Our conclusions:

1, It's overlong by at least 30 minutes.
2. There is barely a moment of silence throught 2 1/2 hrs, what with Zimmer's score playing backup to almost every scene. I found it suffocating the second time through. Much like a VHI retrospective.
3. There are 3 very strong performances, each by film veterans:

a) Richard Harris's melancholy Marcus Aurelius
b) Oliver Reed's taciturn Proximo
c) Derek Jakobi's ascerbic Crassus

4. There are 3 very worthwhile action sequences:

a) The opening battle up until the slo-mo hand to hand combat sequence. Scott's vista shot of the advancing legions painted in black and blues, the sky filled with arrows, leaves a strong impression in the imagination. The only drawback being Zimmer's one dimensional theme which more or less just hypes the machismo level like he has done for every other testosterone driven movie he's been involved with. It says little else beyond that.

b) The recreation of the Battle of Carthage sequence. The only one which made my repeat viewing worthwhile. Pure bloodsport. You'll have to excuse my delight in watching an archer be hewn in half along with other bloody misdeeds of javelin and sword. Sheer visceral pleasure. Truly nasty stuff.

c) Maximus's escape from Proximo's barracks, beginning at the point where he enters the glen. The misty shot of the horse beneath the tree took me back to LEGEND. Very well lit, nicely photographed sequence though it only lasts over a minute.

5. The movie plays like a 2 1/2 hour endoresment for George Bush Jr.. What, with all this blather about restoring Rome to the people from the corrupted hands of amorally tarnished Emperor. My companion suggested offhandedly that the film must have been financed by the NRA.

6. Zimmer's adoption of other sources to suit his own needs:

a) I think the best proof of the composer's want of inpiration is best summarized by my companion's observation, he only having a casual acquaintance with my CD collection, that the main theme sounded all too similar to Vangelis's 1492 theme. Personally, apart from the composer's world beat affectations, the score's greatest drawback, apart from the formentioned macho main theme, is that there is way too much of it. Also, anyone happen to notice the similarity between the Zimmer's conspiracy music and Williams's music for JFK. Or, that if Mahler never wrote a single note, Zimmer would have to call on another venerable composer to fill in the 40 minutes gap of silence that would be created.

7. The second time through though, my ass got really, really sore. I was much amused though by all the girlies in the audience rushing to cling their respective boyfriends when the blood started spilling. Sometimes watching and listening to the audience is more fun than the movie itself.

NP: Mahler's 5th (2nd movement)

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5. The movie plays like a 2 1/2 hour endoresment for George Bush Jr.. What, with
all this blather about restoring Rome to the people from the corrupted hands of amorally tarnished Emperor. My companion suggested offhandedly that the film must have been financed by the NRA.

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The following is submitted for your consideration:

Your friend is valiantly endeavoring to find a similar social significance in the Gladiator script as that which can easily be identified in the Spartacus script, which was written by a McCarthy Era blacklisted author.

Sorry...no cigar.

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Nothing like flogging a dead horse, but

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quote:

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5. The movie plays like a 2 1/2 hour endoresment for George Bush Jr.. What, with all this blather about restoring Rome to the people from the corrupted hands of amorally tarnished Emperor. My companion suggested offhandedly that the film must have been financed by the NRA.

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This is quite possible, not to say obivious.
Here in Brazil, about 10 years ago, a mini-series produced by our bigger network televion was made specifically to help the election of a Neo-Liberal candidate to the Presidency, against one from the Workers Party.
The story of the series? Well... it's about a renegade warrior in the "middle ages" who must return to his country to overthrow the actual government, restoring the country to the people from the corrupted hands of amorally tarnished monarchs.

The guy was elected.

Latter he was impeached because of corruption and other things, but they didn't care much. The door was open...

Funny how little power people attribute to movies while brainwashing people, even knowing that someone would spend 200 million bucks just to produce one...

Consider how long it takes to write, develop and produce a movie, at least in Hollywood. Consider also that GLADIATOR is, more than anything, a knockoff of DEMETRIUS AND THE GLADIATORS. Consider further that all three founding members of DreamWorks, which produced the movie, are die-hard Clintonites.