Product: Gladiator [VHS] (2000)
Rating: 1.0
Poor plot/script but the acting/special effects stank
It is most sad that so many people wasted their time on such a vapid film. They tried very hard to make it seem "deep" through the use of dream imagery and excessive computer whizzery. It was impossible to ignore the phonyness, particulary in the coliseum battles with tigers and the giant in the gold mask. It was way too obvious that extreme closeups, swirling camera movement, and overly zealous Foley(sound) effects were intended to disguise the truth, which was that nothing real was happening.As for Russell Crowe, I am still waiting to find out whether he can act. In this film, his mutterings tapped into all the emotions he could express from A to B. Perhaps with a script, he might do better. Maybe when I see "A Beautiful Mind", I'll find out.I have always been a fan of action films, but this one, alas, was so contrived and obvious in it's use of two-bit trickery that no matter how hard I tried, it was impossible to believe in.If an audience doesn't require more than this film delivers, then how long will it be before movie-goers just salivate and shout their approval just because a film was overhyped to the maximum extent possible. Has anyone ever heard the story of "The King's New Clothes"?