Russel Crowe is a great storyteller, and he told one from when he was fresh from Gladiator and didn't know how famous he was yet. He was in Rome visiting friends and went shopping. Got out of his car,walked to a store. Did his shopping and came out to the street PACKED with people! of all ages! .. he said everywhere ya looked there was somebody standing where half hour ago there were only a handful. So he asks the cop, he said there were lotsa of cops all of a sudden, too lol, to the cop standing closest with one of those long guns, 'what's going on?'.. to which the cop replied, 'YOU GLADIATOR! You are what's going on.' and he used a wonderful roman accent to tell the story lol.. ya.. this was one of his best roles.. but he's got so many other good movies too. :)
He also tells the story to Rogan about visiting the Vatican, and when in the main wing of the Sistine Chapel, the caretaker asks him if he wants to see the painted ceiling (Michael Angelo's work), not as everyone sees it (with minimal lighting to protect the frescos, but with the "Pope's lights". Meaning the lighting that only the Pope has the privilege of having turned on when he goes there to pray or meditate. The view is just amazing, the way the paintings jump out at you, with intense colors and contrast. I paraphrase, Crowe is a great storyteller as you say, and he makes it more exquisite. After enjoying the view, he thanks the caretaker and asks him why he did it for him, and using a roman accent says: "Maximus, you are the 8th king or Rome!". :) There's also a really emotional part later about his father who passed away and a song that is being played by a Vatican's band, but its not related to his role in this movie, it just stuck with me since all men who have lost their father can't be cold as stone when another man talks about his own dealings with that kind of a loss... it just hits you in the "feels"! Crowe seems like a really solid down-to-earth guy. You get a feeling you could just sit down with a couple of breweskies and maybe a stake from one of his nameless cows (watch that Rogan's episode, Crowe is just too entertaining talking quietly and slow about his life). Can't help but really like this dude.
What gets overlooked quite often in this magnificent scene is young Lucius. His facial expressions were so telling. He's enjoying himself so much, but then he sees that he's in the middle of something very real and very dangerous. His "fun time" on the playing field just stopped being fun. Great acting by Spencer Treat Clark (age 13) all throughout the film.
That's a really nice catch - didn't really think about it before, that and how Commodus just casually tosses him aside too. Really well directed IMO. but yeah - spot on. Of course there's the other scene later on where Commodus confronts Lucilla about the "plot", while holding Lucius at his side - young lad knows the threat they're both under.
"Loyal servant to the true emperor Marcus Aurelius." That hits different after reading Marcus Aurelius - Meditations. He really was a true emperor, maybe the best Rome ever had.
Story Telling at it's finest - pace, tension, intrigue, emotional rollercoaster with love, hate, deceit, vainglorious power tripping, valour, bravery, respect, opportune luck - Ridley Scott was at his best - I heard a few years ago that he had accepted to do a remake of the Battle of Britain - now that would be movie heaven again...
Even though I don’t watch their channel at all, I’m actually glad that Ash’s Channel acknowledged how the original meaning of the thumbs up/Thumbs down was inverted for this movie. So say what you want about them, at least he got that part right.
Remember at this time in Roman history the mob ruled. The Emporers knew you had to win the crowd or risk rebellion. This scene epitomized the balance of an emperor knowing not to overplay his hand.
Emperors beyond Aurelius had all the same problems. The people needed entertainment and war parades in Rome to cover up the bickering governors mistreating provinces in the empire. Thus leading to barbarian encroachment in later decades. Power was either bought between Senate officials to regain favor for a certain Emperor. The army was dissimilated into garrisons across Italy after the 2nd century AD. The Empire went into full defensive mode after Tuetorborg forest. Germania remained lawless beyond The Elbe which as time went on became a haven for nomadic people's in the 3rd century. Overpopulation forced most tribes south. The Huns were the final straw. Every barbarian sought a new home. By then gen the roman economy was in decline and the manpower of the empire reduced by at least a third from what it was in Augustus reign.
There is a second reason why Commodus is afraid of Maximus's appeal to the public... The entire reason why Rome became an empire was because a supremely competant and charismatic general inspired more loyalty in his own troops than to the State. Maximus may not have his troops with him anymore, but there is a limit to how many people the Praetorian Guard could control. The whole point of these games were to distract people from other problems in the empire... You don't want a second coming of Caesar in your own stadium when your people can barely stand you.
The movie did a great job conveying that Maximus was untouchable at that moment. Commodus could've been an emperor, but emperor sparing life of whoever crowd wanted to spare was the sacred law. And if pretty much all people in Rome raised against Commodus, he'd be killed along with all his guards. Why? Because this is Ancient Rome, not China... That's why Commodus forced himself to spare Maximus.
Actually, in reality, it was thumbs up meant death, thumbs down meant live. But, of course, over the centuries the meaning was inverted, so they had to make it mean the opposite to suit modern audiences.
The academic jury is still out on the meaning of thumbs up or down. Much of the evidence (what little there is of it) is inconclusive. "Pollice verso" = "The turning of the thumb". The thumb could be turned up, turned down, held horizontally, or concealed inside the hand to indicate positive or negative opinions. Historians have not come to a consensus.
Great scene. I saw a Roman historian go over the Roman naming convention and he said that given praenomen, nomen, and cognomen, Maximus' name is mixed up and that the actual order would be Decimus Aelius Meridius Maximus. Decimus is a praenomen, Meridius and Maximus are both cognomens, so Maximus would be an additional agnomen, and it's also mentioned he has another name Aelius, which is a nomen.
At least with Ash, he was right about the original meaning with the thumbs up and down and how it’d been inverted for the film. First time I’ve seen someone actually acknowledge that, so kudos to him.
Ridley Scott directing Russell Crowe, folks. This movie was written quite mediocrely but it was a perfect pairing of director and lead actor. Plus f-ing Joaquin Phoenix.
Yes, Joaquin is absolutely phenomenal in this role of a vainglorious power hungry criminal that rises to the Top politically through eliminating his enemies - wonderful actor..
Effing Lucius… One of the best scenes ever filmed. The best film I’ve ever watched in the cinema (or elsewhere). I must stop falling in love with these reactors. Dasha. Biss. It will end BADLY!! I’ve been there before. Cool cut, though. Thanks!
Фильм супер. Раз десять смотрел. Но я хочу сказать о необразованности, неподготовленности некоторых блогеров,стримеров и ютюберов которые сняли свою реакцию на этот фрагмент. Некоторые не знают что значит палец "вверх", а что палец "вниз"!🤦 Это такой позор! У вас тут же на ютюбе есть лайки " палец вверх" и дизлайки " палец вниз" . Как вы думаете умники , откуда ютюб взял такие символы?!!! "Лайк" это хорошо , значит палец вверх. Извини автор, но они такие тупицы необразованные.
First couple is wrong. The very origin of the thumbs up signal is precisely that: the emperor commanding death at the games (down) or conceding life (up). Nothing to do with modern audiences, this have has going for over a century now at least to my knowledge.
ugh how pathetic I take it ash or whom ever saw it ahead of time reactions only work when people involved havent seen the clip before. He literally stopped the movie to talk tell how much he liked the scene for one thing stopping the flow but also putting her in a state where she knew something was going to happen & affected the entire reactions. So annoying.
The thumbs-up/thumbs-down gesture is a misconception. It didn't determine life or death in gladiatorial fights. The actual gesture used is still debated by historians.
Only thing that ruins this scene ,right after maximus finishes his epic speech it sounds like the start of the jurassic park theme and it takes me somewhere else
For more than seven centuries Hispania existed, you can ask to Trajano, Adriano or Teodosio I. And 300 years before Rome was founded, this lands were called Sphania or Yspanya. And after Rome declined, we fought the muslims with the warcry "¡Santiago y cierra España!". So, yes. We did exist at the time. Almost at any time you can imagine.
