*GLADIATOR* is an absolute MASTERPIECE! 

The fact that everybody can so strongly hate Joaquin Phoenix's character from the very first second he's on screen speaks volumes about how amazing he is in this movie!

"He was a soldier of Rome. Honor him." **tears** "Who will help me carry him?" **more tears** "Now we are free. I WILL see you again. But not yet. Not yet." **flowing tears** Every fucking time.

That "AM I NOT MERCIFUL?" was improvised by Joaquin. Dude is a powerhouse actor, no doubt.

One of the best films ever created. “I once knew a man that said death smiles at us all, all a man can do is smile back..” “Did your friend smile at his own death?” “You must know, he was your father” I’ve seen this movie 100s of times and it still gives me chills

If you don't get emotional at the end of gladiator you are dead inside. I am not ashamed to admit I tear up every single time

This film should be regarded as an all time classic. It is an epic.

Fun fact: when Jack Gleeson was preparing for the role of Joffrey Lannister, he watched Joaquin Phoenix's performance in this movie. Makes sense.

When this came out, I went to the theater knowing almost nothing about the story and expecting to see a standard action flick. I walked out of the place with my mouth wide open and saw it again two days later. Still easily one of the best movies I've ever seen.

Early to mid 2000s was such a good time for good movies. Lord of the rings, gladiator, the last samurai, etc. Looks so much better then the trash we get today.

Oh hell,.. this movie can slam you hard in the feels in multiple ways. Seriously a classic in my mind.

It’s a testament to Phoenix’ acting that you are completely off put by him within the first few moments.

She slapped her brother before kissing his ring because once you kissed the ring, you acknowledged him as Caesar. It was the only way to express her true feelings without betraying him as Caesar.

For background on why Commodus was not automatically Marcus' heir despite being his only living son, during this period in Roman history, since the time of the Emperor Nerva in 98 AD, Roman Emperors adopted men of great ability and leaderships skills as heirs. There was no hereditary succession. Nerva adopted Trajan, who in turn adopted Hadrian as his heir, who in turn adopted Antoninus Pius on the condition that he in turn adopt both Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Veras as his heirs. So this adoptive succession of the best man went on from 98 AD to 180 AD and is considered Rome's greatest era; the golden era of Pax Romana. Whereas Marcus Aurelius is well remembered and esteemed as the epitome of the philosopher king (emperor) and successful general, his greatest error was not adopting a new adult heir (as is implied with Maximus) and allowing his want of a dynasty to end the adoptive system. The real Commodus was also not worthy of the throne and his misrule ushered a period of civil wars that lasted for over a decade following his own death in 192 AD.

Joaquin Phoenix is such a great actor. You do get the weird vibes from his character straight away.

I was a Latin student in high school when this movie came out and ended up seeing this movie something like 3x in the theatre. I still love the hell out of this movie. I have the soundtrack (Hans Zimmer for the win) and it is so ridiculously peaceful to listen to. This movie really sealed the deal for me in terms of Joaquin Phoenix's acting.

This is one of those movies you don’t get anymore .. it was amazing , emotional , and great ending .. earned it’s Oscar’s

The colloseum was built around 80 AD. Its just shy of 2000 years old. And it was amazing. They could even pump in water and have recreations of naval battles. It's design gave it a form of air conditioning. They even had popular gladiators become spokesmen.

'What we do in life echos in eternity'. What a line!

No disrespect to Benicio del Toro, who won Best Supporting Actor in 2001, but it should have been Joaquin Phoenix for this role. From the moment he enters the movie, everyone gets that intense, creepy vibe. And spirals out of control. And he somehow still pulls emotion out of people for how mentally abused he was by his father. Just a phenomenal job.

Oliver Reed plays Proximo - he actually died during filming so the script had to be changed (he was originally supposed to survive) and have his final scenes completed with CGI and a body double. One of the greatest drunkards and rabble rousers of all time with an amazing CV. Obnoxious but hilarious guy. He really didn’t get on with Crowe (or anyone, really) who later said that “I never got on with Ollie. He has visited me in dreams and asked me to talk kindly of him. So I should... but we never had a pleasant conversation."

If you're looking for another Russel Crowe movie, look no further than Master and Commander. The only reason it didn't win more oscars is because it was up against Lord of the Rings: Return of the King in so many categories, and even then it still managed to win best cinematography and best sound editing. If you're looking for another movie in the same vein as Gladiator, you'll want to check out Braveheart.

Alex, one amazing little snippet they stuck in there was when Maximus told Commodus that his time to honor himself would soon end and ended it with “Your Heiness”. Your Heiness isn’t how you’d address an emperor. It’s a title reserved for a prince or princess who would otherwise be in line to take a throne. It’s literally Maximus telling him to his face that Marcus Aurelius is the true emperor and that he will not acknowledge Commodus’ reign.

This movie is the definition of a masterpiece. One of my all-time favourites. Glad to see you enjoyed it!

The maggots in the wound is actually a good thing. They only eat dead/ necrotic tissue, and will help prevent infection. Still used sometimes today.

"Master and Commander" is another great Russell Crowe movie. It is based on a fantastic series of books written by Patrick O'brien about the adventures of Jack Aubrey, a Royal Navy ship's captain during the Napoleonic Wars. The movie was nominated for 10 Oscars, including best picture, and ultimately won two Oscars, for best cinematography and best sound editing. (The reason it did not win more Oscars was that it was competing with "Lord of the Rings: Return of the King", which pretty much swept the Oscars that year. The "Lord of the Rings" trilogy is something you definitely need to react to if you have not already seen them.)

My all-time favorite film. Crowe won best actor, Ridley Scott won best director and it won best picture as well because everybody knew what a masterpiece it was.

"set free in the grasslands" to call that after 20 seconds is hella fitting if you think about it.

I don't know if anyone else had mentioned this yet, but colors are extremely important in this movie. Easiest to spot is people's allegiances. The sister is wearing a mix of Commodus' and Maximus' cookies when she's conflicted, but completely Maximus' when she's done with her brother. There are so many other little details in this movie, it's so amazing

For your Russel Crowe recommendation I give you “A Beautiful Mind” Based on a true story of an asocial prodigy who would go on to change the world of economics and his real life struggles, this movie won Crowe his only Oscar for Best Actor after being nominating but failing to win for Gladiator. The twist midway through the movie is mind blowing and heartbreaking and the acting is truly top notch across the board.

A lot of people are probably going to say that if you want to watch more Russell Crowe movies, you should watch "A Beautiful Mind" or "Master and Commander", both of which I definitely like, but my absolute favorite movie from him other than this one is Cinderella Man. It has a great cast, it is based on a true story, and it's another movie where you just love and admire Russell Crowe's character.

U know it's a masterpiece when no matter how many times u watch it , it still hits u so hard, in so many moments. It's heartbreaking and uplifting. That is hard to accomplish.

This was Game of Thrones before Game of Thrones was even considered for TV but man, what a film. What a lines and what portrayla's by Crowe and Phoenix....

You’ve gotten Gladiator, Saving Private Ryan outta the way, now you’ve gotta do The Patriot, and Braveheart at some point.

His son and wife being excited to see him and their death will always make me sob

This is one of Hans Zimmer's greatest scores. So good in fact that if you listen during the battle scene at the beginning and the first fight in the Coliseum you will hear the theme of Pirates of the Caribbean, which he stole from this score to be the flagship of that one.

I had a laughter induced snot bubble from , "I need you to be the Protector of rome... " reaction, "That doesn't sound like a remote type gig... " LMAO

Hector was a prince of Troy. He was a mighty warrior, who was only defeated by Achilles. You should check out "Troy", an epic movie with lots of actors you will recognize.

Great heartfelt reaction Alex. For more Crowe, try "3:10 to Yuma" with Christian Bale, "Romper Stomper" which was one of his first movies (plays an Australian skinhead), "L.A. Confidential" with Kim Basinger and a 50s film noir master class, or for a little hockey underdog fun, "Mystery, Alaska." 🙂❤

What's so noteworthy about this film is that it is an accidental masterpiece. When the director started shooting, there was was a single page of the script (or less) written, actors were allowed to adlib a lot of their lines and the script had to be changed near the end of shooting due to a main actor dying before all his scenes were shot. Gladiator is a masterpiece but Ridley Scott was very lucky to achieve this...

I was an actor working in Hollywood when this came out. I went to see this movie with some of my friends in my neighborhood. We went to the Cineramadome which is an amazing, huge theater with a gigantic screen. Whie wr were in line I saw Kevin Pollak standing behind us with a group of his friends. When the movie ended we all poured out into the parking lot and everyone broke into fake gladiator fights. I am proud to say that my friends and I conquered Kevin Pollak and his friends,

When Marcus Aurelius says "So much for the glory of Rome," he is referring to how frail he looks. As Emperor he personifies the Empire, and here he stands on the field of battle, victorious and Roman arms bathed in glory... and yet he is an old man who can barely mount his horse now. It is a very self-aware comment (and MA was very self-aware and his thoughts come to us in his work "Meditations,") about the artificial structures man builds to exult themselves when faced with the objective reality of the human condition. Glory is fleeting and even the man who rules over much of the world's people grows old and feeble as all people eventually do.

Enjoyed watching you so much! This is absolutely one of the best movies ever made. I have to admit I *DID* laugh extremely hard when you said, "I dunno' if I've watched two much Game of Thrones, so I just expect incest." You had Commodus figured out straight away! Great reaction as always, Alex!

Phoenix was so immediately detestable. The second greatest role of his life. Totally unredeemable character and he killed it.

This was Oliver Reed's last film and, in my opinion, the film that brought Richard Harris back to the forefront of the public's eye (and probably played a role in him being offered the role of Dumbledore). It's a common story done extremely well on all fronts.

fantastic movie + reaction! Another great movie starring Russell Crowe is "Cinderella Man" (2005) about a real-life boxer during the American depression. Great story, great acting! 👍

"A beautiful mind" wound be my pick for your next Russell Crowe movie. And for another movie with a good Hans Zimmer track that gives me similar emotions than "Gladiator", I'd go for "The Last Samurai"

Crowes performance was obviously unbelievable. One of the best ever imo. He was made for it. But Phoenix was absolutely brilliant. Such an underated performance that just now people are starting to realize

"Who will help me carry him ?" Me with tears in my eyes " I will" Oh boy, my favorite movie EVER ! Everything is absolutely perfect, dialogues, characters, acting, not to mention the epic score by Hans Zimmer

If you haven't seen it - Master and Commander - Russel Crowe and Paul Bettany!!! It's brilliant

I always love that Maximus stares directly into Commodus' eyes until he breathes his last breath.

At 26:00 Maximus is praying a little statue.The "penate" were representing the divinities of the home, the ancestors to pray for protecting the house and blessing the family. Un France we say : go back to one's penates (going back home)

Colosseum was founded between 70 and 80AD construction began under the rule of Vespasian and was completed under Titus. I was fortunate enough to see it with my own eyes about 12yrs ago, one of the most incredible sights my eyes have ever seen.

Master and Commander is another historical Masterpiece with Russel Crowe

Gladiator, 300 and Troy. the best of the era

The soundtrack, especially the song at the end, makes you feel emotions you wouldn't expect. It never fails to bring tears to me. And the movie is splendid, the writing, the vfx, the acting, all of it. This will be one of the movies that are looked back on decades from now and seen as art, like Metropolis or Gone With The Wind.

OK Alex, you are now officially my favourite reactor...you're just so good at this...such wit, humor, and then compassion...I thank you

Masterpiece indeed. Sometimes when I listen to a song from the soundtrack, I get thrown back to the moment and can even tear up thinking about this tragic story. Another, very different Russell Crowe movie that I like to recommend is "The Nice Guys". Together with Ryan Gosling in leading roles, both of them nailing it. It's a crime action comedy with pitch black humor that gave me some really good laughs.

Commodus in real life was crazy and psychotic. He believed he was actually Tarzan. I believe there is even a bust made of him wearing like an animal skin hood and vegetation for clothes. Phoenix played an amazing role. You hated him practically immediately and Russell Crowe opposite him made for some really compelling scenes. Glad you watched it finally! It has to be in most people's top movies list.

Alex, a TV show that you may enjoy that's in the same vein as "Gladiator" is "Spartacus". There are 4 seasons in total, but are relatively short. The first episode and a half are a bit cheesy, but I promise, it gets SO MUCH better... Would definitely enjoy your reaction to that particular series 😁

The soundtrack is one of Hans Zimmer's finest works. I was at one of his shows where they played parts of it life with a symphonic orchestra and Lisa Gerrard performed her vocals. I have no words to describe how magical this was. Zimmer said that he wanted to have a female element in the soundtrack, as the movie cast was almost entirely male and the story was of course focussing on men. So he asked Lida Gerrard (whom he worked with before) to join. And look how this gave the movie this very special vibe. This was the first time I've realized that a soundtrack can be like an invisible cast member.

Gladiator is one of those movies that is hard to react to because you get immersed as fu*k. The story. acting, it just pulls you in.

This movie is legendary. Everything about it. Also made more epic by hans zimmer the master composer himself. One of my all time favorites

I love that line "what we do in this life will echo for eternity" because it applies to literally everyone. With every interaction, think of this line because you never know which one will be turned into a story or lesson that will be told to their children and grandchildren, for good or bad.

When Quintus said to Maximus “people should know when they are conquered” and Maximus replied with “Would you Quintus? Would I?” That is what the movie is all about. Also when Proximo died the actor died earlier in filming so they took footage from earlier before Maximus fought the guy with the gold mask. And because the actor died they also changed the ending to what we got but what was planned was Proximo burying his rudius symbolizing Maximus won freedom.

If you want to see Russel Crowe at his best, Master and Commander: set in the days of the three mast ships he portrays the Captain of a British Ship of the Line, and sails to New Zealand or Australia, and maybe around the Cape of Good Hope (Horn of Africa)... Seriously a fabulous movie.

Oliver Reed who played Proximo suffered a heart attack and sadly passed away during a break in filming, they completed it by using body double and using CGI techniques, this was very ground breaking at the time as in 1999 CGI was in its infancy.

33:47 One of my favorites is the live version of this song (Now we are free) performed by 2 Cellos at the Sydney Opera House. For me, their rendition of it somehow has even more emotional weight to the original which is already an amazing song that conveys both the sadness of death but also the celebration of life.

This movie was a production nightmare, it had absolutely no right to be one of the greatest movies of all time. They barely had a script, half of it was improvised and they were writing and rewriting scenes on the day of filming. What a timeless classic, every time I think I may have overhyped it in my head and rewatch it, it always reminds me why I think of it so highly.

Great reaction, buddy. This is SUCH a good movie, and it's up there with Braveheart for me in terms of favorite historical dramas. In real life, Marcus Aurelius died of mysterious causes while in his travelling battlefield tent, and his son Commodus took over. Commodus was a douchebag and was eventually assassinated (strangled in the bathtub in real life). Marcus Aurelius was revered as one of the most just, fair, and wise emperors of ancient Rome (his writings are still studied to this day), and his son Commodus, well, wasn't, lol. It's amazing how crazy things got back then: feeding slaves to tigers, fighting to the death for entertainment, NO human resources or OSHA at all, lol. The past was the worst, although the Colosseum was an amazing piece of engineering at the time. They had pumps under the floor to pump in and fill the stadium with water so they could hoist boats in and recreate naval battles in the stadium. We'd have a hard time building that into a stadium NOW, much less in 180 AD, holy crap.

Last year, I got to teach a class called "History Through Film." This movie was first when I was putting together a list. One of the best movies ever, with a phenomenal soundtrack. Great reaction! Glad you got to this one. Your next Russell Crowe movie should be Cinderella Man. Arguably just as good, if not better, than Gladiator. AND it's a true story. It was 2nd on my list for that class. Another fun and underrated Crowe movie is Mystery Alaska.

One of my favorite films of all time Your edit was AMAZING Joaquin is next level actor

"What We Do In Life, Echoes In Eternity" was printed on the movie posters for that film ;D so yes, it's definitely one of those lines

I have watched that movie at least a dozen times and I still cry every time, its just nuts, Gladiator is one of the best movies of all time in my eyes. Great video Alex!

The final scene is sung by Lisa Gerrard. She is absolutely incredible. Check her solo stuff, as well as with Dead Can Dance.

You mentioned Game of Thrones quite a bit here. You may be interested to know that the actor who played Joffrey in that series modeled his performance of Joffrey almost exclusively after Joaquin Phoenix's portrayal of Emperor Commodus in this movie.

5:52 “That doesn’t sound like a remote gig” 😂😂

Brutally fantastic movie! There's another classic (a bit older) within the same vibe you have to react to, it's Mel Gibson's "Braveheart".

If you haven't watched TROY yet i'd love to see your reaction to that one. Great characters, great fighting and so much heartbreak.

That "AM I NOT MERCIFUL!?" scream from Commodus legitimately freaks me out and makes my skin crawl, so unhinged.. Joaquin Phoenix is such amazing actor.

This is my favorite movie aside from the Lord of the Rings (really a trilogy, but it’s one story split into 3 movies). So good, the first movie that made me cry!! ❤❤ The soundtrack, the cast, the story, it’s all a man awesome mix that creates an epic story. I’ll add, Russel Crow is the protagonist and the hero of the movie, but every good hero needs an antagonist, and Joakim Phoenix plays a fantastic job at playing that role! One more thing, the really cool part at the end where Maximus kills Commodus (the current “Emperor”) he became the Emperor, and in his last moments gave freedom to those who had been taken captive. He became a savior in that moment. 😭

If you wanna watch Badass Russel Crowe movies, as you say, you need to watch Master and Commander!!

Yo asked for it you got it. Master & Commander.

Fun fact - the 'thumb down' was actually the grace token, as it meant 'swords down'....the director changed it up as it would be too confusing for the audience.

30:05 that 2nd screamed "AM I NOT MERCIFULL?" was improvised and she was legit scared/spooked

LA Confidential is a fantastic movie and Russell Crowe is incredible in it.

I watched it at a movie theater and I knew it would be great: Director Ridley Scott and fab cast, for the first time I checked out who made the music: Hans Zimmer with Lisa Gerrard. Fantastic.

Bro, every time, tearing up when Maximus dies. He's at peace and rejoining his family. And Juba smiling at the and, saying they will see again, but not yet. Not yet.

This is still my all time favourite movie, I must have seen it over a dozen times and every time I watch it I enjoy it just as much as the first time

One of the greatest films. Truly remarkable

I remember watching this a few times as a kid, and I never really understood it, but god damn does it hit me hard in the emotions as an adult

When you said “I can’t believe it’s 22 years old” I was like WHAT??? Damn now I feel old. Where does time go man…

1:36 It's an old farmers trick. If the soil gives off that classic 'dirt' smell, it means the soil is healthy and good farmland. Given that he's a farmer, Maximus is likely trying to ground himself before the battle.

Master and Commander is a pretty good Russell Crowe movie.

Idk if you knew this but the Emperor is player by Joaquin Phoenix, he plays the Joker in ''Joker''! EDIT: nvm you mentioned it in the outro lmao

Phoenix is such a sick actor. The dude is just on another level. To hate him that much is a treasure when you know that is what he wanted from that role. It is him and Jofrey.

“So much for the glory of Rome” It’s him realising that he’d spent is life in battle, expanding his empire, and the toll it has taken on his people, his family and his life

Joaquin phoenix!!!..ughh so good ..way before joker he was killing it as well as Russell Crowe of course

1st time seeing your content. Have to admit you're an extremely good reactor.

“So much for the glory of Rome,” has two meanings in my mind: 1) It cost so much to maintain peace. 2) Foreshadowing that the glory of Rome is at it’s end. I think it’s a very clever play on words.

I saw this in the theater, and it immediately became one of my favorite movies ever. You need to see "The Nice Guys" with Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling. It's amazing.