DIRECTOR
Ridley Scott

CAST
Russell Crowe, Joaquin Phoenix, Connie Nielsen, Oliver Reed, Richard Harris, Djimon Hounsou

MPAA RATING
R

RUNNING TIME
155 Minutes

STUDIO
DreamWorks

Russell Crowe, the recent Oscar-nominated actor, is Maximus, Rome's top General who has won many battles and carries Caeser's highest honor. The aging Caeser's son, Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix), thinks he's going to be picked to rule Rome as his father did.

However, the elder one knows of Commodus' corruption and wants to reward Maximus with the honor. Certain events take place, and Commodus, who has that spoild brattyness about him, becomes the new leader of Rome.

Letting his jealousy take over, he orders for Maximus and his mother and daughter to be killed. Maximus escapes, only to find his family dead. He is then recaptured and enslaved, where he'll become a gladiator.

The movie's plot is pretty thin and routine, but the performances are so strong that you probably won't care.

The opening battle scene is a bit hard to see, especially since there is a use of a hand held camera at times. It's still exciting however.

The action scenes become easier to see as the camera is more steady and you actually get to see who is killing whom. The movie is not without its flaws. Rome looks fake at times and the some of the sets aren't quite up to par. Still, there's plenty of great scenery and some excellent photography.

This film gets better with each viewing. If you can forgive the sometimes phony sets and frantic camerawork, you should really enjoy this film.