(3.75 out of 5, just to be ornery)
I'd read enough of the reviews to figure it wasn't worth seeing--in fact, I'm not sure I would have gone were it not for the fact that my 12 year old son does occasionally pull rank. So I went in with my expectations suitably lowered and came away liking it much more than I would have thought.
Yes, there was far too much Republic vs. Empire nonsense. Yes, the story was thin. The CGI effects were distractingly weak. I didn't care much for the action sequences--although I did really like the immediacy of the first death in the first fight. (splud! and it's all over, dude.) The opening battle was quite good, but the combat scenes didn't live up to the flaming arrows and the bombs, which was a disappointment.
And where the hell was the sex? Rome at the height of its decadence, and there is one kiss and an Emperor who lusts after his sister, but doesn't ever seem inclined to do anything about it.
But you know, I liked Maximus. I liked his love for his home and family, his qualities as a leader, his friendship with Juba, his relationship with Proximo and Lucilla. For that matter, I liked Juba, Marcus Aurelius, Lucius and Proximo, found Lucilla refreshingly different for a woman in an action film (how many action films have the hero and heroine discussing their kids, proudly?), and heartily approved of the villainous Emperor, who was just a tad less weak and a shade more sympathetic than one would have thought was safe. The writers, for all their many sins, seemed to have turned away all stock characters at the door.
Call me a sucker, but I found the West Side Story aspect of the last Coliseum sequence quite moving. The final scene in the movie was also well done, both in the choice of character and the dialogue (which, for all its many flaws, rarely went over the top). Besides, any movie that ends with The Chick in Charge is never going to get dissed by this woman.
The performances were the film's strong point. Jack is just dead wrong about Oliver Reed--although it's a shame his death made certain script changes necessary. Richard Harris was extremely good, but then he's always best in small doses. Phoenix was impressive. I, too, liked the new kid actor. Nielson was decent, and the big, slow, guy was kind of fun.
It's certainly not a great film, but it's worth a look.
