Member review

Gladiator {directed by Ridley Scott} is a historical masterpiece that touches upon the gruesome truths of gladiators in the year 180 in Rome. I thoroughly enjoyed this film as it is based on true historical events and has a gripping narrative whilst also being entertaining.

The film is steady paced with a gripping narrative that allows the audience to follow / connect with the main character {maximus]. This is incredibly important as as the film progresses the director wants the audience to develop a pure emotion of care for maximus and what happens to him later on.

Gladiator also uses stunning cinematography such as transitions between certain scenes {e.g. match cuts, fades, dissolves} which makes the shots less jarring and easier for the audience to keep up with the narrative. Furthermore, gladiator also uses a lot of over the shoulder shots and shot-reverse-shot in important conversations {the different emperors and maximus, Lucius and the emperor etc.} . This is incredibly important as the audience can see both sides of the conversation and what expression the actor may be pulling in a certain shot, {this however may affect how the audience views the scene}.

However, I do not think the film should have been 3 hours long as some audience members may not have watched the whole movie. I do personally think some scenes could have been removed as they did not add any importance to the main narrative and may have just been added to fill the narrative. For example, some conversations between the other gladiators were not necessary.

To conclude, i recommend this film if you enjoy historical films based on true events. Gladiator is educational yet entertaining and is a must-watch for film students.