How do Hollywood ancient world epics use spectacle and for what purposes? What is the relationship between spectacle and narrative in such films?

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How do Hollywood ancient world epics use spectacle and for what purposes?  What is the relationship between spectacle and narrative in such films?  

The portrayal of the ancient world through film has been dominant from film-making’s earliest beginnings.  From silent cinema’s simple yet memorable interpretation of Ben Hur in the 1920’s, to the modern-day epics of the millennium, antiquity provides film-makers with the perfect pedestal on which to portray the excitement and action the modern audience expects.  The relevance of the ancient world in modern-day entertainment is summed up perfectly by Monica Cyrino, as she states, “Today more than ever, popular images and stories projected onto movie, television and computer screens invite us to experience, understand and connect with the ancient world.  Films about antiquity bridge the gap between past and present by offering spectacular and compelling interpretations of history, literature, and mythology that are relevant and educational for contemporary viewers.” (Oxford, 2005: 1)

         To understand the significance of spectacle in such films, we must first understand how ‘spectacle’ might be defined in relation to the ancient world and its portrayal in Hollywood.  The word itself comes from the Latin spectaculum, meaning ‘a show’.   For an ancient Roman, a visual spectacle might consist of watching gladiatorial combat, a religious sacrifice, or a triumph.  Indeed, anything that is visually impressive and evoking of emotion might be deemed a spectacle.  The significance of this is summed up by Ralph Jackson as he discusses the power of spectacle in Roman theatre: “These spectacular shows were embedded in Roman society, and the imagery of the amphitheatre, circus and theatre permeated all classes, from top to bottom... to illustrate the brilliance, danger, skills and brutality of those events and the political power that went with them.” (2000: 7)  The modern film audience too, then, must surely be presented with the same level of spectacle for it to have any real success or feel of authenticity.  We have certainly come to assume that any film centred on the ancient world will be both visually impressive and exciting; the ‘spectacle’ being at the forefront.  

Nevertheless, a film cannot survive on spectacle alone.  A visually impressive piece of cinematography is, by all means, worthless without an equally engaging and efficient narrative behind it.  If we take Philip French’s review of Hollywood’s fairly recent big-budget epic Troy (2004), it is easy to see that for all the time and effort gone into creating spectacular visual effects and exciting battle scenes, the fundamental flaw in the handling of the narrative leaves this film somewhat lacking.  Getting its inspiration from Homer’s Iliad, Troy contains elements we would certainly expect to see in any epic film – warfare, rivalry and heroes – yet, as French notes: “... there's the lack of any sense of time. The siege seems more like 10 weeks than 10 years, and the wooden horse incident is rushed and muffled...” (The Observer, Oct. 2004), though he goes on to state that, ‘the spectacle and action sequences, with more digitally created soldiers than you could shake a spear at, are impressive.’  It is clear then, that to focus solely on creating a visual spectacle at the expense of the narrative does not make for good results, and may explain why Troy was not a box-office success, despite its huge budget and array of stars.  American film reviewer Roger Ebert likewise criticises the film, as well as its over-reliance on visual effects: “The movie sidesteps the existence of the Greek gods, turns its heroes into action movie clichés and demonstrates that we're getting tired of computer-generated armies.” (May, 2004)  

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        Stephen Neale identifies that a Hollywood ‘epic’ was essentially a 1950s and 60s term, used to define a film which fused together a (usually ancient) historical narrative with a modern, technologically advanced production.  In this sense, the ‘epic’ also differentiated itself from the other films and genres on offer at this time, by presenting human drama in its most extensive form. (2000: 85)  However, whilst it is certainly true that ancient world epics became dominant in Hollywood during the 50s and 60s, it is fair to say that the reason for this is a complex one: these films did not ...

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