Gladiator (2000) Ridley Scott   Ridley Scott, cinema's premiere visual stylist, has delivered remarkable imagery in all his films, and his latest effort, Gladiator, proves no exception. Scott, who reinvented science fiction cinema with Blade Runner, now breaths new life into the Roman epica genre which has been dormant for 36 years (the last film of this kind was The Fall of the Roman Empire in 1964 of which Gladiator, ironically, is a remake). Near death, the emperor Marcus Aurelius (Richard Harris) disinherits his son, Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix), whom he has judged unfit to govern the empire. When Commodus murders his father, the emperor's most loyal general, Maximus (Russell Crowe) suspects foul play. But before Maximus can act, he is seized and ordered to be executed by Commodus. Barely escaping, Maximus undergoes a tragic personal odyssey which ultimately returns him to Rome as a gladiator slaveand in a position to avenge himself. Taking advantage of CGI technology, the film depicts golden Rome as never beforea majestic, shining metropolis, rendered convincingly in three dimensions. The storyline and characters are equally captivating. In the lead, Russell Crowe offers up a brooding, compelling performance as the tragic hero Maximus. The other performances are convincingly introspective, from the infantile Commodus and the patrician poise of his sister, Lucilla (Connie Nielsen), to the gladiators themselves, particularly Djimon Hounsou as Juba. And Oliver Reed caps off his career with an impressive performance as gladiator-trainer Proximo (Reed died of a heart attack shortly before filming wrapped). While ostensibly set in the second century, Gladiator draws on a number of periods in Roman history. Commodus' character, for instance, is (at least partly) inspired by an earlier Roman despot, Gaius Caligula (particularly his incestuous tendencies and attempts to fan public approval by financing lavish games). Scott also pulls no punches in showing the visceral brutality of the times. The scenes of the Roman circus are rife with carnage and spectacular swordplay, and are at once both horrifying and exhilarating. And if not entirely true to historic fact (the protagonist, Maximus, is an invented character), Gladiatorrings true in its depiction of Rome. It is a powerful, energetic film, literate and suffused with Ridley Scott's trademark style, which invests every moment with a heightened sense of reality. —Paul Andrew MacLean

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