Epics, Spectaculars and Blockbusters.

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Epics, Spectaculars and Blockbusters.

Essay.

"Gladiator combines epic battles, the blood lust of the gladiatorial arena, intrigue

and betrayal, with a strong dramatic core." (Millar, in Film Review, June 2000, pg.64)

The 'Roman', or 'sword and sandals' (ibid.), 'epic' Gladiator (Ridley Scott, 2000) represents a return to the genre that dominated cinema screens during the 1950s and 1960s. The immense budget required, along with increasing disinterest at the box-office meant that this genre had been almost entirely absent from our screens during the past four decades. But with $103 million and a new contender for 'the next action hero' in Russell Crowe, (Palmer, 2000) Ridley Scott decided to take us 'back to the Colosseum'. This essay will discuss Gladiator in relation to the theme of gender and the epic, in particular the ways in which Gladiator highlights characteristics of the 'male epic'. The ways in which the film's mise en scene illustrates spectacle will also be discussed in detail as Hunt believes that 'few genres have been associated quite so closely with sheer spectacle'. (1993, pg.67) The social, cultural and historical contexts within which the film was made will also be discussed. Gladiator will