Gladiator is an absolute epic, and now you can enjoy the full epic treatment of such a great film by bringing home the Gladiator 3 Disc Extended Edition DVD. It's jam packed with all of the special features, bonuses and behind the scenes footage that you could ever ask for.
Gladiator of course stars Russell Crowe as General Maximus. Commander of one of the Roman armies, he's beloved by his men, favored by the aging emperor and is victorious repeatedly on the battle field. He's also eager to cast his life of war aside to return to his family.
However the ambitious son of the emperor, played by Joaquin Phoenix, has different plans. He will destroy the course of Maximus's life and that of his family, while becoming the new leader of the Roman Empire. What comes next is a sensational quest for revenge as Maximus escapes death time and time again as a competing gladiator, slowly working his way towards his chance.
By now you've likely already seen this movie plenty of times, or at least I hope that you have. Even so, you can't go wrong with the Gladiator Extended Edition DVD, which has two extra discs of all of the trivia, details, commentary and more that you could imagine.
If you've somehow managed to not see this movie, one of the best war movies of all time and certainly one of the best recent war movies, then you have to pick up your copy of the Gladiator DVD extended edition as soon as possible. It's a must watch movie, and once won't even come close to being enough.
A big-budget summer epic with money to burn and a scale worthy of its golden Hollywood predecessors, Ridley Scott's Gladiator is a rousing, grisly, action-packed epic that takes moviemaking back to the Roman Empire via computer-generated visual effects. While not as fluid as the computer work done for, say, Titanic, it's an impressive achievement that will leave you marveling at the glory that was Rome, when you're not marveling at the glory that is Russell Crowe. Starring as the heroic general Maximus, Crowe firmly cements his star status both in terms of screen presence and acting chops, carrying the film on his decidedly non-computer-generated shoulders as he goes from brave general to wounded fugitive to stoic slave to gladiator hero.
Gladiator's plot is a whirlwind of faux-Shakespearean machinations of death, betrayal, power plays, and secret identities (with lots of faux-Shakespearean dialogue ladled on to keep the proceedings appropriately "classical"), but it's all briskly shot, edited, and paced with a contemporary sensibility. Even the action scenes, somewhat muted but graphic in terms of implied violence and liberal bloodletting, are shot with a veracity that brings to mind--believe it or not--Saving Private Ryan, even if everyone is wearing a toga.
As Crowe's nemesis, the evil emperor Commodus, Joaquin Phoenix chews scenery with authority, whether he's damning Maximus's popularity with the Roman mobs or lusting after his sister Lucilla (beautiful but distant Connie Nielsen); Oliver Reed, in his last role, hits the perfect notes of camp and gravitas as the slave owner who rescues Maximus from death and turns him into a coliseum star. Director Scott's visual flair is abundantly in evidence, with breathtaking shots and beautiful (albeit digital) landscapes, but it's Crowe's star power that will keep you in thrall--he's a true gladiator, worthy of his legendary status. Hail the conquering hero! --Mark Englehart
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