Roman times...

Gladiator, which was made in 2000, is a movie that people just won’t see every year. Directed by Ridley Scott, Gladiator is about a young farmer, Maximus, (Russell Crow) who was a former general in the Roman army and is condemned to die because of a trap. As he escapes death, he finds out his family has been murdered and from that point on he becomes a slave and becomes one of the greatest gladiators to fight in the arena. The Roman Empire is then controlled by Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix). Even though the plot and the actors provide one of the most entertaining movies of the year, the music and soundtrack to the movie is the most important part of Gladiator, because it expresses the plot that the audience sees very carefully.

From the intro of the movie, there is a song called Duduk of the North, which portrays Maximus (Crow) who is a general in the beginning of the movie as he controls one side of the roman Cavalry to lead against the enemy. Once he wins the battle, the song is heard throughout the victory and while Maximus is meeting up with the head general to be congratulated. This music that portrays this victory and introduction to the movie is quite important, because it shows to the audience how important Maximus is as a general in the Roman army. The biggest thing is that most people notice that this all happens before he is condemned to death and his family is killed which changes the movie completely.

Another intriguing song to the movie that is quite supportive to the soundtrack is called Homecoming, which portrays how Maximus and Caesar, the ruler of Rome (Phoenix) meet in the coliseum after Caesar had condemned him to die. After Maximus had just won a mighty battle in the coliseum with other gladiators, Caesar comes out of his spectator box and onto the fighting ground so that he can meet the gladiator. And while Caesar doesn’t realize that he’s talking to a man he once condemned to death, he becomes frustrated as Maximus turns his back to him and then he hear that this once a Roman general who fought on the same side as Caesar. All in all, this song portrays the hardships that Maximus has suffered and how he reacts to Caesar in the end really depicts there negative relationship as the movie progresses which creates such a dramatic movie ending.

Gladiator is a mix of adventure and romance along with history of course when it comes to gladiators fighting in the Roman Empire. The most important aspect of the movie is definitely the music, because it portrays important scenes and shows the audience the true plot without the action and minimal special effects of the fighting. I definitely recommend Gladiator to any person who is open minded to a mix of action and history as an interest. Not only is there good acting as well as an interesting plot, but the soundtrack is the clear summary of the movie and it shows its true plot.