Essay on "Why Ridley Scott's Gladiator Was a Success at the Box Office"

Essay 6 pages (1981 words) Sources: 3 Style: MLA

[EXCERPT] . . . .

" Essentially, the narrative themes and the visual style are combined to produce an effect on the audience that is at once nostalgic (like Maximus we too yearn for our "home," a place of innocence, happiness and rest) and inspirational (like Maximus we too feel the need to be strong in the face of overwhelming odds and pressures as our current State seeks to bury us beneath senseless wars and trivial spectacles meant to distract us from serious plague-begetting issues). The music of Hans Zimmer underlines and supports the narrative and visual style of the film, with its haunting choral notes that carry the viewer away on a soulful wind to the eternity that is waiting Maximus (whose afterlife will surely be more favorable than Commodus's).

Conclusion

In conclusion, the industrial, historical, and stylistic aspects of Gladiator work together to produce an epic Roman historical drama that, while it plays fast and loose with actual historical facts, tells a dramatic story of good vs. evil (while also appealing to the viewer's desire for vengeance -- after all, the murderer of Maximus's family must be punished). The industrial qualities of the film influence the historical components (bringing the Coliseum to life for example was more important to Scott than the fact that Roman Emperors did not give a "thumbs up" when they wanted to preserve the life of the gladiator but rather no thumb at all) (Ebert), and the stylistic aspect informs both the industrial and the historical (it is Scott's particular genius to be able to evoke a time and place through technical wizardry, as he did in Blade Runner and Alien). Here, he uses the burnt-out tones to return us to an ancient time that is without beauty and joy, giving us only snatches of blue skies when Maximus is thinking of his "home." The historical aspect provides the foundation, the industrial the support beams (bringing the spectacle to life) and the stylistic component (narrative, aesthetic, music, editing, camerawork) ties it all together in a consistent, coherent manner, overlaying the entire production with a mood and a gloss that compels the audience to remember the film for some time and even, as can be seen today in a way, to want more. And that is the mark of craftsman, after all -- to keep them wanting just that.

Works Cited

Ebert, Roger. "Gladiator." RogerEbert.com. 5 May 2000. Web. 9 Aug 2015.

Landau, Diana; Parkes, Walter; Logan, John; Scott, Ridley. Gladiator: The Making of the Ridley Scott Epic. NY: Newmarket Press, 2000. Print.

Ward, Kate. "The 100 Greatest Movies, TV Shows, Albums, Books, Characters, Scenes,

Episodes, Songs, Dresses, Music Videos, and… READ MORE

How to Reference "Why Ridley Scott's Gladiator Was a Success at the Box Office" Essay in a Bibliography

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