A quality action-film-done-right with emotion and beauty

Rating: 8/10 (13 May 2000)

A truly incredible film, "Gladiator" is epic in nature with an interesting plot, strong emotion, beautiful imagery, and fierce action that held me on the edge of my seat until the final credits fell. Due to the human struggles of the plot and the identifiable characters, I became empathetic and emotional, truly "pulling" for what I wanted to happen (as was intended, I'm sure). The battle scenes were highly engaging and interesting to watch--not just the same old fights. The beautiful locations and imagery really added a great visual layer to the film that enhances its entertainment value, its enjoyability. A couple scenes have aspects that are unrealistic, and the special effects were sometimes pixelated and unrealistic, but I appreciate all that "Gladiator" accomplishes and recommend it highly to anyone in the mood for a -quality- action film.