Product: Gladiator [VHS] (2000)
Rating: 5.0
An Incredible Epic!
Until I saw this film, I was beginning to seriously doubt the ability of Hollywood to produce engaging, powerful, epic films. My faith is renewed.In part, the film is a tremendous success because it conveys the notion of what it means to be a good person. Russell Crowe as general Maximus shows the viewer that a man (or woman) must act from integrity, and not from self interest. In the film, Maximus has the opportunity to return to his beloved family, so long as he will endorse the depraved emperor Commodus. Maximus does not act from self-interest, but rather from integrity by rejecting the murdeous emperor. As a result, he loses everything, but not his dignity.The film notes how words like 'honour' and 'trust' had lost meaning in the Roman Empire, and similarly poses the question of whether those words have today lost meaning for the viewer.This film is a must see! It is a classic already.