A beautifully shot historical epic that is truly memorable

Rating: 8/10 (22 July 2007)

(Referring to the Criterion Collection's 192 min. version) Oh man. This film just oozes bigness. Not without a touch of the old school Hollywood over-drama, or camp, but it's almost endearing here where it would otherwise be lame. The cast is certainly something stellar: Lawrence Olivier, Charles Laughton, Peter Ustinov and Kirk Douglas all in epic movie mode. Perhaps the most worthy reason to recommend Spartacus is the photography. The word epic gets abused left and right these days but this film IS epic. Stanley Kubrick may not have had much creative control with the film, but his cinematographic work is evident and it is awesome. Huuuuuge landscape shots depicting thousands of soldiers on the move, climbing mountains, fighting, etc. (and filmed in 1960 no less!) yet the vastness is not overwhelming and the focus is steadfast. The grand presentation of Spartacus features an overture and intermission, etc. which showcases Alex North's somewhat bombastic but often beautiful score that is also a constant throughout the film's action. This gives the film more of an operatic feel, likening it perhaps more to something like Eisenstein's Alexander NEVSKY than to Ridley Scott's GLADIATOR. In the end, SPARTACUS more than holds a candle to the historical epics made today and certainly outshines several of its contemporaries. If the length doesn't scare you off (around 3 ½ hours), SPARTACUS definitely worth a close viewing and a good discussion.