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Gladiator (2000)
Gladiator is a 2000 epic action adventure drama film directed by Ridley Scott and written by David Franzoni, John Logan, and William Nicholson from a story by Franzoni. It stars Russell Crowe, Joaquin Phoenix, Connie Nielsen, Oliver Reed, Derek Jacobi, Djimon Hounsou, and Richard Harris. Crowe portrays Maximus Decimus Meridius, a Roman general who is betrayed when Commodus, the ambitious son of Emperor Marcus…
Directed by Ridley Scott · Shot by John Mathieson · Cut by Pietro Scalia · Music by Lisa Gerrard, Hans Zimmer · Ratio 2.35:1 · 155 min
How it was made
- For the opening Germania battle, Scott learned the Forestry Commission planned to clear a section of Bourne Wood near Farnham and got permission to burn the trees down on camera for the scene.
- In Malta, the crew built a physical replica of roughly one-third of the Colosseum to a height of 52 feet; the remaining two-thirds and extra height were added digitally.
- Cinematographer John Mathieson shot the battle sequences with multiple cameras running at different frame rates and a 45-degree shutter angle, producing the same stylised, staccato look used in Saving Private Ryan.
- After Oliver Reed died of a heart attack before completing his scenes as Proximo, the production filmed a body double and digitally grafted Reed's face onto the double's performance, rewriting the script so the character dies rather than survives as originally planned.
Behind the scenes
Elsewhere
More by Ridley Scott
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