's surprise, Maximus not only survives competition after competition but he becomes the favorite in almost every competition. But there's more to this man's success than skill alone. There's revenge.
Russell Crowe is not one of the better-known actors but he's fast becoming one. I saw him in "Insider" and was blown away with his performance there but when I saw this movie I gained an even deeper respect for this man. He is one talented actor. The rest of the cast is no sack of potatoes either. This is probably one of the most talented group of actors assembled for one film.
Richard Harris, Oliver Reed, Dereck Jacobi, the list goes on and it's hard to find a weak actor in the group. I was particularly impressed with Joaquin Phoenix. I thought he played the young Emperor with a wonderful mix of child-like poutiness and scheming villany that was a good counterpart to Crowe's character. Connie Nielsen's portrayal of Commodus's sister, Lucilla, was equally well done and at times made you feel a bit uncomfortable as the hint of an incestuous relationship between her and Commodus possibly existed.
The good thing about this movie was that there was a good storyline to backup the strong cast. The dialogue was appropriate to the story and unlike many of the other "testosterone" filled movies, this one didn't suffer the fate of cheezy lines.
Overall, a definite must see but I must warn you. There is a tremendous amount of graphic violence so if you're faint of heart this may not be the movie for you. If this sort of thing doesn't bother you, you must go see it. For your information, the real Commodus did participate in gladiating and was rumored to have amassed a record of 1000 wins so he was no slouch in the gladiating ring.