Review of Spartacus (1960) by Marcus G — 04 Jan 2010

This is the definative roman epic. Ahead of it's time in tone and production, this ticks all the right boxes, with a full set of empassioned performances, fully realised characters, and a duel plot, focusing on slavery aswell as the political masinations of Rome on the brink of falling into the dictatorial hands of the Ceasers.

Underplayed in so many ways, with all the leads seeming vunerable to their own bitterness, jealousies and insecurities, this is waht makes for a gripping drama, let alone a timeless Hollywood blockbuster. Released only a year after Ben Hur, it is like they were made decades apart.

Not to say Ben Hur wasn't first rate, because it most definatly was, but Spartacus offered something else, more tangable, real and maybe a little disturbing.

"I'm Spartacus" has to be the heart of the entire film, emotionally charged with a sense as to what the film was about, though no doubt, a somewhat romanticised account of the historical event...

Stanley Kubrick would end up making stranger and stranger movies, but this is his best in my opionion, pushing the envelope without breaking it.