Spartacus
1960 Directed by Stanley Kubrick
Synopsis
More titanic than any story ever told!
Spartacus is a 1960 American historical drama film directed by Stanley Kubrick and based on the novel of the same name by Howard Fast about the historical life of Spartacus and the Third Servile War. The film stars Kirk Douglas as the rebellious slave Spartacus who leads a violent revolt against the decadent Roman empire. The film was awarded four Oscars and stands today as one of the greatest classics of the Sword and Sandal genre.
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I thought I knew what the meaning of epic was. And then I saw Spartacus. It's based on a historical account of the life of Spartacus, so it makes sense that the film is similarly comprehensive. Spartacus was a slave who led a revolt against the excess of Rome after being trained to fight to the death. He is a hero in every sense of the word, inspiring hundreds of people to fight and die by his side in the name of freedom. Like a boss, he also finds time to fall in love in the cutest and most innocent courtship ever.
What an exhilarating ride! Every single character is given flesh and bones, motivations, and independent thoughts and feelings.…
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It feels like Kubrick sold out a bit with Spartacus. This epic is certainly big and long but the moments of greatness are few and far between.
I loved the initial gladiator uprising, the way it was visceral and spontaneous and yet made perfect sense, without any convoluted love triangles and inspiring speeches like in the recent tv series. Also the shots of Rome, the walking through the fields of the dead after the battle and the famous "I AM SPARTACUS" scene were all great.
The rest ranges from fine (Roman politics) to passable (the battle) to downright awful. The romance was particularly cringe-worthy. It's like it was written by a manchild from 1860, think Star Wars prequels tier terrible,…
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I AM SPARTACUS!
I AM SPARTACUS!
I AM SPARTACUS!
I AM SPARTACUS!
I AM SPARTACUS!
I AM SPARTACUS!
I AM SPARTACUS!
I AM SPARTACUS!
I AM SPARTACUS!
I AM SPARTACUS!
I AM SPARTACUS!
No, I'm Brian!
I AM SPARTACUS!
I AM SPARTACUS!
I'm Brian!
I AM SPARTACUS!
I AM SPARTACUS!
I AM SPARTACUS!
I AM SPARTACUS!
I'm Brian and so's my wife! -
In my mind it's the pinnacle of the historical epic genre, never surpassed before or since. The acting, specifically from Peter Ustinov, Laurence Olivier, and Kirk Douglas, is all 2 or 3 steps better than usual for the genre - thanks in part due to the fantastic script.
And I love the noticeably Kubrickian visual touches, few and far between though they are - the fight to the death as viewed through wooden slats on a door, for instance, or the long lateral tracking shot following Spartacus on horseback surveying his army's training.
Compare it to 2001 or The Shining and be disappointed, compare it to Ben-Hur or El Cid and see it as a masterpiece of the form.
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This is how I would’ve played it…
Me: I’m Spartacus!
Slave 1: I’m Spartacus!
Me: Oh yeah that’s right I forgot, this guy is Spartacus. I’ll just sit down yeah. -
I have issues with movies in which the lead actor is either the director or producer, and the movie builds up the main character as a beacon of righteousness and badassery. Mel Gibson does this even in movies he doesn't direct. Clint Eastwood does this often. Kevin Costner quite famously did it. Tom Cruise regularly produces movies in which he plays ludicrously amazing tough guys. And Spartacus, in which Kirk Douglas does this for himself. It's hard not to think of this movie as a lighter more violent Ben-Hur.
I prefer this movie to Ben-Hur a hundred times over. And I'm grateful that the movie doesn't have the slightest interest in exploring anything remotely spiritual (as the opening narration points…
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A great story, if not particularly well told. Still, the quality supporting performances don't make up for an oddly paced, overlong, tonally inconsistent mess.
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first time really seeing this all the way through. This is Douglas's film more than it ever was Kubrick's. The proof is in the overwrought sentimentality and endless violin swelled character moments that are so on the nose their is little doubt in my mind who is the father of them. Still there are great moments when you can feel Kubrick's hand.
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I can see that this is a great film. That's why I'm giving it four and a half stars. I can see the greatness. But there's some sort of disconnect that stops me from falling in love with the movie in the way that I feel I normally would. I'm not sure what is causing the disconnection, but it's there and it bothers me.
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Kubrick knows no bounds, he has tried his hand at almost ever genre of film and mastered them all. Spartacus is the swords and sandals epic that is just that- epic!
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I've avoided this film for years, both out of respect for Kubrick's desire to distance himself from it and my own lack of interest in the sandbox epic genre. While it is the least distinctly Kubrick of all of his films, it does bear some mark of its maker and is certainly worth a look. Though it is quite brisk for most of its three hour plus runtime, it becomes a bit anti-climactic after the big battle scene and the third act is nearly ruined by too much of the hammy and consistently overrated Sir Lawrence Olivier.
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I finally watched this because more people said "I can't believe you haven't seen Spartacus" than with any other movie. It was really good. I just don't think I'm a fan of historical epics.
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great
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Alternately rousing and cheesy.
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Pleased I watched this, it's a film I really should have seen years ago and I can now finally remove what is a 3 hour epic from my Watchlist.
Having recently seen STARZ production of Spartacus I found this version a little dated and unevenly paced. I'm not a TV fan but the STARZ version with its brilliant CGI and unique dialogue makes for fantastic entertainment.
Comparing this version to other epics made around the same time, Ben Hur for instance, I'd have to say Spartacus is good but Ben Hur is much better.