Disappointing.....

Rating: 5/10 (7 May 2000)

The fight scenes and such were spectacular. It was a visually lush movie. The acting, especially on Russell Crowe's part, was excellent but if they are going to spend 100M on a movie couldn't they have channelled some of those funds into a decent script with believable characters.
And I am always willing to suspend my disbelief but when it comes to historical movies I appreciate a little more accuracy. For instance: Marcus Aurelius DID with the last of his strength (supposedly) declare Commodus to be his heir in front of the army. And Commodus did quite often enter the arena as a gladiator but, it wasn't until about 10 or 11 years after he became Emperor that he was poisoned by his mistress and died. Though perhaps not as truly depraved as Caligula, Commodus' true history seems to have been interesting enough to have fledged a much more well rounded script, with a greater depth of plot.
I went to the theatre expecting the kind of feeling experienced from viewing BraveHeart I was definitely disappointed.