Gladiator (2000) - #27

Empire top 301: #27
IMDb top 250: #61

Rating 10/10

Director: Ridley Scott
Writers: David Franzoni, John Logan & William Nicholson
Starring: Russell Crowe, Joaquin Phoenix, Connie Nielsen, Oliver Reed & Richard Harris

"Are you not entertained?"

Yes I'm entertained, very entertained. A great story, great writing, great acting, great direction and a great score. What more could you want from a movie! This movie is a joy to watch and is one that I could watch again and again. Ridley Scott has created a modern day epic and even though 13 years old it hasn't aged a day. Scott's direction along with John Mathieson's cinematography is simply stunning. The opening battle scene in Germania, every scene in the Colosseum, the landscape; it is beautiful and all played over by Hans Zimmers gorgeous score!  

The writing is amazing and there are times when it sounds like poetry. This may be down to some exquisite acting from all involved. Russell Crowe is terrific as Maximus and his performance deservedly won him the Best Actor Oscar in 2000. He plays the part perfectly going from strong and commanding in one scene to full of emotion and touching in the next. The supporting cast are equally as excellent, Joaquin Phoenix is brilliant as the evil Commudus never hamming it up and Connie Nielsen is splendid as Lucilla. 

However the real stars for me are the late Richard Harris and Oliver Reed. Oliver Reed in particular who steals every scene he is in, subtly and beautifully. How he did not receive a posthumous Oscar nomination for this performance I'll never know. 

This an exciting, moving, inspiring, gorgeous movie and one I would highly recommend. It throughly deserves it's place in the 500 greatest movies of all time, however I would've placed it a lot higher than Empire magazine did!

Raging Bull (1980) - #69

Empire top 301: #69
IDMb top 250: #102

Rating 9/10

Director: Martin Scorsese
Writers: Paul Schrader & Mardik Martin
Starring: Robert De Niro, Joe Pesci, Cathy Moriarty

"You didn't get me down, Ray"

As a film lover it shocks even myself that I have never seen Raging Bull. A film so highly regarded by anyone who has seen it. I think probably the main reason I haven't seen this movie is I'm not a huge fan of sports movies! I'm not a huge fan of sports, period! My dad recently bought the 30th Anniversary Blu-ray addition and last night I decided to watch and kick off this blog.

Going into the movie I knew nothing about Jake La Motta or boxing, turns out I didn't need to. Whilst a boxing movie there isn't a whole lot of boxing scenes, but what boxing scenes they are! They are so beautifully shot and edited, I felt every punch. I loved the shot after La Motta takes a beating from Sugar Ray during their final fight and the camera pans to show the blood dripping from the ropes whilst the real life commentary from that fight plays over it. It's perfect.

This is more a character piece than a boxing movie and the acting from De Niro, Cathy Moriarty and Joe Pesci is truly amazing. In fact to me De Niro isn't acting, he is his character. A character I actually routed for yet found completely unlikeable. His performance is so layered, a violent and confident man in the ring but one consumed with jealousy and insecurities outside of a it. I felt the emotions behind his eyes! His physical transformation is also unbelievable, to put on all that weight in the name of art! Maybe, his greatest performance ever!

The subtlety in which Cathy Moriarty plays Vickie with is superb and all the more impressive when I learnt she was only 19 when playing the role and this was her first film! The looks Vickie gives to Jake, it seems as though she liked pushing his buttons, she liked making him jealous. There were times during the movie I wanted her to explode and play it loud and over the top but thinking about it now, that wouldn't have worked, she played it just right.

It's a disgrace to the Academy that this movie lost out to Ordinary People (?) at the Oscars in 1981 in both Best Director and Best Picture category's. Robert Redford was obviously Hollywood Golden Boy at the time! However the Academy did get it right by having enough sense to give De Niro the Oscar for Best Actor. It was fully deserved.

This is a beautifully shot and acted movie and kept me entertained throughout it's 2hr running time. A must see!

Empire - The 301 Greatest Movies Of All Time

Empire 301 List

To watch, rate and review all 301 movies listed in the Empire list of The 301 Greatest Movies of All Time Poll! (2014)