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The general who
became a slave. The slave who became a gladiator. The
gladiator who defied an empire. Masterfully directed by
Ridley Scott, "Gladiator" features a riveting
performance from Academy Award winner Russell Crowe in a
sweeping story of courage and revenge. Maximus
finds himself fighting for his life in the vicious
gladiator arenas, where he uses his fame to spark unrest
among the oppressed Roman citizens, firing up Commodus's
anger and setting the stage for the ultimate battle. Ridley Scott
(BLADE RUNNER, ALIEN) transports Hollywood to
second-century Rome in this rousing historical epic that
proudly harkens back to such films as BEN-HUR and
SPARTACUS. Russell Crowe plays Maximus, a Roman general
who leads the troops in conquering Germania for the
empire. When an aging Marcus Aurelius (Richard Harris)
tells Maximus that he'd like him to rule Rome once he's
gone, a classic confrontation ensues between the brave
and charming soldier--who wants to return home to his
wife, son, and farm--and the jealous and conniving
Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix), the emperor's only son, who
is thirsty for power. Bought as a slave by the
profiteering Proximo (Oliver Reed, in his last role),
Maximus must kill or be killed in the ring, battling to
save not only himself but the future of the very empire
that he loves and honors. The film features a terrific
battle sequence (that recalls the beginning of SAVING
PRIVATE RYAN), huge crowd scenes of thousands of people,
and even a little romance, albeit mostly taboo. The
impeccably choreographed gladiator scenes are violent
yet thrilling, flashing by like lightning. GLADIATOR is
a glorious spectacle filled with heart and soul. Richard Harris
accepted the part of Marcus Aurelius after Ridley Scott
agreed to shoot his scenes on seven consecutive days.
Russell Crowe had a hand in fixing the original script.
Although the script is fiction, some of the characters
are based on historical fact. Commodus was indeed the
son of Marcus Aurelius; he took over after his father's
death and fought many times in the Colosseum, although
the battles were usually setups.
Oliver Reed died shortly before the end of filming; his
final scene had to be shot with a body double, with the
help of some FORREST GUMP-style computer animation.
Derek Jacobi played the emperor Claudius in the 1976
miniseries I, Claudius, which ends approximately 130
years prior to the beginning of GLADIATOR.
The majority of the crowd in the Colosseum was
computer-generated.
The look of the film was based on Jean-Leon Gerome's
painting "Thumbs Down," featuring a gladiator
scanning the crowd to see if he should kill his fallen
opponent.
Paul Clinton of cnn.com, Philip French of the Guardian
Unlimited (UK), Jami Bernard of the New York Daily News,
Peter Travers of Rolling Stone, Lisa Schwarzbaum of
Entertainment Weekly, and the National Board of Review
named GLADIATOR one of the 10 best films of 2000.
GLADIATOR won the 2001 Golden Globe for Best Motion
Picture--Drama.
Russell Crowe was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best
Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture--Drama.
Joaquin Phoenix was nominated for a Golden Globe for
Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a
Motion Picture--Drama.
Ridley Scott was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best
Director--Motion Picture.
Hans Zimmer and Lisa Gerrard won the Golden Globe for
Best Original Score--Motion Picture.
Russell Crowe was named Best Actor by the San Diego Film
Critics Society and the Broadcast Film Critics
Association.
The San Diego Film Critics Society's Best Body of Work
award for 2000 went to Joaquin Phoenix (GLADIATOR,
QUILLS, THE YARDS), and the award for Best
Cinematography went to John Matheison.
Joaquin Phoenix was named Best Supporting Actor by the
Broadcast Film Critics Association for his work in
GLADIATOR, QUILLS, and THE YARDS.
Pietro Scalia won Best Film Editing, Janty Yates won
Best Costume Design, and Hans Zimmer won Best Score from
the Las Vegas Film Critics Society, which also awarded
GLADIATOR Best DVD and Best Visual Effects.
The Broadcast Film Critics Association awarded GLADIATOR
Best Cinematography (John Matheison), Best Production
Design (Arthur Marx). It also named Hans Zimmer Best
Composer for his work in GLADIATOR, M:I-2, and THE ROAD
TO EL DORADO.
The National Board of Review awarded GLADIATOR Best
Production Design and Art Direction!! |
- Attractive Retail Box
- Genre: Action/Adventure,
Drama, Good Vs. Evil, Violence, Battles
- Rating: 14A (Canadian Home
Video Rating)
- Rating Reason: For Intense, Graphic Combat.
- Starring:
Tomas Arana, Spencer Treat Clark, Russell Crowe,
Richard Harris, Djimon Hounsou, Derek Jacobi, Ralph
Moeller, Connie Nielsen, Joaquin Phoenix, Oliver
Reed
- Directed By:
Ridley Scott
- Single Side - Dual Layer
- Number of Discs: 1-Disc
- Academy Award - Best Picture 2000
- Release Information:
- Studio: Umvd/Dreamworks
- Distributor: Universal
Home Video
- Theatrical Release Date: May 5,
2000
- DVD Release Date: November 21, 2000
- Run Time: 155 minutes
- Production Company: Universal
Studios
- Package Type: Keep Case
- DVD Features:
- Encoding: Region 1 (U.S.
and Canada only). This DVD will probably NOT
be viewable in other countries.
- Aspect Ratio(s):
- Widescreen anamorphic - 2.35:1
- Available Audio Tracks:
- English (Dolby Digital 5.1
Surround)
- English (Dolby Digital 2.0
Surround)
- Language: English
- Subtitles: English
- Closed Captioned: Yes
- Bonus Features:
- Insightful Film Commentary from
Award-Winning Director Ridley Scott
- Deleted Scenes, Complete with Director's
Commentary
- Treasure Chest: A Unique
Montage of Additional Footage Cut to the Powerful
Score
- One-of-a-Kind Production Diary
written by Young Actor Spencer Treat Clark (Lucius)
- Special Slide Show Featuring
Concept Art
and Storyboards
- Photo Gallery From
Behind-the-Scenes of Gladiator Set
- In-Depth Production Notes and
Detailed Cast and Filmmakers Biographies
- Interactive Features:
- Scene Access
- Interactive Menus
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