The Tale of Spartacus

Spartacus is a slave in the mines of Libya, though he is much more power, intelligent, and proud than the slaves around him. His perceived arrogance causes him to be punished regularly. His defiant attitude leads him to attack a Roman guard who tries to stop him from supporting another slave. He is tied down and left to rot, but is saved when he is purchased by Batiatus, who buys slaves to turn into gladiators. The new trainees are treated poorly by their trainer Marcellus and pitted against one another. When Spartacus makes an effort to befriend Draba, another trainee, he is turned down based on the idea that they will be forced to kill each other later. He meets Varinia, a slave, and begins to fall in love with her as his training continues. A group of elite Romans, including Crassus, soon arrive at the camp and demand a group of four slaves fight to the death for their entertainment. The group includes both Spartacus and Draba. When Draba defeats Spartacus in battle, he refuses to strike the finishing blow, leading to Crassus killing Draba instead. When Varinia is sold to Crassus, Spartacus objects, and, when attacked by Marcellus, he kills his trainer. This leads the slaves to riot and steal weapons to escape the camp. They travel around to pillage and recruit more people to support them, causing them to become a target. While traveling, Spartacus finds Valinia, who joins their party. Later, Spartacus meets a group of pirates who he trades his wealth to in exchange for ships, claiming that his men could beat the Roman army because they were not afraid to die. Soon, the group is attacked by Glabrus and his garrison, but they are able to defeat the garrison and capture Glabrus. Eventually, Spartacus and his men are seen as a major threat and Crassus is given an army to put them down. When he finally beats them, Crassus says that men will be spared if they reveal who Spartacus is, but each slave claims that they are Spartacus in order to protect their leader. The real Spartacus is ordered to fight to the death, but wins his bout, leading him to be crucified instead. The film was an entertaining retelling of the heroic story of Spartacus and his slave uprising, but it makes clear edits to history in order to create a more compelling narrative. Spartacus is made to be almost completely perfect as the hero, while Crassus is made to be pure evil as the villian.