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Gladiator - Film review

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Introduction

Gladiator Gladiator was set near the end of the twentieth century when the Roman Empire was at its peak. Maximus played a character who was the general of a large Roman army. 'Gladiator' starts with an introduction to the film where the audience see him brushing his hand slowly and calmly across and field of wheat. This does give the audience a sense of what he assumes is peaceful and tranquil. The screen does tell us a bit about Maximus and his personality which is that he has a soft side. The colours that are used are coinciding with the mood of Maximus. The director uses warm colours such as a rich yellow in the wheat which gives the feeling of ease and relaxation. This colour has other purposes as it shows the warmth and happiness. This scene has everything that would be desired by Maximus as he is the one thinking of it while in the situation he is in now. Music is a feature that is also used to add to the atmosphere of this scene and it is synchronistic to the theme of the scene. It is calm and smooth without any sudden changes in tone. The notes played are blended in together to make sure that it best suited for this type of setting. Abruptly this changes to an area where it looks cold. ...read more.

Middle

When the battle starts we see Maximus fighting with great skill. The motion slows down to the temp of the music. Almost every movement has a purpose. But we do see that he is sill in control of what he is doing and he is not reckless when he turns around to someone who is behind him but then realises that it is one of his own soldiers. The music is being used to a point where it almost is in rhythm to the speed of the battle. I think that the speed of the battle was adjusted to fit perfectly with the music. Near the end of the battle there is a clear change tempo as it slows down and portrays Maximus as the victorious one but at a price of those who have given their life for their loyalty. We see many dead bodies soaked with blood on the floor of both the Barbarians and the Romans. The camera shots are really used to the directors advantage as he knew this would be an effective way of showing the audience what Maximus is thinking about instead of talking about it. For example when he starts to think about his home there are different camera shots used compared to when he is in the battle field. When the camera does return to reality (as I said before) ...read more.

Conclusion

Maximus refuses to take his helmet off as this is the only thing that conceals his identity but then if ordered to take his helmet as this is taken as discourteous. He was then forced to take of his helmet and this action is then followed by verbalizing, 'my name is Maximus Aridius Desemus the sworn leader of the armies of the north and the loyal servant of the true emperor of Rome.' 'I'm the husband of a dying wife and the father of a murdered son. I vow to take my revenge on the behalf of Marcus Arilius and my family on you.' Sure enough Commodus takes this to surprise and is forced to keep him alive as the people of Rome favour him and if he did kill him then this would make him terribly unpopular among Rome. Maximus succeeds in taking his revenge upon Commenus but with a complication. Die with honour or live with pride. Throughout this film I had regarded my saying as to be quiet appropriate to Maximuses situation. Before Maximus is expected to fight Commenus he is confronted by Commenus and then stabbed with a dagger laced with poison to hinder his performance and try and make defeat inevitable. Though Maximus is injured physically he continues to fight with his heart. When fighting Commenus Maximus found it very difficult because of his recent injury but despite this wins the match with the cost of his life. ...read more.

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