The movie I will be reviewing in the following paragraphs is none other than Spartacus, which debuted in the year 1960. The lead actor who played Spartacus was famous Hollywood actor Kirk Douglas. The movie is set in times during the Roman Republic. During the movie, Spartacus is a Thracian slave who is tired of poor treatment and seeks freedom for himself and his fellow slaves. There are many factors that lead to his impending freedom. His love towards a fellow girl slave in the movie named Varinia, as well as other slaves being killed and murdered by the Roman Republic, both play key roles into a rebellion that takes place against the Romans after Spartacus escapes and creates an army of slaves.
The movie does a pretty good job of displaying the lives of slaves and other members of the Roman Republic. There are other movies that I personally think do a better job of showing what this time in history was like, for example the movie Gladiator. Both movies are fairly similar in plot and setting, but I think Gladiator does a better job of portraying this time period. That is not to say that this movie does a bad job. It was filmed in 1960, so obviously the quality, effects, and props in the movie aren’t going to be up to standard with a movie that was filmed in the early 2000’s. It still shows a good deal of what not only life was like, but what the art was like back then. The armor worn by the fighters in one fighting scene is pretty similar to what someone would have worn back then. The weapons also are key in the art during this time. I personally do not think the props and weapons used in this movie did justice to how detailed and fine the weapons used during fighting actually were during the Roman Empire. The Roman’s weaponry and armor was an expression of art. The little details and décor of them really was a staple during this time period. Also the effects in this movie such as blood and sweat and all that good stuff was actually pretty good. Although this was in 1960, so the Hollywood effects aren’t anything we see today, but still for the time period it wasn’t too bad.
One thing I really enjoyed about the movie was the overall setting, buildings and architecture seen in the movie. Of course, Hollywood has to put their spin on it to make it look more appealing to an audience, but for the most part the architecture in the movie was up to par with historical context. For example, there is a scene in the movie which Spartacus and another slave fight to the death while being watched upon. This I think does a good job of showing a battle arena which definitely would have been used then. Although the arena was very bland, I would expect to see more types of artwork displayed around the arena.
One thing about the movie I didn’t particularly enjoy was the plot. To me, the plot was pretty basic. A slave escapes the wrath of the Roman Empire and creates an army to which peace is made and slaves are free for good. Once again this is 1960, but still I would’ve enjoyed seeing a little better job making the overall plot of the movie a little more interesting. Kirk Douglas on the other hand though, does a great job of playing the role of Spartacus. He really gets into character and shows what a slave’s life was like at the time.
Overall, the movie was pretty good in my opinion, it had its own flaws, but then again every movie does. From the way they displayed artwork during this time with the architecture and clothing and sometimes the props used, it was pretty cool to see their interpretation of the Roman Empire during the movie. The actors in the movie did a pretty great job of showing what life not only as a slave, but as a higher up was like. I think that was the main purpose of the movie, to show just how insane the Roman Empire was and what civilizations were like. From the way they battled during events, to being one of the most powerful civilizations of all time. I would probably give this movie a 4 out of 5 stars because it really does do its job of presenting Roman life, there is just some simple things I would change about it. It being made in 1960 and not having the technology we do today made it harder to display everything, but it did well for the time period. All in all, that is my review of the movie Spartacus.
