Product: Gladiator [VHS] (2000)
Rating: 5.0
Practically the best "sword and sandals" epic yet!!
For many wags and cynics in Hollywood, the days of the epic "sword and sandals" flick was over but like the Western, if it's done right like it here--you can have a winner!! Russell Crowe and director Ridley Scott have made a film almost comparable to Kubrick's "Spartacus" in depicting a man's quest for freedom--how universal can you get? Supported by a fine cast which includes Oscar nominee Joaquin Phoenix in a break-through role, Connie Nielsen, the late Richard Harris and Oliver Reed plus "I Claudius" Derek Jacobi, "Gladiator" will dazzle and entrance you. I will never understand why a critic like Roger Ebert would give this absorbing film such a negative review--I'm sure his late colleague Gene Siskel would've give this a thumbs up. I've seen this film several times in the theater and on video--and I can't wait for the Blu-ray edition to come out. Well to update things a little, I've just bought the Blu-ray edition of this fine film from Frys and despite the negative reviews of the Blu-ray, I still found the film watchable and definitely an upgrade from the Standard def version. There are a lot worse transfers in Blu-ray (The Italian Job, Clockwork Orange) than this film. I do intend to keep it unless there is a better Blu-ray transfer of this classic.