AFI Top 100: #81
Nothing better than 3+ hours of naked dudes fighting for what they think is rightfully theirs. Stanley Kubrick's Spartacus is one of the most epic-in-scale films I have ever seen and one whose beauty lives up to those massive standards set by his direction. While I did not know exactly what this film was about going in, I left with both an appreciation for history and a renewed look at the power of filmmaking. Although this film is an incredibly gorgeous and detailed look at love and revenge, I could not help but feel like it was helmed by literally anyone else. Kubrick himself despites this film and I can definitely see why because of its shifty tone and lack of distinct, creative vision. Thankfully, that never detracts from how impactful this film ended up being and there are still plenty of genuinely emotional moments that got to me more than I would have believed. From the performances to the set design to the cinematography, this film is a technical marvel that makes it very clear early on why it has become such a classic.
After nearly dying of starvation as a slave, Spartacus (Kirk Douglas) is sold to a gladiator trainer named Batiatus (Peter Ustinov) to train as a fighter. Eventually, Spartacus is able to outsmart his captors and lead a rebellion of the slaves and while their numbers continue to grow after moving from town to town, they make their way to Italy where they plan on returning to their homes. This is one of the largest-scale films of this era that I have ever seen and Spartacus has the script to go along with that as well. The screenplay from Dalton Trumbo, based on the novel by Howard Fast, is incredibly expansive and if there is anything that can be said about Trumbo's script, it's that he left no stone unturned. The incredibly deep exploration of love and revenge throughout this movie was brilliant and I adored the blend of small-scale drama with the actual armies of people fighting against each other. There was truly something for everyone to love throughout the writing and it is not difficult to become invested in a plot of this sheer magnitude. Simply seeing the waves of people and extras in this film in the war sequences and ginormous gladiator battles is impressive enough and the only other film around this era that I can think of to compare this movie to would be Ben-Hur. Both of these films gain much of their notoriety and value from how unbelievably big the productions are and I think that this style of filmmaking works equally as well for both. Kubrick's direction in this film, however, did not ever really stand out to me like I thought it would. Being one of the most famous, auteur directors of all time, I really thought that Kubrick would be able to bring more of his own style to this film to make it stand out amongst the rest of the historical war films but I never really felt like this was a Kubrick movie. There was plenty of studio interference and creative decisions made that were out of his control but I just think that a film about one of the most famous Thracians to have ever lived could have been given a much more memorable treatment by someone as acclaimed as Kubrick.
The performances from this entire cast were just phenomenal but some of my favorite standouts included Kirk Douglas, Jean Simmons, and Laurence Olivier. Douglas, playing the titular protagonist of this film, was just astounding in both a physical and emotional capacity. Every scene of him fighting in the gladiator arena contrasted with the scenes of him falling in love with Simmons' character Varinia were all played to perfection. Douglas is such a legendary actor and this film really showcases his undeniable talent to express any and every kind of emotion. His chemistry with Simmons was fantastic as well and her portrayal of Spartacus' love interest was just great. Olivier plays such an amazing antagonist as well, as his character of the Roman leader Crassus was simply vile. The way he treated people and women and disregarded any kind of human existence was embodied amazingly by Olivier and he plays an opposite to Douglas in such a mesmerizing way. These two men command the screen more than anyone else at the time and placing them in this historical epic together was one of the best artistic (and marketable) choices of all time. While the story and performances throughout this film blew me away, I was also surprised at how beautiful this story looked. The cinematography from Russell Metty was stunning and his wide encapsulation of this story was perfect for how grand it was. The way the camera moves through every scene almost makes it become a character in itself and I loved how Metty framed every shot of this undoubtedly magnificent film. The production design and costuming in Spartacus were also wonderful and while it might seem like a talented crew on that front is required for a film like this, they really went above and beyond. The costumes for every main and even minor, background character in this film were all so incredible to look at and the budget behind this must have been insane. The sets and production design were also very obviously meticulous and like I mentioned before, the pure scale of this film is nothing short of a marvel itself.
Stanley Kubrick's Spartacus might not exactly feel like a Kubrick film but there are enough technical pieces of this movie that make it worth a watch. Douglas is particularly stunning in this titular role and along with the grandiose design team behind this entire film, it is hard not to at least be impressed by the level of craftsmanship and detail that went into its making. I am still not a huge fan of this epic, historical, war genre but luckily I could find so much to enjoy throughout this film that I was never too bored or distracted by anything else that was going on.
My Rating: ★★★½
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