Review of Spartacus and the Ten Gladiators (1964) by Adam R — 24 Jan 2011

"Spartacus and the Ten Gladiators" is a deceptive title. Sure, there is a character named Spartacus, and 10 gladiators feature prominently. However, coming as it did on the tail of Stanley Kubrick's "Spartacus," it fails to exploit that earlier, more popular and critically acclaimed film; all told, Spartacus (Alfredo Varelli) only appears in about five scenes. Meanwhile, the titular gladiators are an interchangeable lot, with only their leader, Rocca (Dan Vadis), standing out. A better title would have been "Spartacus Show Up Briefly Among 10 Largely Incidental Gladiators.".

This "Spartacus" is an uneven experience. Scenes of women, children, and infirm men slaughtered by Roman centurions are followed by slapstick fights (complete with cartoonish, poorly dubbed sound effects). The final battle between Spartacus' forces, the gladiators, and a vanguard of slaves against the Roman army is plagued by unoriginality.