Disappointingly Lacking

Rating: 6/10 (12 May 2000)

When going to a Ridley Scott movie, I always feel a sense of security that I will be delighted with the cinematography, if nothing else. This foray into computer enhanced filming is horrible. Cleopatra, 30 years ago, was far more realistic since it was...well...real. Certainly, computers reduce the cost to produce a movie of this scope, but one is always aware that one is looking at a computer image. In old movies, where sets were built, there was no way to be sure that the movie wasn't filmed at an old ruin. The scenery was made of physical materials, not virtual images. Every time I saw those little pixels in the Coliseum flickering I was totally distracted. The whole movie, from a technical standpoint, is a case of "The Emperor's New Clothes."