With “Gladiator,” director Ridley Scott (“Prometheus”) has achieved something groundbreaking: he has saved the long-buried sandal film from obscurity, eventually considered a box-office poison. “Gladiator” was not only a true success at the box office, but also garnered a number of Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Actor and Best Visual Effects. Rightly so, because “Gladiator” is a groundbreaking viewing experience, as you can also see from the official FILMSTARTS review, which earned it 4.5 out of 5 stars.
The fact that “Gladiator” was able to immediately become a modern classic is due not only to its visually stunning staging, but also to its emotional impact. And this is based not only on an absolutely excellent Hans Zimmer score, but also on the grandiose actors. In addition to Joaquin Phoenix and Connie Nielsen, it is of course the protagonist Russell Crowe who enables the great emotions in “Gladiator” with his powerful performance – there are certainly quite a few viewers who shed a tear in the final, even after the second or third viewing.
Russell Crowe had to prove he was capable of suffering
With “Gladiator”, Russell Crowe has risen to the A-League of Hollywood actors and was able to collect his only Academy Award to date. But Crowe had to work very hard to do this and prove his ability to suffer, as in a detailed article from Independent you can read about the shooting of “Gladiator”.
In the opening battle, which pits the Romans against the Germans, Maximus (Crowe) finds himself in the middle of the bloody battle, not above cutting off one or two of his enemies’ heads from their shoulders. After the battle is over, Maximus’ face shows many wounds. But it wasn’t makeup! Instead, the horse Crowe was sitting on for the sequence bolted and ran through the thick branches once, leaving Crowe’s face with several lacerations.
Russell Crowe had to get in top shape for Gladiator (which he undoubtedly succeeded) not only to be believable as a commander, but also to convince in the fight scenes. This led to many other injuries: Crowe broke a foot, a hip bone, injured his biceps and his Achilles tendon. But that’s not all: After a fight, Crowe couldn’t feel his right index finger – for two years!
In the end, one can say: it was worth it. While Gladiator may not be particularly accurate historically, the movie feels wildly authentic. Not least because of the intense performance of Russell Crowe, who used his entire body to do justice to the role of Maximus in every way. Respect!