The actor who played Joffrey from Game of Thrones got a lot of inspiration from Joaquin Phoenix's character. Both are hated fiercely so for that, they both deserve rounds of applause for their skills.

Fun fact. Djimon Hounsou (Juma) at the end, the whole scene was improvised because they shot it last minute after Oliver Reed (Proximo, the slave gladiator owner) died during filming and the scripts original end scene couldn't be filmed. Perfect ending scene and quote "And now we are Free. I will see you again... but not yet... Not yet!"

The ending of this film always gets me. In my opinion, the death of Maximus has to be one of the best film deaths of all time. William Wallace in Braveheart, Boromir in Fellowship of The Ring, and Roy Batty in Blade Runner are up there too for me. And Hans Zimmer's and Lisa Gerrard's piece of music at the end of the film is one of my favorite pieces of music of all time.

When Russell Crowe accepted this part, he had to turn down being Wolverine in X-Men. Russell then suggested they seek out his good friend and fellow Aussie, Hugh Jackman, for the role. He got it and his career boomed! Speaking of Hugh Jackman and Wolverine, if you haven't seen 'Logan', add it to your list immediately!

Crowe didn't want to do the intro of himself to the new emperor, the epic one were he states his name, rank and his plans for vengeance. Crowe found it cheesy but I think alot of the fans absolutely love it! :)

This film was EPIC in theaters, and made Crowe and Phoenix household names!

Caesar is just a term to designate the Emperor of Rome (in memory of Julius Caesar). Fun fact : the latin pronunciation of "Caesar" sounds more like "Kaiézarr", which later has given "Kaiser" in german (pretty close to original actually), and "Czar" or "Tsar" in polish/bulgarian/russian :)

RIP and long live Richard Harris (October 1, 1930 - October 25, 2002), aged 72 And RIP and long live Oliver Reed (February 13, 1938 - May 2, 1999), aged 61 You both will always be remembered as legends.

Well, to be fair to the Romans, Gladiators usually didn't kill each other. It was more showy entertainment, they became very rich and often lived a long life. It was still a dangerous sport, but more a sport than constant endless slaughter to the death. They either did show duels against each other, or fought against dangerous animals or enemy prisoners of war, but rarely actually killed each other. It was still bloody and brutal, but often more like modern fighting, with favoured stars, rules and referees. Hell, famous gladiators even had sponsorship agreements to advertise certain products, retired as famous celebrities living off their fame or even launched political careers thanks to their notoriety. Deadly battles in the arena happened, but were reserved for great festivities, like the coronation of a new emperor. In fact, one of the reasons why Commodus and some other emperors gained such an infamous reputation (the so called bad emperors of Rome) was because they did a lot of these great festivities where a lot of people were killed. It was seen as bad taste to have so many people die all the time in the arena, especially if they killed your favourite Galdiator. Imagine a modern day president killing a favourite athlete to celebrate his birthday. It also bankrupted Rome, because these great events were too expensive if they weren't rare. So yeah, usually, Romans weren't this bad on gladiatorial combat. On some days, a modern person could easily go to the arena and have a completely non-disgusting day of great entertainment. People are more or less the same back then and now. No one wants to see someone disemboweled on a daily basis for no reason.

My Grandmother “Omi” passed away last year but her favorite movie of all time was “Gladiator”. She had the soundtrack on a burned CD that listened to non stop in the car for 21 years. A running joke in our family was anytime someone suggested we watch a movie, the response was “Gladiator it is!” I miss her. Great movie. :)

The ironic thing about this flick for me is the timing. In the summer of 2001 I found myself standing outside of the coliseum (the interior was closed). It’s very impressive in person. When you add in how long that structure has existed, I felt very small.

Having lost my wife to cancer relatively young, my empathy for the emotions of Maximus in this tale is deep. Whenever I watch it, even in reaction such as this, it is hard to hold back the tears; for I know all too well what it is to not be able to save those you love and to have to endure the years afterwards as you wait to be with them again.

This movie is brilliant. It’s in that list of timeless movies that will never not be good no matter when or who watches it. So well done.

This was the first movie I ever saw Joaquin Phoenix in and he did such a good job that, for a couple weeks, I thought I hated Joaquin Phoenix himself and swore off his movies...until Signs came out anyway. Now he's one of my favorite actors. Especially after Joker.

This film was released right when I started getting into movies and I was working at my first job (a movie theater) at the time. I ended up taking anyone that would go (friends and family) to see this for free and ended up seeing it in the theater six times. It's still one of my favorite movies and is such a well made, epic movie that still brings me to tears after so many viewings.

What I like about the ending is that the very first moments of the film telegraph it but you don't realize it until later. One of the first images we see is him walking through that field towards his family. The entire film is about a man who just wants to get back to his family. In this life or the next.

I'm always amused that reactors often don't get the "thumbs" thing? Do they not realize the gesture is still in common usage as in "giving something a thumbs up or the thumbs down" meaning it is given approval or disapproval? So logically approval means 'live' and disapproval means 'die'.

This was the first film I ever bought on DVD, back in the ancient days. What a masterpiece!

Fun fact: Derek Jacobi who played the senator was cast as the lead in I, Claudius all those years ago! Also, Oliver Reed excels in his final role as Proximo!

Winner of 5 Oscars including Best Picture! ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED!? ARE YOU NOT...ENTERTAINED!?

Sir Richard played Marcus Aurelius, last of the "Good Five". The stories about him, Peter O'Toole, Richard Burton and Oliver Reed. They made a book about it. They were the "Hellraisers".

"Who will help me carry him"... Gets me every time.

Actually love how she's seen so many movies and studied so much in the theater genre that nothing actually shocked her...she has a realistic and experienced persepective, she could not enjoy the first 20nmin probably bc of that, but she understood the rest bc of that too...

It's been said that the two most famous ancient writings from Rome were the Christian bible and the writings of Emperor Marcus Aurelius. Richard Harris is portraying M. Aurelius in this movie.

Joaquin Phoenix should’ve won Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of Commodus. His acting in this movie was spectacular-evil, creepy, swarthy-and he held more than his own against some other great actors (Harris, Reed, Jacoby, Crowe). “Busy little bees.” Great film. Great reaction. Too bad you couldn’t watch it on the big screen bc it is epic! Keep up the good work!👍👍

Watched in theater with 3 friends and future wife. Movie felt an hour long. We went out for drinks (ended up wildly drunk) and discussed this movie for hours. Top 5 favorite films of all time. Crowe and Phoenix’s best roles to date. IMHO

Hard to find a character that is more universally hated than Commodus in this movie. Truly a great performance.

As an Italian, I loved the first five minutes. As a Roman, I loved the rest of the video.

One thing Hollywood always gets wrong, thumbs up means raise your weapon and finish the enemy, thumbs down means lay your weapons down, the fight is over.

2 things I always suggest to people who enjoy Gladiator. 1- Kingdom of Heaven, another historical epic from Ridley. Watch the director's cut. 2 - Spartacus: Blood and Sand. Over the top ridiculous gladiator melodrama. Highly entertaining.

I was glued to this movie when I watched this in the theater. The singing sounds of Lisa Gerrard was a well added touch to Hans Zimmers music, captivating. The story line in each scene was like walking each floor of a building until you got to the roof, it never downgraded. The theme “strength and honor” also carried throughout the film. Every character had both except Joaquin’s character who was weak and immoral. Strength and honor should be something all people should carry in their heart, mind, and souls. I value this immensely since watching this.

The thumb gesture, up or down (while reversed in fiction in meaning), is the Emperor deciding the life or death of the man in question. But he wouldn't have Maximus killed in front of a crowd that would hate him for doing so. It's also why he tried to draft a fiction whereby he could defeat Maximus and win back the crowd, but he miscalculated how hopelessly overmatched he'd be against even a mortally wounded Maximus. Can't say enough good about Joaquin Phoenix in this movie. Just such a force on screen, playing one of the most memorable cowardly heels in any movie.

The ending always gets me tearing up! Even now watching your reaction, I heard that voice singing, and I started sobbing. I did see this in the theater, and it was fantastic. That first fight in the Coliseum with the chariots is one of my favorite of all time.

Fun Fact: On set just before filming? Joaquin Phoenix had deep reservations about whether he could really pull off this character. Fortunately? Ridley talked him off the ledge and convinced him his acting chop were more than up to the task. Great to see an actor as talented as Joaquin not above being insecure about his own abilities…

Ridley Scott is a legendary director. You sould see three movies wich he direct. Three very underrated Legend (Director's Cut), Black Rain and 1492.

Gladiator and Master and Commander are my favourite Russell Crow films. Oliver Reed died during filming and Ridley Scott used CGI to finish off some scenes.

The early scenes with Marcus and Maximus are the best in the film, really great stuff.

I became a fan of Joaquin Phoenix because of this movie. His portrayal is so vile that it's just a mesmerising masterclass of acting

Fun fact: Thumbs Up actually ment the crowd was voting for death, as it was seen as a gesture of a knife to the throat.

“OMG Joaquin is so young” Space Camp. Parenthood.

I got to see this multiple times in the theatre when it was first released bc my dad loved it! The beginning was so cool, the echoing, cold sounds before the battle etc. Also once during a horrifying holiday rush as a barista I did a coffee sellers version of his speech to his troops before the battle just to keep the mood up and make people laugh. Good memories of this movie, glad you enjoyed it.

Don't be embarrassed about your tears at the end. My girlfriend and I saw this movie in the theater when it came out. Everyone was affected and in tears, people crying in the hallways as we left, Girlfriend sobbed......truly a great film

Joaquin emanates evil when it is required. In "Signs", he plays an all around good guy... He so good. :)

And it's also crazy seeing people reacting to movies with Oliver Reed in them, without the slightest notion of who he was.

I don't remember the first time I watched Gladiator but I do remember, when I was in college, I was the floor president of our dorm floor which meant I had to arrange activities to socialize our resident's. I arranged a movie "date night" with our sister floor to watch Gladiator on the roof of our dorm. We all hauled our mattresses up to the roof and projected the movie onto a wall on the roof. It went over really well. A bunch of mattresses, blankets and pillows. Such a comfy enviroment...such a great memory.

about Juaquin Phoenix: his older brother, River Phoenix, who was a great child actor himself (and died when he was 20 from drug overdose), said of his younger brother that he had more acting skill than River could ever hope to have. to see Juaquin in one of his earliest roles, if not THE earliest, check out Space Camp. He's the boy who befriends a faulty robot.

It's a testament to how emotionally charged this movie is, that you tried to be cool and analytical towards it but couldn't help getting emotional at the end

Gladiator was one of the many movies we watched on our drill weekends. When this movie came out I was still doing my Navy Reserves at China Lake California. My Saturday routine after the work day was, I would ride my bicycle 10 to 20 miles around the base before heading to the barracks to shower. Since I do not drink I would be the designated driver and five of my close Shipmates would pile into my crew cab truck and head out to eat, followed by a movie, then to the bar to shoot pool and drink. Some of my Shipmates would get real drunk, about midnight we would head back to the base. Found memories of hanging with Dave, Gary, Barry, John and Daren.

Great movie. This movie has one of my favorite quotes "I don't pretend to be a man of the people but I do try to be a man for the people" by Gracchus. You know the actor who play Gracchus played Claudius the emperor that is mention in the movie in a great mini series I, Claudius. Other great Russell Crowe movies you should see is A Beautiful Mind, L.A. Confidential ,The Next Three Days. Other great period movies are Rob Roi 1995 with Liam Nissan and The Count of Monte Cristo 2002

I watched this film with a friend at a local theatre when it was initially released. I was particularly impressed by Russel Crowe's grief scene but also by the Coliseum shots! Ridley Scott brilliantly succeeded in recreating life in ancient Rome! Hail Ridley Scott, hail Russel Crowe, hail Hans Zimmer!

Anecdote time: As I was leaving the movie theater after watching Gladiator, my mom sneezed ultra-strongly and startled all the viewers who were leaving the room sadly and quietly. So many people screaming "AAAH! OH MY GOD LADY!!! JESUS!!!" What a hilarious comedic relief after the sad ending. I will always treasure it in my heart. 😂

They would sometimes flood the coliseum so they could stage naval battles too, which is kind of crazy to imagine, but it’s true. Rome was wild.

@ <a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="1610">26:50</a> Shanelle: "Does he get to live after that, does he get away with that?" Me: "Maximus is already in death process"

RIP the great Oliver Reed in his last film , a legend in the UK for on screen as well as off screen performances.

Tigris of Gaul - the only undefeated gladiator, brought out of retirement by Commodus, was played by Sven-Ole Thorson. Thorson is a former bodybuilder, strongman and stuntman who often worked with Scharzenegger. He won Denmark's Strongest Man in 1983. Thorson beat Lou Ferrigno (The Incredible Hulk) for the role and earned 2 TAURUS Stunt Awards for his performance. He was 56 yrs old at the time.

Great reaction, Shan! I was glad to experience the same emotions again with you. I have some experience with stage rather than cinema, but there are overlapping elements and I appreciate your perspective.

I loved this movie (still do!) I remember catching a glimpse of filming near Valetta (Malta) and had no idea it was for _this_ movie - but was blown away when it came out!

The Elysian Fields were the Roman version of heaven, which was what the imagery of him in the grass was about.

"My name is Maximus Decimus Meridius, commander of the Armies of the North, General of the Felix Legions and loyal servant to the true emperor, Marcus Aurelius. Father to a murdered son. Husband to a murdered wife. And I will have my vengeance, in this life or the next. Please leave a message after the tone"

"Oh my, I love this role for JP". Me - hahahaha.. just wait

So refreshing to watch a knowledgeable reactor who even gives us a taste of trivia at the end. You just added to my 'Gladiator' experience. Thanks.

Epic sword and sandal pictures had died out in the 1960's with the over-budget films "Cleopatra" and "Fall of the Roman Empire", until this picture brought the genre back. Yeah, I missed these ancient historical epics!

My mother, rest her soul watched this movie literally every day for 10 years at least after it came out and I still enjoy every moment whenever I put it on....classic

The old actor that played the Gladiator trainer died during the filming...The first time I saw Gladiator was in Rome 1,800 years before Russel Crowe was born. It was not a movie. Movies had not been invented. I don't remember who won that day. It was a while ago...

Marcus Aurelius is best known for the book of Stoic philosophy he wrote as a private journal. There was an earlier film (The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964)) telling basically the same story, with Alec Guinness as Marcus Aurelius.

Yes Richard Harris (legendary Irish actor) was the first Dumbledore. His successor as Dumbledore, Michael Gambon is also Irish.

I must have seen Gladiator 3 or 4 times in theater when it first came out. Was so epic. My friends and I all thought it was awesome.

Gladiator is a very rare film for me in that I went and saw it more than once in theaters. Off the top of my head, the only others to accomplish that were the Star Wars Special Editions and the Prequels.

Yes, this movie made grown men cry by the ending.

Saw it in theaters with my roommates, it was amazing, and we all became obsessed with everything of the period for a long while. One friend got the SPQR tattooed on his should like the one Maximus scraped off. Highly recommend the HBO show ROME. It is 2 seasons that is just telling the story of 2 soldiers in service to Julius Caesar and then his successor Augustus; they are sort of like Rosencrantz and Guildenstern but in Roman times and very good at killing stuff. It is one of the early HBO shows like Sopranos, Band of Brothers, and the Wire that sort of started the ball rolling on all of the premium TV and shows that we have become used to now in the age of streaming.

The actor Oliver Reed died during the filming of this movie. Of a heartattack. In a bar. After 3 bottles of whiskey. It costed 3 milion dollar to cgi his face to the final shots.

Saw it in the theater on the Saturday night of its opening weekend. My brother-in-law came to help me with a construction project all that day, and I offered to take him to dinner as a thank you. Rather than going to an upscale restaurant, we wolfed down some tacos. It was still early so he suggested that we go to this movie, playing right across the street, rather than go home. We were both BLOWN AWAY. Neither of us expected what we got. To this day I list it in my top five favorite movies, but more than that, it has to be one of my favorite cinema experiences. I have rarely been so pleasantly surprised. Unforgettable.

The real Emperor Marcus Aurelius is remembered as a stoic philosopher. His book The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius sells 100,000 copies, 1800 years after his death

I saw this in theater with my mother. I think i was a freshman in high school. We enjoyed it so much. I remember when we came out it had started pouring rain. We were in such good moods we just walked the few blocks back home in the pouring rain without even trying to keep dry. It is a very good memory I have of her.

<a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="88">1:28</a> - "Yeah, this might be set in some history that I'm not super familiar with . . . Roman stuff." <a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="110">1:50</a> - ". . . but, I'm like Italian." Italian that doesn't know Roman stuff, hmmm.

I saw this in the theaters when it came out and it was an experience. I remember how people giggled at the end, when everyone walks off with Maximus' body, and left Commodus to just lay there and attract flies.

Hans Zimmer's score for Pirates is VERY VERY similar to his score for Gladiator. (You nailed it.)

Great reaction, dear Lady! I love that you know your actors too. I cringe at some reactors when they don't know who established actors are. You are a gem.

Another epic ridley Scott film is kingdom of heaven. The scope is terrific 👍

Great reaction.I think I was just as moved by your tears as I was the movie... Thank you for doing this one, and have a great day

It is Richard Harris, aka OG Dumbledore

This is one I can (and have) watch many times, it is so entertaining. Great job I really enjoyed your reactions and commentary.

Juaquin did a brilliant job at playing the villain. From the confidence he feigned, the despair of missing his dream, the force with which he took it and the sheer depravity of the character he played. Just a brilliant actor.

Ridley Scott's wife always does a cameo in his movies. Kingdom of heaven and earth she played the Muslim general sister and in this movie she played Maximus's wife

I saw this in the cinema when it came out, was 15 at the time. I though with how violent it was they'd up the age rating after the home release but they never did.

They guy with all the cuts on his face is Tommy Flanagan, and those are real scars where he was attacked by a gang when he was a young DJ.

When he reveals himself is one of the greatest moments in movie history

I saw this in the theatres when it came out and I'm man enough to say that I cried. This is a fantastic film.

I saw this in the movies when it came out and boy did I cry. An interesting fact, usually movies as violent as this are loved and made for a young male demographic, but women responded to this movie in unusually high numbers. Men loved the movie for one reason and everyone knows what that was, but women, OMGoodness loved it for a different reason and boy did they love it!

Of all the finest performances in this remarkable film, it's that of Phoenix, Richard Harris, and the mighty Oliver Reed that impress me the most.

They got other aspects of Roman history wrong as well. Marcus Aurelius named his son Commodus 'Caesar' in 166 AD, and actually Commodus had been ruling jointly with Marcus since 177 AD. There wasn't this conflict between Marcus and Commodus as to who would succeed him when he died. Marcus died in 180 AD of natural causes, he wasn't murdered by Commodus.

The up or down thumb indicates wether the emporer says a person lives or dies

<a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="1516">25:16</a> literally everyone when they watch this movie 😂😂

This film is such a gem. I always come back to this movie from time to time and there's always this magical air about it. Blows my mind to this day that Ridley Scott didn't really have a plan or an actual script going into this movie. One wouldn't ever know that going into this if Russell Crowe hadn't said as much in an interview. Such a great film.

I saw this at an early screening at my college. Loved it ever since. Russell Crowe has talked about the making of this film. They were writing the script while filming the movie.

Gotta admit that Juaquin Phoenix portrayed his part flawlessly.

Shanelle: I love this role for Joaquin Phoenix.... famous last words.

Saw it in the theater and had much the same reaction as you did...i was wrecked. I've actually known Joaquin since he was a pre-teen in Gainesville, FL....what an amazing body of work he has put together! a really special talent. I don't if anyone has mentioned it, but Oliver Reed died during filming and they had to work around that.

After this movie came out, every time someone would fuck up at work, we'd say "What we do in this life echoes through eternity."

I would love to see this movie in theater again the music score the acting is amazing