Spectacular in every way

Rating: 8/10 (13 August 2001)

I must admit, when I saw the trailer, I thought it was another crap period movie; I didn't like period dramas a lot back then. But after I became a fan of Joaquin Phoenix's, I watched it on a VCD, 5 months after it was released in the theatre. And I truly could not understand why the trailer turned me off so much. Besides Joaquin's brilliant and Oscar-robbed performance as Commodus, Gladiator has all the right ingredients of a spectacular epic, beginning with the opening battle scene. I firmly believe that it is filmed "shaky" to convey the confusion and madness in a battle, and not because the guy behind the camera didn't know how to use one. Yes, it contains blood and gore and all that jazz, but do not forget it's a movie about gladiators. Gladiators back then did not sit around, drinking tea and eating sandwiches; they did almost exactly what was depicted in the fights scenes in the film. How else were the film-makers to portray the violence of gladiator fights than to include it in the movie?
Another good thing about "Gladiator" is that its villain is very much 3-dimensional. I am a big fan of Joaquin Phoenix, and I strongly believe he deserved that Best Supporting Actor Oscar no matter what people say. How often do you get a villain in an action movie who isn't portrayed as entirely bad? Phoenix played Commodus not as a mere villain, but as a spoiled child whose intense search for love drove him to commit deeds he'd later regret (as seen in one of the deleted scenes in the DVD). He gave Commodus a depth that isn't found in most action-movie villain (for example the bad guy in "Kiss of the Dragon"), and drove the audience into grudging sympathy mixed with loathe. For that alone, he deserves the Oscar.
Connie Nielson also deserved some sort of recognition for her underrated performance as Lucilla. She handled her role with great dignity and care; her confliction between her love for her brother that's slowly fading and her duty towards her country is very clearly put across, giving Lucilla the conviction that is certainly needed.
Gladiator also has a magnificent score that is, again, Oscar-worthy. The music gives the picture the extra push that sends emotions into overdrive, particularly the **spoiler** Patricide scene, the opening battle scene and the very last scene. The special effects were ASTOUNDING! Just take a look at the Colosseum! Perhaps I'm over-sensitive, but I felt like I was being transported right back to that period.
"Gladiator" is certainly meant to be seen on the big screen. Due to its second release, I had a chance to do just that. And what an experience. Contrary to what some has said, "Gladiator" WILL be remembered some ten years from now, simply because it's an epic film about the Roman empire. And a spectacular one at that.