A classic

I always find it rather amusing when people tell me that they find 'Gladiator' totally awesome. Do they know that the Peplum is actually one of the oldest genres in cinema and that 'Gladiator' is merely a reboot? Anyway, this movie was probably the least personal project for Stanley Kubrick as he was hired at the last minute by Kirk Douglas. Indeed, the whole thing was supposed to be directed by Anthony Mann but he was fired by Douglas who then hired Stanley Kubrick but they didn’t get along either and Douglas swore he would never work again with Kubrick. This movie was also the first and last time Kubrick made what you could call a 'standard' big budget studio feature without full control (as a matter of fact, After 'Spartacus', Kubrick always kept full control over all the aspects of his films). Even so, I thought it was a really awesome flick with some spectacular scenes and it is definitely my favorite peplum. I have re-watched it recently and I was again quite impressed. Indeed, it is obviously the movie which stands out the most from Kubrick’s filmography as his touch is not so omnipresent and I think it is his most accessible flick but it is not necessarily a bad thing. To conclude, I thought it was really good especially and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you are interested in Stanley Kubrick’s work.

8/10