In the last century before the birth of Christ the Roman Empire was at a zenith, dominating through its enormous military strength both culturally and intellectually across the known world. Slaves from all parts of conquered nations formed the backbone of Rome?s prosperity and enabled the Romans to lead an ultra privileged lifestyle. Gladiatorial contests were one manifestation of the Roman power and great store was placed on the ability to train gladiators to fight to the death.
One of the slaves was a man named Spartacus, a Greek who pined for freedom from his Roman oppressors. When singled out to join a gladiator school Spartacus at first didn?t seem to have the intestinal fortitude for the task but his prowess grew as his love for the beautiful Varinia blossomed. When some important travelling Romans came to the school and demanded to see some of the students fight to the death Spartacus was one of the four chosen. He almost died at the hands of his Ethiopian opponent until the Ethiopian turned on his captors and died for his trouble. His example emboldened Spartacus who led a revolt by the slave gladiators resulting in their escape from the school compound.
With little planning the slaves found themselves free and Spartacus as their leader. He managed to harness their power into a formidable fighting force that crossed Italy on its way to meet with Silesian pirates to escape the country. On the way Spartacus found Varinia again and their relationship enhanced his determination to remain free. After routing a superior Roman force Spartacus sent their leader back to Rome with a message that the slaves intended to leave the country and wanted no further fighting. There ends the first disk and in a throwback to a long ago era we find ourselves at Intermission.
The second disk opens with further defeats for the Romans pursuing the slaves but when they reach the sea the wily Romans have bought off the Silesians and there is no fleet to take them away. Spartacus realises that the only way out is to fight all the way back to Rome, a strategy that offers the greatest reward of freedom but the one that has the greatest risk of defeat. He longs for freedom for his soon to be born son. In one final battle the slaves pit themselves against a mighty Roman army, unaware that two other Roman armies have arrived also made the battlefield. Initially the slaves look like winning but when the two extra armies arrived to cut off their escape the slaves are routed and many of them are captured.
While touring the battlefield looking for Spartacus the Roman General Crassus finds Varinia with her newborn son and takes them into his own home in the hope that Varinia will learn to love him. Crassus is keen to find Spartacus himself and when he offers amnesty to any slave who points out Spartacus the slaves rise one by one, all claiming to be Spartacus. In frustration Cassus orders the prisoners to be marched back to Roman, with a slave to be crucified about every 20 metres along the way. By the time they reach Rome only two slaves are left and Antoninus the poet slave and Spartacus are ordered to fight to the death for Crassus? benefit. Spartacus wins and is hung on a cross to be crucified.
Varinia is assisted to escape Rome and on the way out the gates the guards stop her and her escort. She finds Spartacus on the cross but still alive and shows him his son, pledging her love for Spartacus and reminding him their son is free before heading off to a new life.
The story is a powerful one about how people who appear to be downtrodden will long for the freedom most of us take for granted. It also shows that even the most dominant oppressor will struggle when the sheer weight of numbers of people focused on the idea of freedom is aligned against them. The capacity for the Romans to underestimate their opposition just because they were slaves underlines how arrogance can be costly. But at the end of the campaign it also proves that those with enormous military might will usually overpower their enemies regardless of the rights of the respective causes.
At one stage in one of the extras the cast assembled is touted as the best ever assembled and I for one don?t really have an argument with the concept. Kirk Douglas was an excellent action actor, Olivier has always been regarded as one of the best actors in any role, stage or screen, ever, Laughton is one I could watch all day, Simmonds was on of the premiere leading ladies of the time, Ustinov has long been singled out as one of the world?s best character actors and the young Tony Curtis was at the start of a great career. The acting is superb and the sheer scope of the exercise of bringing together so many extras to be both the slave and Roman armies is amazing. The scenery is breath taking and the locations are stunning. I can see why it was the most expensive movie ever made at that stage. While the $12 million doesn?t sound much these days they really got some bang for their buck back then. This movie has stood the test of time and despite its extraordinary three and a quarter hour length it is well worth the journey.

THE EXTRAS

On the first disk you can select scenes and have a commentary over the film. The same is on offer in the second disk but then there are a heap of extras to pore over. There is a range of deleted scenes, you can watch slightly different endings and there is an offering of the scene where Spartacus first meets Varinia done one way for English and then another for American audiences. There is a selection of newsreel footage covering the London Premiere, Tony Curtis winning an award, Olivier in Hollywood, Kirk Douglas joining the Hall of Fame, including putting his chin in to the concrete outside Grahman?s Chinese theatre in Hollywood, Douglas in New York, an interview with Jean Simmonds although for some strange reason the interviewer?s questions aren?t audible and a couple of interviews with Peter Ustinov. You can also see behind the scenes at the Gladiator school, promotional material including production stills, lobby cards posters, print ads and a comic book sequence. Director Stanley Kubrick?s scene sketches are offered although I reckon Kubrick should stick to directing, the original film trailer and Saul Bass? storyboards. Finally we get to see a short documentary on the Hollywood Ten a group of famous Hollywood writers and directors who ran foul of the US Congress? Committee on Un-American Activities in the early 1950?s, Spartacus? writer Dalton Trumbo among them.

CONCLUSION

A lowly Greek slave called Spartacus initiates a slave?s revolt that challenges the then seemingly unchallengeable authority of Rome in the last century before Christ. With thoughts of eventual freedom driving the slave army on they form a formidable foe that manages to defeat a succession of Roman armies. When trapped the slaves choose to fight rather than submit and Spartacus and his fellow slaves suffer the full wrath of a superior Roman force, but not before his newborn son is allowed to escape to the life of freedom Spartacus so desperately wanted.