Ridley Scott and the Structure of an Epic in the film Gladiator

Ridley Scott and the Structure of an Epic in the film Gladiator

The blurb for Gladiator claims that Scott has brought the epic into

the twenty first century, and in many ways he has, with a blend of the

technology of today, in the superb graphic realism and the way of life

in ancient Romethat lends itself so well to the epic status.

But is this a real epic with all the characteristics and parts that

will make it a remembered film for many years to come, or just a good

film that you see and forget? In this essay I plan to investigate

this, to show both my point of view, and the facts, that may, or may

not make this an all time classic. To do this I will be outlining in

detail certain parts of the film so as to analyse and compare with

classic epics and their structure. My first section will be on the

start battle in which Maximus leads his troops to victory.

My first point links it to the epic status as it starts right in the

middle of things. The film starts fast. Ridley Scott doesn't waste a

second. You are with Maximus getting the troops ready for battle. This

means that there is no introduction to Maximus and who he is, but the

way it starts almost makes you think you know him. He is the respected

leader as the film follows him around the battlefield. This links him

again to the epic hero needing no introduction.

There is a muse at the very start of the film with Maximus walking

through the fields; this is relating him to the basic essentials of

life. It makes a humble connection so that he is at one with the

earth. Both of these are connections to the epic hero that Ridley

Scott is trying to develop.

Ridley Scott uses ...

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...enator to be reinstated and a democracy formed, saying

that there was a dream called 'Rome' and that 'these were the last

wishes of Marcus Orilious'. This shows he is selfless and is not doing

it for himself. He is doing it for the nation which is a classic epic

structure.

There are a few characteristics of epic structure that are not shown

in the film, for example, he is not (as far as we know) descended

from, or looked after by the gods. He is trying to get revenge and

there is little listing of former heroes as he is descended from

farmers.

In conclusion, I think that Ridley Scott has successfully brought the

structure of an epic into the twenty first century with a superb film

that has an excellent blend of technology and history, but it is not a

film that in one hundred years time will be deemed a classic.