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Gladiator movie review

Before Maximus (Crowe), the heroic Roman General, will honor the needs of his dying emperor Marcus Aurelius (Harris) by assumptive the emperor’s role, the emperor's cruel and corrupt son Commodus (Phoenix) orders the execution of Maximus and his family. Escaping death, Maximus assumes the lifetime of associate anonymous gladiator, fighting his means back to the Roman Coliseum wherever he seeks revenge and a comeback to justice for Rome. Due to the thirst for revenge, Gladiator fits to have an intricate issue. The emperor’s son who is in greed for power goes opposite to the wishes of his father and betrays Maximum a warrior who was the general in during his father’s reign to become the next rule.

Gladiator is directed Ridley Scott and is a 2000 British-American historic drama, starring Russell Crowe, Ralf Moller, Joaquin Phoenix, Connie Nielsen, Richard Harris, Derek Jacobi, Oliver Reed, John shrapnel and Siimon Housnou. The emperor’s son, who is very greed for power, kills his father, reduces Maximum to slavery, and kills his family. The only way that Maximus can seek his revenge is by fighting in the gladiatorial arena and rise ranks until he becomes the winner to win his freedom. Gladiator has received five Academy Awards alongside for Best Picture as well Crowe receiving the best actor award in the 73rd Academy awards .

Gladiator is based on the reality that took place in the Roman Empire in the second century. The producer’s aim was to portray the Roman culture in the most accurate way. However, some of the real cultures could not have been incorporated into the movie for the audience thinking that they were anachronistic and for some safety measures. The film has plentiful of violence and therefore not suitable for children to watch.

The film has an indistinct, fuzzy and muddy appearance portraying it as an ancient movie. Lack of details and darkness, and the character’s bitterness bring in shabby special effects. It has a rocky storyline with the betrayal of the highest degree. The movie has plentiful of depression and the bitterness and the morose of the characters bring in the critical ethical issue.

After Maximus finds out that the emperor’s son killed his father, he realizes that the next target will be him. On returning, he finds that his wife and son have been murdered and crucified. In despair, he buries them, and He escapes to North Africa where a passing caravan who sells him as a slave to Proximo, a gladiator manager captures him.

Proximo forces Maximus to fight some local battles in spite of being reluctant to fight in which die to his military skills and trauma of his loss; he wins all the battles. He is good at making friendship and be befriends two of the Gladiators back in Africa.

Back home in Rome, the ruthless emperor’s son, Commodus lifts the ban on gladiators as he tries to fool the romans from the plagues and hunger that is prolonged in the country. Commodus wants to be a dictator a move that is highly opposed by his Senate. He portrays the Roman emperors that were petulant, self-indulgent and spoiled who were well known in the era of great Roman epics that ended with Spartacus. He is full of vices to an extent that he wants to be the lover of his older sister and practice incest, which is against the ethics.

Instead of Commodus dealing with the plague by building sewers from the city’s Greek district, he focusses on the gladiator games for 150 days in honor of his father’s death. Proximo was once a gladiator, and he earned his freedom by winning all the matches that were before him in the Colosseum as he explains to Maximus. This gives Maximus a reason to fight well in the Collosseum to have an opportunity to meet Commodus and kill him.

Proximo gets the news about the 150 days of gladiator games in Rome, and he takes his team to compete. On arrival, his team is scheduled in a match known as Battle of Zama. In this battle, Proximo’s team that comprises of Maximus and his teammates, they are armed with spears and shields only on barefoot against a fully equipped army that has chariots and archers. Maximum leads the team to victory.

On winning the match, Commodus decides to congratulate Maximus personally, and he comes down to the arena. Maximus wants to kill Commodus at that moment but due to the presence of the emperor’s nephew, he retaliates. He removes his helmet to reveal himself to Commodus that he is still alive and promises to avenge the death of his family. In shock, Commodus wants to execute Commodus at this moment but the crowd chants “live!” in which he lets him live to fight another day.

Commodus tries to come up with another plot on how to kill Maximus. A former gladiator who earned his freedom by winning all the matches in the Colosseum is paid to come back in the arena and kill Maximus in the match. For the strength that Maximus has shown in his matches, a Colesseum staff loyal to Commodus attacks him by the leash using tigers. On the contrary, Maximus wins the fight and breaks the Colesseum rule by not killing Tigris the former champion. Due to the disobedience Maximus displays, Commodus explains to him in details how his family was killed.

Some people in the authority have hope in Maximus, and they believe that he is the only one who can save it from dictatorship. He is approached by Cicero his former orderly as he is escorted back to the quarters and reminds him that reminds him that his loyalty of the Legion is encamped near Rome. Commodus’ sister to meet Maximus and plan for his escape where he can meet his soldiers and come to overthrow the rule of Commodus accompanies one of the senators who are always against Commodus.

Unfortunately, Commodus suspects the threat and uses his nephew as advantage to get answers from his sister. Maximus is trapped before he escapes. The gates are closed, but the Praetorians manage to break through fighting the gladiators who attack them. Maximus friend, Hagen is killed during the attack and Proximo is executed. Maximus escapes, goes to the place he is supposed to meet his army but he finds the Praetorians who kill Cicero and capture Maximus.

Commodus rage to kill Maximus makes him arrange for a public match to be in a position to restore his rule. On the match day, Commodus knows how Maximus is and he stabs him on the side while still chained to disadvantage him. He discloses that he is the one who killed his father a ruler who was highly respected for his integrity and bravery. During the fight, Maximus disarms Commodus, in which he asks for a sword but the Quintus the general orders the Praetorians not to in which Maximus can kill Commodus by turning his sword in his throat.

Maximus dies of the stab, and he asks for reforms to be made in Rome before he dies. He is given an honorable burial as those who were loyal to him carry his body. Commodus body is left in the dirt like a worthless human. The complex ethical issue in the movie is a quest for power in the wrong way.