Gladiator: Maximus’s Revenge
The movie starts with General Maximus commanding a Roman Army against the remnants of the Germanic Tribes. With this victory, the Roman army has finally defeated the tribes for good. The emperor at the time, Marcus Aurelius, is reaching the end of his life and needs to announce a new emperor. He has a son named Commodus, however, the son lacks the key values of a good Roman, so Marcus Aurelius wants to name Maximus emperor. The emperor also had a daughter named Lucilla who acts as a voice of reason to Commodus. Before Caesar can make this announcement public, Commodus kills him and says he was named Caesar. He asks Maximus to then give him his support, but Maximus disrespects him by ignoring the offer. Commodus then orders Maximus to be killed along with his wife and young son, but Maximus escapes. He is wounded in his escape and tries to reach his family in time but is too late. He is captured by slave traders who heal him and then sell him to Proximo, a former gladiator, and owner of a gladiatorial school. Under Proximo’s ownership, Maximus was made to fight in gladiatorial games in Mauritania, where he was dubbed “the Spaniard.”
Under Marcus Aurelius, gladiatorial games were banned in Rome, but Commodus decided to honor the dead emperor with 150 days of Games. This turns out to be opportune for Maximus as Proximo has to bring gladiators to Rome for the games. In the first game, Proximo’s gladiators fight, they are meant to be the Carthaginians that get brutally defeated by Scipio Africanus’s legions, however with Maximus’s military prowess they defeat the legionnaires. This upset caused the Emperor to come down to the pit and ask Maximus to reveal his identity. Maximus obliges and shocks Commodus. Caesar wants to kill him but he knows he will lose the people’s favor if he does, so he spares Maximus but tries to plot his death. Now with his identity revealed, Maximus is visited by Lucilla who wants him to overthrow the emperor because he is the only person who the people like more. Lucilla has him meet with a Senator who opposes Commodus however they are being tracked and Commodus destroys their plans. The next day Commodus is going to fight Maximus in the arena, but he secretly wounds Maximus. Maximus still is victorious and kills Commodus but dies from the wound he was given before the battle. The rule of Rome is given back to the senators.
Overall the movie was really entertaining and told a great story. Before watching the movie I didn’t really think about sibling relations, especially of ruling families, and how likely incest was. Before Commodus was killed he was going to force his sister to have children with him, which is horrible. This movie also shed light on their medical knowledge and limitations. Maximus received a nasty wound on his arm during his escape and that was healed, but his wound from Commodus was enough to kill him. Overall I highly recommend this movie for a good action movie.
