 |
|
|
"Gladiator" And you thought 'Ben-Hur' was epic.
|
By Ted Pfeifer
|
The phrase
"Vision of Greatness" is used in the film "GLADIATOR". And that is what
Director Ridley Scott has achieved.
This film is an amazing piece of work. It is being compared to "Braveheart"
and "Conan the Barbarian". As you read reviews and hear people talk, you
will hear the words EPIC, GRAND, and AWESOME. This movie deserves them
all. Russell Crowe leads a great cast which includes Richard Harris, Joaquin
Phoenix, Oliver Reed and Connie Nielsen. But this is truly Crowe's picture.
He has transformed form a tough L.A. cop in "L.A. Confidential" to a whistle
blower in "The Insider" to now a Roman Hero.
Crowe is one of those actors that can pull off the action stuff along
with being able to deliver lines of dialogue and not sound silly. Crowe
plays Maximus, a General in the Roman military who is supposed to take
over Rome after the current Emperor passes on. This does not sit well
with the Emperors son played by Phoenix. Maximus is banished and plots
his revenge. The scenes of fighting in the Colosseum are spectacularly
filmed and quite violent. There is large amount of blood shed and many
swords being thrust into bodies.
Director Scott uses different techniques which include speeding up and
slowing down the speed of the film which at times can be dizzying. I do
not know if "Gladiator" will meet the award winning standards that "Braveheart"
set but I do know that it will make a ton of money. And in Hollywood that
is what matters most. If you want to see a vision of greatness go see
"Gladiator".