Winning numerous accolades, Gladiator won five Academy Awards at the 73rd Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Actor for Crowe. Critics praised the acting (particularly Crowe's and Phoenix's performances), Scott's direction, visuals, screenplay, action sequences, musical score, and the production values, although its dark and brooding tone was criticized. On its release, the film grossed over $503 million worldwide, becoming the second highest-grossing film of 2000 behind Mission: Impossible 2. British post-production company The Mill, which constructed the film's computer-generated imagery effects, had to create a digital body double for the remaining scenes involving Reed's character Proximo.ĭespite its troubled production, Gladiator was anticipated to be one of the year's most successful films. Complications of the film's production were made worse when Reed died of a heart attack before production could be wrapped up. Several of the cast complained about the writing quality throughout the nineteen-week shoot in Fort Ricasoli, Malta, forcing many rewrites. Principal photography, which began in January 1999 and wrapped up in May of that year, was known to have a set of problems due to the script being unfinished. Mannix's 1958 book Those About to Die (formerly titled The Way of the Gladiator), the film's script, initially written by Franzoni, was acquired by DreamWorks and Ridley Scott signed on to direct the film. Reduced to slavery, Maximus becomes a gladiator and rises through the ranks of the arena to avenge the murders of his family and his emperor. Crowe portrays Roman general Maximus Decimus Meridius, who is betrayed when Commodus, the ambitious son of Emperor Marcus Aurelius, murders his father and seizes the throne. It stars Russell Crowe, Joaquin Phoenix, Connie Nielsen, Tomas Arana, Ralf Möller, Oliver Reed (in his final role), Djimon Hounsou, Derek Jacobi, John Shrapnel, Richard Harris, and Tommy Flanagan.

DreamWorks Pictures distributed the film in North America while Universal Pictures released it internationally through United International Pictures. Gladiator is a 2000 epic historical drama film directed by Ridley Scott and written by David Franzoni, John Logan, and William Nicholson.

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