‎Spartacus (1960) directed by Stanley Kubrick • Reviews, film + cast • Letterboxd 7 After having recently watched Kubrick’s weak debut, Fear and Desire, and a solid but forgettable film (Killer’s Kiss), I was pretty impressed by Spartacus, which is one hell of an epic journey. I felt that some scenes dragged, making the watch a little exhausting at times, but nothing that affected my overall experience. The score was great but a bit repetitive, which is fine as it’s a very long film. The battle scenes were outstanding and Kirk Douglas amazed me as Spartacus, a gladiator and leader of the slave’s rebellion. I could totally see resemblances to his character in Paths of Glory as they both share a strong sense of humanity and perseverance. The message by the end is that hope is alive and Spartacus’s dream can actually prosper and be concreted, despite all the destruction that happens in the final battle with the Romans and its horrible consequences. A strong and fitting finale to another terrific film by Kubrick!

Review by Charly Díaz ★★★★ Spartacus cuenta con una historia épica, actuaciones románticas, gran diseño de producción, excelentes actuaciones, diálogos memorables y un poderoso score que Stanley Kubrick consigue amoldar gracias al buen guión de Dalton Trumbo. El único aspecto negativo que considero que la cinta tiene un exceso de duración. ¡Un clásico! Review by Robert Dixon ★★★½ After watching Trumbo, I find it difficult not to just see Bryan Cranston writing this movie in his bath. Riddled with Kubrickisms, but honestly I found the runtime pretty grating at times. For an epic, it's solid enough, with a fantastic opening quarter. It's definitely a film that is pleasing on the eye, with enough substance of plot to be passable. But really the film is made in the performances. Peter Ustinov in particular is somebody who stuck out to me, of course alongside Douglas and Olivier. 1 Stanley Kubrick takes us back to a time where a man could rock socks with sandals without fear of being called douche bag.

There would however be the fear of getting enslaved much like our hero Spartacus was before he arose to be a great leader. It's a very impressive film from a technical stand point. Some scenes featuring thousands of extras and I would bet that some stunt people got seriously injured during those battle scenes. This movie is very much a product of it's time, it's a big classic Hollywood epic. It barley even seems like a Kubrick movie, feels very much like a studio film to me, but I enjoyed it overall. I would recommend this to fans of movies like Gladiator and Braveheart, those flicks no doubt took inspiration from good ole Spartacus here. Review by Andy Patterson ★★★★ All studio and no creative control makes Kubrick a very dull boy. The above sentence rings true in the talky scenes in this somewhat bloated sword and sandals epic but it's reputation as a towering genre entry is earned in the spectacular second half, with a terrific massive scale battle sequence and the emotional, iconic "I am Spartacus!" scene as well as a visceral climax.

The dazzling production values make for sumptuous, jaw dropping action and Dalton Trumbo's screenplay is punctuated with remarkably literate dialogue, which rivals the iron jawed Kirk Douglas as the picture's star. Spartacus (1960) - IMDb IMDb There was an error trying to load your rating for this title. Some parts of this page won't work property. Please reload or try later. X Beta I'm Watching This! Keep track of everything you watch; tell your friends. Error The slave Spartacus leads a violent revolt against the decadent Roman Republic.

Director: Dalton Trumbo (screenplay), Howard Fast (based on the novel by) Stars: From $2.99 (SD) on Amazon Video ON DISC a list of 44 titles created 19 Feb 2011 a list of 30 titles created 04 Sep 2011 a list of 44 titles created 30 Jan 2013 a list of 23 titles created 21 Dec 2013 a list of 23 images created 16 Apr 2015 Search for " Spartacus " on Amazon.com Connect with IMDb Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? Use the HTML below. You must be a registered user to use the IMDb rating plugin. Won 4 Oscars. Another 6 wins & 11 nominations. See more awards » Videos A middle-aged college professor becomes infatuated with a fourteen-year-old nymphet. Director: Stanley Kubrick Crooks plan and execute a daring race-track robbery. Director: Stanley Kubrick After refusing to attack an enemy position, a general accuses the soldiers of cowardice and their commanding officer must defend them.

Director: Stanley Kubrick An Irish rogue wins the heart of a rich widow and assumes her dead husband's aristocratic position in 18th-century England. Director: Stanley Kubrick Ready to catch a train to his hometown, a washed up boxer tells us about the strange and twisty events that happened to him the past couple of days. Director: Stanley Kubrick A New York City doctor, who is married to an art curator, pushes himself on a harrowing and dangerous night-long odyssey of sexual and moral discovery after his wife admits that she once almost cheated on him. Director: Stanley Kubrick Four soldiers trapped behind enemy lines must confront their fears and desires. Director: Stanley Kubrick The Egyptian Prince, Moses, learns of his true heritage as a Hebrew and his divine mission as the deliverer of his people. Director: Cecil B. DeMille When a Jewish prince is betrayed and sent into slavery by a Roman friend, he regains his freedom and comes back for revenge. Director: William Wyler An insane general triggers a path to nuclear holocaust that a war room full of politicians and generals frantically try to stop. Director: Stanley Kubrick A pragmatic U.S.

Marine observes the dehumanizing effects the Vietnam War has on his fellow recruits from their brutal boot camp training to the bloody street fighting in Hue. Director: Stanley Kubrick In Africa during World War I, a gin-swilling riverboat captain is persuaded by a strait-laced missionary to use his boat to attack an enemy warship. Director: John Huston Edit Storyline In 73 BCE, a Thracian slave leads a revolt at a gladiatorial school run by Lentulus Batiatus. The uprising soon spreads across the Italian Peninsula involving thousand of slaves. The plan is to acquire sufficient funds to acquire ships from Silesian pirates who could then transport them to other lands from Brandisium in the south. The Roman Senator Gracchus schemes to have Marcus Publius Glabrus, Commander of the garrison of Rome, lead an army against the slaves who are living on Vesuvius. When Glabrus is defeated his mentor, Senator and General Marcus Licinius Crassus is greatly embarrassed and leads his own army against the slaves. Spartacus and the thousands of freed slaves successfully make their way to Brandisium only to find that the Silesians have abandoned them.

They then turn north and must face the might of Rome. Written by garykmcd See All (88) » Taglines: They trained him to kill for their pleasure. . .but they trained him a little too well. . . See more » Genres: 17 November 1960 (Brazil) See more » Also Known As: Spartacus: Rebel Against Rome See more » Filming Locations: (video) Sound Mix: 70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints)| Mono (Westrex Recording System) (35 mm prints, original release)| Dolby Stereo (1991 restoration) Color: Did You Know? Trivia Charles Laughton threatened to sue Kirk Douglas many times during filming. These threats never came to fruition, and Douglas felt Laughton was simply being a prima donna. See more » Goofs When Spartacus confronts Marcus Glabrus after the latter has been captured, the formed tears off Glabrus' medallion (which is the symbol of his office as commander of the garrison of Rome), breaking its chain. In the next shot Glabrus is shown wearing the medallion on its intact chain.

See more » Quotes [first lines] Narrator : In the last century before the birth of the new faith called Christianity, which was destined to overthrow the pagan tyranny of Rome and bring about a new society, the Roman Republic stood at the very center of the civilized world. "Of all things fairest," sang the poet, "first among cities and home of the gods is golden Rome." Yet, even at the zenith of her pride and power, the Republic lay fatally stricken with a disease called human slavery. The age of the dictator was at hand, ... See more » Crazy Credits The opening titles appear in a montage of silhouetted Roman sculptures and tablets, which according to title designer Saul Bass is meant to evoke the strength and power of the Roman Empire. The montage ends with a zoom into the eye of a crumbling Roman bust, which hints at the Empire's coming decline and fall. See more » Connections Spartacus | film by Kubrick [1960] | Britannica.com film by Kubrick [1960] Spartacus, American epic adventure film , released in 1960, that recounts the story of a historical slave uprising (73–71 bce) against Rome .

The movie, which starred Kirk Douglas and was directed by Stanley Kubrick , won widespread critical acclaim. Kirk Douglas as Spartacus in the 1960 film of the same name, directed by Stanley Kubrick. DeA Picture Library The film traces the story of the slave Spartacus (played by Douglas), who earns a reputation for courage as a gladiator while a possession of the wealthy Lentulus Batiatus ( Peter Ustinov ). The fiercely independent slave seeks freedom for himself and his downtrodden companions. He manages to escape and frees other slaves, forming a formidable army of rebels. With the citizens of Rome frightened by the rebellion, Gen. Marcus Licinius Crassus ( Laurence Olivier ) is assigned to crush the insurgents, but Spartacus and his army defeat the Romans in numerous battles. However, they are ultimately caught in an inescapable trap and are slaughtered. Spartacus is crucified, but as he is dying, he has the satisfaction of discovering that his wife Varinia ( Jean Simmons ) and their baby son have been granted freedom as citizens of Rome. Publicity still of Kirk Douglas as Spartacus. © 1960 Universal Pictures Company, Inc.

Peter Ustinov in Spartacus (1960). Courtesy of Universal International Pictures Determined to avoid the reputation of many Roman Empire epics as dumbed-down, Douglas (who was also one of the film’s producers) hired blacklisted writer Dalton Trumbo to pen the screenplay for Spartacus. Trumbo’s own name, rather than a pseudonym, was credited, which helped break the McCarthy -era stigma that had victimized Trumbo and others. After the film’s premiere, the studio bowed to pressure and removed a suggestive bath sequence with homosexual overtones between Olivier and Tony Curtis . When the film received a high-profile restoration in 1991, the scene was restored; because the soundtrack was missing, Curtis redubbed his part, and Anthony Hopkins provided the voice of Olivier, who had died in 1989.

Production notes and credits Laurence Olivier (Marcus Licinius Crassus) Jean Simmons (Varinia) View All Critic Reviews (53) Audience Reviews for Spartacus The only film that Kubrick didn't have control of, this sumptuous and forever influential sword-and-sandal epic balances quite well its campy moments with scenes of dramatic intensity but also has a messy script full of moralizing and confusing behavior from most of its characters. Carlos Magalhães Super Reviewer Stanley Kubrick's Spartacus is a defining classic that has withstood the test of time. Brilliantly acted and directed, this is one of the best epics that combines action, drama and romance. This is a stunning work of cinematic genius that is a must see for cinema fans of all ages looking for a terrific, well acted and brilliantly directed film with rousing action, thrills and a compelling story. This is among Kubrick's greatest works. This is a majestic piece of cinema, and remains one of the standout classics along with such works as Ben- Hur and Lawrence of Arabia. This is an epic film that is grand in scale and scope. This is a picture that only Stanley Kubrick could have directed.

With a terrific cast of outstanding talent, this is a powerful work that delivers exciting visuals, great battles and memorable performances. Kirk Douglas delivers on-screen and his role is among the most famous roles in the long history of cinema. This is a wonderful film that is sure to please cinema buffs everywhere and it is among the greatest films ever made as well. The film is truly entertaining from start to finish right up to the unforgettable climax. This epic has had a profound impact on genre films for years to come, and though no film has surpassed the greatness of Spartacus, many pictures have been influenced by Kubrick's classic. A brilliant, compelling and unforgettable film that is among the greatest films ever made. A must see for serious film fans. This film is worth watching for Kirk Douglas performance alone, and there's plenty of aspects that stand out about this work. Stanley Kubrick would aim bigger and better with this film, and it set the stage for future films in Kubrick's long and legendary career.

Alex roy Historical Inaccuracies in Spartacus Spartacus, the 1960 film directed by Stan - Pastebin.com raw get clone embed report print text 15.45 KB Historical Inaccuracies in Spartacus Spartacus, the 1960 film directed by Stanley Kubrick, is based on the life of a real man by the same name who lived from 111 BC to 71 BC. Spartacus was a Thracian slave in Italy who escaped and became one of the slave leaders of the Third Servile War. Spartacus commanded a slave army that grew with each city it ransacked, freeing slaves along the way. Spartacus even met a slave woman, Varinia, whom he fell in love with and even had a child with. Spartacus was born a slave and had a massive hatred for the higher class who imprisoned him and his army. While breaking up a gladiator match his slave army organized, he says “I made a promise to myself that if I ever made it out of here I'd never watch two men fight to the death again.” (Spartacus, 1h10m) He is painted as a strong abolitionist of slavery.

The nobles in Rome, namely the rich Crassus, offered to use his legions to take out Spartacus if it meant he could be the leader of the Roman army, giving him dictator-like control. Spartacus knew he couldn't face Crassus, so he attempted to pay off a group of Sicilian pirates to take him and his slave army home. When Spartacus is betrayed by the pirates, who were payed off by Crassus, Spartacus has no choice but to march full force into Crassus' legions. Spartacus' slave army is ultimately defeated, and Spartacus is ordered to be crucified by Crassus after he is forced to fight the last member of his slave army to the death. While Spartacus keeps the larger details mostly intact, it's definitely no slave to the truth. First and foremost, Spartacus and the slaves are painted to be 100% good, while Crassus and the Roman legions are painted to be 100% evil. Spartacus' interactions with Virinia do a lot to further this viewpoint. Spartacus is painted as a simple man and something of a bleeding heart romantic. “Oh Varinia! Don't make me weak!

Varinia, I love you more than my life.” (Spartacus 2h28m) This characterizes Spartacus as a gentle and relatable man. In reality, however, Spartacus and his slave army were not strictly the 'good guys'. “They certainly are good guys, they're fighting for their freedom, but they do a lot of bad things as well. They go on a rampage throughout Italy, they killed a lot of innocent people, they damaged a lot of property, they starved a lot of people out.” (Barry Strauss) This shows an interesting ambiguity that Spartacus represents. Yes he is a slave fighting for his freedom and the freedom of others, but he pillaged entire cities, slaughtered who knows how many innocent people, and just generally caused a large amount of destruction. This should make us question Crassus' evilness as well. While the movie made up a lot of additional reasons for us to hate Crassus, he did have a reputation as quite a ruthless commander.

“When [Crassus] arrived at his destination, he was granted two legions of the consuls, whom he decimated by the lot for their bad conduct in several battles.” (Appian) Even so, somebody with the power of Crassus had to step up and defeat the revolting slave army which was causing so much destruction. If I was a citizen of Rome at the time, I know I would be glad to know Crassus was fighting for us. These examples show that neither Spartacus nor Crassus were as black and white as the movie portrayed them to be. They were complex people. Another aspect of Spartacus' life that was changed to fit the movie better was his history as a slave. In the film, Spartacus is said to have been a slave all of his life, even saying his father and grandfather were slaves too. In reality, however things were different.

According to Merriam Webster's Biographical Dictionary, Spartacus was a “Roman slave and gladiator...served in Roman army; deserted caught, and sold as a slave.” (Merriam Webster's Biographical Dictionary) This shows that the claim that Spartacus was born into slavery was made up to better fit the plot the director was creating. This also offers an explanation as to why Spartacus was so intelligent, charismatic, gifted in combat, and able to command and deploy an army of tens of thousands. Also, the claim that Spartacus' father and grandfather were also slaves is false as well, as nothing is known about any of Spartacus' family. The movie created them and gave them a ficticious background. The character of Varinia is another character who has been fit into the directors vision of a Shakespearean tragedy. Varinia was the name of Spartacus' wife in the 1950 novel by Howard Fast. We do not know anything about Spartacus' supposed wife, not even her name. However, Plutarch wrote that Spartacus was married to a Thracian women.

“When he was first to be sold at Rome, the say a snake coil itself upon his face as he lay asleep, and his wife, who at this latter time also accompanied him in his flight, his country-woman, a kind of prophetess, and one of those possessed with the bacchanal frenzy, declared that it was a sign portending great and formidable power to him with no happy event.” (Plutarch) With this knowledge in mind, a large number of inaccuracies pop up. For one, there is no record of Spartacus having a son. Furthermore, there is no record of Crassus capturing Spartacus' wife, who was also a slave, and attempting to steal her and his son away from Spartacus so he could raise them himself, which happened in the movie. At most, we know Spartacus had a wife. That's it. So the character of Varinia and all of her exploits, such as escaping with Spartacus' child at the end, were all fabricated to make the plot of the film more interesting for the audience. The romantic relationship between Spartacus and Varinia was created so the audience would have a relatable storyline to follow while all the war and politics of the movie went on.

Another character that was shoe-horned into the movie was Gracchus. Not to be confused with any of the real Roman Gracchi, Gracchus is a character with no historical record of existing. In the film, Gracchus plays a noble and member of the Roman senate. With plenty of jokes, a friendly demeanor, and his efforts to help Spartacus and Varinia, he is a foil character to Crassus' coldness. The inclusion of this character is most likely to paint Crassus as evil rather than the entirety of Rome and its nobles. So that means that Gracchus never opposed Crassus in the senate, he never purchased Varinia to annoy Crassus, and he never got all of the necessary papers needed in order to help Varinia and her baby escape, two other characters who were created by the director of the film. Gracchus, like Varinia, were created as tools to make the plot of the movie more appealing, and as characters to build the overall atmosphere the film was trying to achieve. While it's understandable why they were included, neither Gracchus or Varinia were real people.

Another aspect of character that was blown out of proportion was Spartacus' desire to end slavery. Spartacus is presented as a Che Guevera-esque rebel leader. He was a charismatic escaped slave who has been a slave all of his life and has decided to finally fight back upper class. “What do you pray for?” (Spartacus) Varinia asks Spartacus privately. Spartacus replies “I pray for a son who will be born free.” (Spartacus) This, along with Spartacus' final charge onto the republic of Rome, implies that Spartacus had an end goal to free all the slaves in the country. However, those are not the historical facts. While Spartacus was a slave and he was fighting for the freedom of himself and his army, none of the actions of Spartacus or any of the other slave army leaders indicated that they aimed to end slavery in the republic of Rome. Spartacus went along the countryside on a bloody rampage, committing countless atrocities himself, burning property to the ground, starving people out.

In reality, Spartacus had a goal of sending his men to their respective homes, “but he took a proper view of the situation, and since he could not expect to overcome the Roman power, began to lead his army toward the Alps, thinking it necessary for them to cross the mountains and go to their respective homes, some to Thrace, and some to Gaul. But his men were now strong in numbers and full in confidence, and would not listen to him, but went ravaging over Italy.” (Plutarch) This passage shows that Spartacus was trying to get his men to their respective homes, and found it strategically smart to leave while he was ahead and send the men and women in his slave army to their homes. However, his men did not listen to him, and Spartacus was forced to fight on with his army. If they had listened to him, one wonders how different things would have ended for Spartacus and his army as a whole. Another aspect of Spartacus that got mixed up was the entirety of the deal with the Sicilian pirates. In Spartacus, Spartacus planned to take his army to the sea, where he would meet up with Sicilian pirates and pay them to take all of Spartacus' army to their homes.

However, he is deceived by the pirates, and they sail away, leaving him and his army stranded on the beach, in between three armies. Spartacus never lost control of his army and they never mentioned going over the Alps. In history though, Spartacus tried to save his army by convincing them to go across the Alps and back to their homes, but they were too confident and did not listen to him and went charging into Italy. Spartacus, forced to stay with his army now, did in fact make a deal with Sicilian pirates, but not to transport him and his army home. “At the Straits, he chanced upon some Cicilian pirate craft, and determined to seize Sicily. By throwing two thousand men into the island, he thought to kindle anew the servile war there, which had not long been extinguished, and needed only a little additional fuel. But the Cicilians, after coming to terms with him and receiving his gifts, deceived him and sailed away.

So Spartacus marched back again from the sea and established his army in the peninsula of Rhegium.” (Plutarch) This shows that Spartacus was in fact betrayed by the Sicilians, but it wouldn't have saved all of the people in his army anyways. Spartacus planned to incite a slave-war in Sicily with 2,000 men in order to gain reinforcements. At the point Spartacus met the Sicilians, I believe he had conceded that he was going to fight the battle he started against Rome to the end. He tried to get his army to cross the Alps, which was their best chance at survival, but they refused to listen, and now he was very well trapped on his position in the beach, and had no choice but to march forward onto Crassus' forces. So the inclusion of the Sicilian pirates in the film makes sense, but mixes two elements in Spartacus' history. The escape into the Alps was what would have saved all of the army. Sicilian pirates couldn't transport Spartacus' slave army because it was so large.

I believe the director used the Sicilian pirates betraying Spartacus to avoid Spartacus failing to save his army by not successfully convincing his men to go to the Alps, which would harm his character. Finally, the part of the film with perhaps the most inaccuracies is the final battle between Spartacus' slave army and Crassus' Roman legion. In the film, Spartacus has decided to march his army head first into Crassus', making his final stand. He knows he will most likely lose but has no choice as he is surrounded by Crassus and Pompey. Spartacus' slave army was overcome by Crassus' forces, leaving Spartacus and Antoninus as the last two living members. Crassus identifies Spartacus, and as special punishment, forces Antoninus and he to fight each other to the death, with the winner to be crucified. Spartacus attempts to quickly kill Antoninus and take the harsher punishment of crucifixion, but Antoninus fought Spartacus back because he was so loyal to Spartacus that he could not bare the idea of him being put on a cross. In the end, Spartacus is forced to kill Antoninus, and he is crucified.

As Varinia escaped Rome with the help of Gracchus, she shows Spartacus his son and tells him that he is free. History says differently, however. The fact is, Spartacus was never crucified. “Spartacus was wounded in the thigh with a spear and sank upon his knee, holding his shield in front of him and contending in this way against his assailants until he and the great mass of those with him were surrounded and slain. The Roman loss was about 1000. The body of Spartacus was not found.” (Appian) So in reality Spartacus was not personally sought out and crucified by Crassus. The truth is Crassus did not even bother to recover Spartacus' body. This shows how the movie created the obsession Crassus had with Spartacus. In the film Crassus stole Spartacus' wife, and even payed a slaver who knew what Spartacus looked like to identify him on the battle-field before personally ordering his crucifixion. In reality, Crassus was more interested in ending the slave army's wave of terror throughout Italy and claiming the glory of victory for himself than seeking out and killing Spartacus.

Also, there is no historical record of a man called Antoninus in the slave army. So Spartacus was never forced to fight his last man to the death and he was never crucified either. He died on the battle-field, his body never recovered. However, the notion that he would have been crucified does hold some historical weight. “A large number of [Spartacus'] men fled from the battle-field to the mountains and Crassus followed them tither. They divided themselves into four parts, and continued to fight until they all perished except 6000, who were captured and crucified along the whole road from Capua to Rome.” (Appian) While it is true that Crassus crucified a large portion of the slave army, Spartacus was not among them. Were he to be captured, he most likely would have been. I think it makes sense that the director of the film had Spartacus crucified rather than to die on the battle-field. Spartacus dying on the battle-field without his body even being recovered isn't much of a climax for a film.

Furthermore, the image of Spartacus being crucified exemplifies the idea that Spartacus is a martyr for the enslaved, which is something the director had been building on the entire film. While some of the details of the all important final battle are lost along the way, the major events remain mostly unchanged. Spartacus is a film that exchanges strict historical accuracy for more classical themes, such as the love between Spartacus and Varinia, the battle between good and evil fought by Spartacus and Crassus respectively, and elements of tragedy, as Spartacus, our tragic hero, is crucified at the end of the film. There were certain important events glossed over or forgotten about in favor of a more perfect Spartacus, such as the atrocities him and his slave army committed across the Italian countryside when they were building their army, Spartacus' failure to convince his men to cross the Alps and head home, and the fact that Spartacus wasn't born a slave, but was a Roman soldier who was made a slave as punishment. While the more intricate parts of the story were mixed around, the largest and most important events, such as the initial slave revolt and Spartacus being forced into facing Crassus, remain mostly in tact.

Overall, Spartacus is a film that trades obtuse parts of history for better fitting elements of storytelling. It is a starry-eyed re-imagining of the life of a man who has politically inspired many people throughout history. While the protagonist is too perfect to accurately represent the man Spartacus actually was, the spirit of the film makes up for it. RAW Paste Data Historical Inaccuracies in Spartacus Spartacus, the 1960 film directed by Stanley Kubrick, is based on the life of a real man by the same name who lived from 111 BC to 71 BC. Spartacus was a Thracian slave in Italy who escaped and became one of the slave leaders of the Third Servile War. Spartacus commanded a slave army that grew with each city it ransacked, freeing slaves along the way. Spartacus even met a slave woman, Varinia, whom he fell in love with and even had a child with. Spartacus was born a slave and had a massive hatred for the higher class who imprisoned him and his army.

While breaking up a gladiator match his slave army organized, he says “I made a promise to myself that if I ever made it out of here I'd never watch two men fight to the death again.” (Spartacus, 1h10m) He is painted as a strong abolitionist of slavery. The nobles in Rome, namely the rich Crassus, offered to use his legions to take out Spartacus if it meant he could be the leader of the Roman army, giving him dictator-like control. Spartacus knew he couldn't face Crassus, so he attempted to pay off a group of Sicilian pirates to take him and his slave army home. When Spartacus is betrayed by the pirates, who were payed off by Crassus, Spartacus has no choice but to march full force into Crassus' legions. Spartacus' slave army is ultimately defeated, and Spartacus is ordered to be crucified by Crassus after he is forced to fight the last member of his slave army to the death. While Spartacus keeps the larger details mostly intact, it's definitely no slave to the truth.

First and foremost, Spartacus and the slaves are painted to be 100% good, while Crassus and the Roman legions are painted to be 100% evil. Spartacus' interactions with Virinia do a lot to further this viewpoint. Spartacus is painted as a simple man and something of a bleeding heart romantic. “Oh Varinia! Don't make me weak! Varinia, I love you more than my life.” (Spartacus 2h28m) This characterizes Spartacus as a gentle and relatable man. In reality, however, Spartacus and his slave army were not strictly the 'good guys'. “They certainly are good guys, they're fighting for their freedom, but they do a lot of bad things as well. They go on a rampage throughout Italy, they killed a lot of innocent people, they damaged a lot of property, they starved a lot of people out.” (Barry Strauss) This shows an interesting ambiguity that Spartacus represents. Yes he is a slave fighting for his freedom and the freedom of others, but he pillaged entire cities, slaughtered who knows how many innocent people, and just generally caused a large amount of destruction.

This should make us question Crassus' evilness as well. While the movie made up a lot of additional reasons for us to hate Crassus, he did have a reputation as quite a ruthless commander. “When [Crassus] arrived at his destination, he was granted two legions of the consuls, whom he decimated by the lot for their bad conduct in several battles.” (Appian) Even so, somebody with the power of Crassus had to step up and defeat the revolting slave army which was causing so much destruction. If I was a citizen of Rome at the time, I know I would be glad to know Crassus was fighting for us. These examples show that neither Spartacus nor Crassus were as black and white as the movie portrayed them to be. They were complex people. Another aspect of Spartacus' life that was changed to fit the movie better was his history as a slave. In the film, Spartacus is said to have been a slave all of his life, even saying his father and grandfather were slaves too. In reality, however things were different.

According to Merriam Webster's Biographical Dictionary, Spartacus was a “Roman slave and gladiator...served in Roman army; deserted caught, and sold as a slave.” (Merriam Webster's Biographical Dictionary) This shows that the claim that Spartacus was born into slavery was made up to better fit the plot the director was creating. This also offers an explanation as to why Spartacus was so intelligent, charismatic, gifted in combat, and able to command and deploy an army of tens of thousands. Also, the claim that Spartacus' father and grandfather were also slaves is false as well, as nothing is known about any of Spartacus' family. The movie created them and gave them a ficticious background. The character of Varinia is another character who has been fit into the directors vision of a Shakespearean tragedy. Varinia was the name of Spartacus' wife in the 1950 novel by Howard Fast. We do not know anything about Spartacus' supposed wife, not even her name. However, Plutarch wrote that Spartacus was married to a Thracian women.

“When he was first to be sold at Rome, the say a snake coil itself upon his face as he lay asleep, and his wife, who at this latter time also accompanied him in his flight, his country-woman, a kind of prophetess, and one of those possessed with the bacchanal frenzy, declared that it was a sign portending great and formidable power to him with no happy event.” (Plutarch) With this knowledge in mind, a large number of inaccuracies pop up. For one, there is no record of Spartacus having a son. Furthermore, there is no record of Crassus capturing Spartacus' wife, who was also a slave, and attempting to steal her and his son away from Spartacus so he could raise them himself, which happened in the movie. At most, we know Spartacus had a wife. That's it. So the character of Varinia and all of her exploits, such as escaping with Spartacus' child at the end, were all fabricated to make the plot of the film more interesting for the audience. The romantic relationship between Spartacus and Varinia was created so the audience would have a relatable storyline to follow while all the war and politics of the movie went on.

Another character that was shoe-horned into the movie was Gracchus. Not to be confused with any of the real Roman Gracchi, Gracchus is a character with no historical record of existing. In the film, Gracchus plays a noble and member of the Roman senate. With plenty of jokes, a friendly demeanor, and his efforts to help Spartacus and Varinia, he is a foil character to Crassus' coldness. The inclusion of this character is most likely to paint Crassus as evil rather than the entirety of Rome and its nobles. So that means that Gracchus never opposed Crassus in the senate, he never purchased Varinia to annoy Crassus, and he never got all of the necessary papers needed in order to help Varinia and her baby escape, two other characters who were created by the director of the film. Gracchus, like Varinia, were created as tools to make the plot of the movie more appealing, and as characters to build the overall atmosphere the film was trying to achieve. While it's understandable why they were included, neither Gracchus or Varinia were real people.

Another aspect of character that was blown out of proportion was Spartacus' desire to end slavery. Spartacus is presented as a Che Guevera-esque rebel leader. He was a charismatic escaped slave who has been a slave all of his life and has decided to finally fight back upper class. “What do you pray for?” (Spartacus) Varinia asks Spartacus privately. Spartacus replies “I pray for a son who will be born free.” (Spartacus) This, along with Spartacus' final charge onto the republic of Rome, implies that Spartacus had an end goal to free all the slaves in the country. However, those are not the historical facts. While Spartacus was a slave and he was fighting for the freedom of himself and his army, none of the actions of Spartacus or any of the other slave army leaders indicated that they aimed to end slavery in the republic of Rome. Spartacus went along the countryside on a bloody rampage, committing countless atrocities himself, burning property to the ground, starving people out.

In reality, Spartacus had a goal of sending his men to their respective homes, “but he took a proper view of the situation, and since he could not expect to overcome the Roman power, began to lead his army toward the Alps, thinking it necessary for them to cross the mountains and go to their respective homes, some to Thrace, and some to Gaul. But his men were now strong in numbers and full in confidence, and would not listen to him, but went ravaging over Italy.” (Plutarch) This passage shows that Spartacus was trying to get his men to their respective homes, and found it strategically smart to leave while he was ahead and send the men and women in his slave army to their homes. However, his men did not listen to him, and Spartacus was forced to fight on with his army. If they had listened to him, one wonders how different things would have ended for Spartacus and his army as a whole. Another aspect of Spartacus that got mixed up was the entirety of the deal with the Sicilian pirates. In Spartacus, Spartacus planned to take his army to the sea, where he would meet up with Sicilian pirates and pay them to take all of Spartacus' army to their homes.

However, he is deceived by the pirates, and they sail away, leaving him and his army stranded on the beach, in between three armies. Spartacus never lost control of his army and they never mentioned going over the Alps. In history though, Spartacus tried to save his army by convincing them to go across the Alps and back to their homes, but they were too confident and did not listen to him and went charging into Italy. Spartacus, forced to stay with his army now, did in fact make a deal with Sicilian pirates, but not to transport him and his army home. “At the Straits, he chanced upon some Cicilian pirate craft, and determined to seize Sicily. By throwing two thousand men into the island, he thought to kindle anew the servile war there, which had not long been extinguished, and needed only a little additional fuel. But the Cicilians, after coming to terms with him and receiving his gifts, deceived him and sailed away.

So Spartacus marched back again from the sea and established his army in the peninsula of Rhegium.” (Plutarch) This shows that Spartacus was in fact betrayed by the Sicilians, but it wouldn't have saved all of the people in his army anyways. Spartacus planned to incite a slave-war in Sicily with 2,000 men in order to gain reinforcements. At the point Spartacus met the Sicilians, I believe he had conceded that he was going to fight the battle he started against Rome to the end. He tried to get his army to cross the Alps, which was their best chance at survival, but they refused to listen, and now he was very well trapped on his position in the beach, and had no choice but to march forward onto Crassus' forces. So the inclusion of the Sicilian pirates in the film makes sense, but mixes two elements in Spartacus' history. The escape into the Alps was what would have saved all of the army. Sicilian pirates couldn't transport Spartacus' slave army because it was so large.

I believe the director used the Sicilian pirates betraying Spartacus to avoid Spartacus failing to save his army by not successfully convincing his men to go to the Alps, which would harm his character. Finally, the part of the film with perhaps the most inaccuracies is the final battle between Spartacus' slave army and Crassus' Roman legion. In the film, Spartacus has decided to march his army head first into Crassus', making his final stand. He knows he will most likely lose but has no choice as he is surrounded by Crassus and Pompey. Spartacus' slave army was overcome by Crassus' forces, leaving Spartacus and Antoninus as the last two living members. Crassus identifies Spartacus, and as special punishment, forces Antoninus and he to fight each other to the death, with the winner to be crucified. Spartacus attempts to quickly kill Antoninus and take the harsher punishment of crucifixion, but Antoninus fought Spartacus back because he was so loyal to Spartacus that he could not bare the idea of him being put on a cross. In the end, Spartacus is forced to kill Antoninus, and he is crucified.

As Varinia escaped Rome with the help of Gracchus, she shows Spartacus his son and tells him that he is free. History says differently, however. The fact is, Spartacus was never crucified. “Spartacus was wounded in the thigh with a spear and sank upon his knee, holding his shield in front of him and contending in this way against his assailants until he and the great mass of those with him were surrounded and slain. The Roman loss was about 1000. The body of Spartacus was not found.” (Appian) So in reality Spartacus was not personally sought out and crucified by Crassus. The truth is Crassus did not even bother to recover Spartacus' body. This shows how the movie created the obsession Crassus had with Spartacus. In the film Crassus stole Spartacus' wife, and even payed a slaver who knew what Spartacus looked like to identify him on the battle-field before personally ordering his crucifixion. In reality, Crassus was more interested in ending the slave army's wave of terror throughout Italy and claiming the glory of victory for himself than seeking out and killing Spartacus.

Also, there is no historical record of a man called Antoninus in the slave army. So Spartacus was never forced to fight his last man to the death and he was never crucified either. He died on the battle-field, his body never recovered. However, the notion that he would have been crucified does hold some historical weight. “A large number of [Spartacus'] men fled from the battle-field to the mountains and Crassus followed them tither. They divided themselves into four parts, and continued to fight until they all perished except 6000, who were captured and crucified along the whole road from Capua to Rome.” (Appian) While it is true that Crassus crucified a large portion of the slave army, Spartacus was not among them. Were he to be captured, he most likely would have been. I think it makes sense that the director of the film had Spartacus crucified rather than to die on the battle-field. Spartacus dying on the battle-field without his body even being recovered isn't much of a climax for a film.

Furthermore, the image of Spartacus being crucified exemplifies the idea that Spartacus is a martyr for the enslaved, which is something the director had been building on the entire film. While some of the details of the all important final battle are lost along the way, the major events remain mostly unchanged. Spartacus is a film that exchanges strict historical accuracy for more classical themes, such as the love between Spartacus and Varinia, the battle between good and evil fought by Spartacus and Crassus respectively, and elements of tragedy, as Spartacus, our tragic hero, is crucified at the end of the film. There were certain important events glossed over or forgotten about in favor of a more perfect Spartacus, such as the atrocities him and his slave army committed across the Italian countryside when they were building their army, Spartacus' failure to convince his men to cross the Alps and head home, and the fact that Spartacus wasn't born a slave, but was a Roman soldier who was made a slave as punishment. While the more intricate parts of the story were mixed around, the largest and most important events, such as the initial slave revolt and Spartacus being forced into facing Crassus, remain mostly in tact.

Overall, Spartacus is a film that trades obtuse parts of history for better fitting elements of storytelling. It is a starry-eyed re-imagining of the life of a man who has politically inspired many people throughout history. While the protagonist is too perfect to accurately represent the man Spartacus actually was, the spirit of the film makes up for it. I AM SPARTACUS! | Know Your Meme I AM SPARTACUS! Updated Nov 18, 2011 at 03:49PM EST by James . Added Oct 24, 2009 at 12:14AM EDT by Rob A . Like us on Facebook! PROTIP: Press 'i' to view the image gallery, 'v' to view the video gallery, or 'r' to view a random entry. This submission is currently being researched & evaluated! You can help confirm this entry by contributing facts, media, and other evidence of notability and mutation. Status Urban Dictionary Wikipedia About The quote “I am Spartacus” is dervied from the 1960 movie “Spartacus” directed by Stanley Kubrick and starring Kirk Douglas as the titular role.

Near the end of the film, a Roman general announces to a group of former slaves that unsuccesfully fought againsts their rulers that unless Spartacus is turned over to them, all of the slaves will be crucified. Spartacus is then willing to turn himself in to protect his friends by standing up and proclaiming “I am Spartacus!”, but then the rest of the slaves show their loyalty to him by also proclaming that himself is Spartacus in great numbers. Since the general still doesn’t know who the real Spartacus is, all of the slaves are led to crucifixion. Original Scene Impact Google Insights According to Google Insights, the quote has been popular on the internet ever since 2004, but it showed a major peak in November of 2010 when it was used worldwide by Twitter users in the protest of a conviction of Paul Chambers. Chambers, a citizen of the U.K. though he missed his flight and so he tweeted that the airport was closed and said that if he doesn’t make his flight he’ll blow the airport up. Thousands of Twitter users then backed him up after hid conviction by tweeting the famous quote.

Spartacus battle scene - YouTube Spartacus battle scene Want to watch this again later? Sign in to add this video to a playlist. Need to report the video? Sign in to report inappropriate content. Rating is available when the video has been rented. This feature is not available right now. Please try again later. Uploaded on Jul 19, 2010 SEE MY HISTORY GROUP ON FACEBOOK : Spartacus is a 1960 American epic historical drama film directed by Stanley Kubrick and based on the novel of the same name by Howard Fast. The life story of the historical figure Spartacus and the events of the Third Servile War were adapted by Dalton Trumbo as a screenplay. The film stars Kirk Douglas as rebellious slave Spartacus and Laurence Olivier as his foe, the Roman general and politician Marcus Licinius Crassus. Co-starring are Peter Ustinov (who won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as slave trader Lentulus Batiatus), John Gavin (as Julius Caesar), Jean Simmons, Charles Laughton, John Ireland, Herbert Lom, Woody Strode, Tony Curtis, John Dall and Charles McGraw. The film won four Oscars in all.

Historically it did not happen this way but it does give an impression of how battles may have been fought in Roman times. Nonetheless the director gives a very exciting introduction to the battle with the hint of despair and impending defeat for the slave army. The wonderful music track together with the scenic background adds to the effect. The development of Spartacus was partly instigated by Kirk Douglas's failure to win the title role in William Wyler's Ben-Hur. Douglas had worked with Wyler before on Detective Story, and was disappointed when Wyler chose Charlton Heston instead. Shortly after, Edward (Eddie) Lewis, a vice-president in Douglas's production company, Bryna (named after Douglas's mother), had Douglas read Howard Fast's novel, Spartacus, which had a related theme - an individual who challenges the might of the Roman Empire - and Douglas was impressed enough to purchase an option on the book from Fast with his own financing. Universal Studios eventually agreed to finance the film after Douglas persuaded Olivier, Laughton and Ustinov to act in it. Lewis eventually became a co-producer of the film. Spartacus was filmed using the 35 mm Technirama format and then blown up to 70 mm film.

This was a change for Kubrick, who preferred using square-format ratios. Kubrick found working outdoors or in real locations to be distracting and thus preferred to film in the studio. He believed the actors would benefit more from working on a sound stage, where they could fully concentrate. To create the illusion of the large crowds that play such an essential role in the film, Kubrick's crew used three-channel sound equipment to record 76,000 spectators at a Michigan State -- Notre Dame college football game shouting "Hail, Crassus!" and "I'm Spartacus!" The intimate scenes were filmed in Hollywood, but Kubrick insisted that all battle scenes be filmed on a vast plain outside Madrid. Eight thousand trained soldiers from the Spanish infantry were used to double as the Roman army. Kubrick directed the armies from the top of specially constructed towers. However, he eventually had to cut all but one of the gory battle scenes, due to negative audience reactions at preview screenings. The original score for Spartacus was composed and conducted by six-time Academy Award nominee Alex North. It is his best work in my opinion and a textbook example of how modernist compositional styles can be adapted to the Hollywood leitmotif technique.

North's score is epic, as befits the scale of the film. After extensive research of music of that period, North gathered a collection of antique instruments that, while not authentically Roman, provided a strong dramatic effect. These instruments included a sarrusophone, Israeli recorder, Chinese oboe, lute, mandolin, Yugoslav flute, kythara, dulcimer, and bagpipes. North's prize instrument was the ondioline, similar to an earlier version of the electronic synthesizer, which had never been used in film before. Much of the music is written without a tonal center, or flirts with tonality in ways that most film composers would not risk. One theme is used to represent both slavery and freedom, but is given different values in different scenes, so that it sounds like different themes. The love theme for Spartacus and Varinia is the most accessible theme in the film, and there is a harsh trumpet figure for Crassus. A soundtrack was released in 2010 apparently, I have not seen it anyway and would be interested in getting ahold of a copy.

Category Saul Bass title sequence - Spartacus (1960) - YouTube Saul Bass title sequence - Spartacus (1960) Want to watch this again later? Sign in to add this video to a playlist. Need to report the video? Sign in to report inappropriate content. Rating is available when the video has been rented. This feature is not available right now. Please try again later. Uploaded on Feb 22, 2011 Title sequence designed by Saul Bass, from the film "Spartacus" (1960), directed by Stanley Kubrick, starring Kirk Douglas, Jean Simmons, Charles Laughton Available here:

Question: Who directed the 1960 film ‘Spartacus’?
Answer: Stanley Kubrick