Oral Research - Genre and Audience

1. Gladiator by Ridley Scott falls could fall under the category of an action-adventure genre but more specifically is labeled as an historical epic. The genre “epic” translates into the personal struggle of the protagonist and highly illustrates human drama on a much more comprehensive scale. The “history” part plays in since the film’s setting ties into the early years of the Roman Empire, and shows the stereotypical “sword and sandals” nature of the society.  

2. The features that distinguish this film as an “historical epic” are the specific elements and techniques used within the film. For example, Gladiator is set in 180 AD and portrays the personal struggle of the gladiator Decimus Maximus in his rise to glory. This story is told in a very narrative structure, as it follows the theory of the “Hero’s Journey.” Joseph Campbell, a well-known humanitarian and author, had created a structure in where the protagonist underwent dilemmas in a specific order “Separation. Initiation (the call to adventure). Return.” Most epics follow this method of good triumphing over evil, and so does Gladiator as it retells the hero’s journey to becoming powerful. Another element that I noticed during the film was the action sequences filled with gory and bloody decapitations. In itself, these rapid moving scenes created a faster moving plot allowing for excitement and tension to build.  Of course, there are elements, which are common such as the strict gender roles in the film such as the women being the objects of man’s control, and the man fighting for himself and his endless ego. Like most epics the ending is both fruitful and ends with some form of a comforting closure leaving the hero at peace and victorious. Finally, there is also the production value of this film since it is after all a historical piece. Many props, costumes, settings, people, culture would have been necessary resulting in a high production budget.

3. Gladiator would be connected to other films that fit in it’s similar genre. Take notice of films such as Braveheart directed by Mel Gibson. Dances with wolves directed by Kevin Costner, and Gone with the wind by Victor Fleming.  These films are all related through the chronological narrative structure, and the protagonist’s journey to overcoming and self-realization. However there are also films that would fall in the same setting and historical background; Movies like The fall of the roman empire, 300,Troy. These films simply take place during the same time period, and express life during the Roman Empire.

 4. This film was directed by the great director and admired producer Ridley Scott. He is well known for woks such as Alien (1979), Hannibal (2001), Black Hawk Down (2001), Kingdom of Heaven (2005). Being nominated for golden globes and Emmy awards he is one of the many successful film directors during our time. His inspiration for the film Gladiator was reveled in a personal interview to which he answered he was “looking for a metaphor of mortality.” He also said as he was in Tuscany he had seen the figure of a roman soldier, and at once had this idea of life resembling heaven. Through his words we can assume that he wanted an epic since he wanted to express a personal theme of morality. His desire for a symbolic film intertwined with history as the visual sights of a roman soldier inspired him to help express his message. The movie itself is not the retelling of history, but instead captures the human man’s thoughts and actions as he learns to find no distinguishing factor between heaven and life itself.  

5. From this film we can depict many qualities from the director. For starters, the director is not new to film as it is very clear that he has experience in the field of visual arts. He was able to recruit many high profile celebrities such as Russell Crowe and Joaquin Phoenix to play the important roles in his film. Also he had a rather large and vast production team behind the entire making of Gladiator, as the influx of actors and historically accurate settings made the film reach such high standards. In addition, a lot of CGI ANIMATION was used throughout film resulting in a nomination for best visual effects in 2003. The creators of the film were very strategic and understood the movie business. Scott’s gladiator was not only a masterpiece through all the production efforts to replicate the Roman empire, but a moving parable of life itself and how innocence could be lost and gained through hardships. Many of his films relate to a power struggle between the forces of evil and good, and is not afraid to push society’s boundaries. A charming aspect of Scott is that he gives women a much more powerful role throughout this film (as women are usually not that important in previous films.)

6. The director plays a very influential role in the production, and there are many similarities to the film Gladiator and to many previous. In his previous film “Blade Crawler” the narrative structure is very similar. In this movie, many critics claimed that procession from the sequence to sequence was excruciatingly slow. In Gladiator, it was very much the same thing. For the audience we were thrown with so much information and given acceptable time to understand the plot, however it got very repetitive after a while as the scenes would slow down only to come to a fast paced fight scene. It’s a unique method of structure, however it lacked in it’s way originality. Also, regarding the technical elements (plot/element wise) there was hidden theme of father and son issues. In Gladiator his son stabs the king in his final hours in order to retain his crown, this scene is also repeated in Blade Runner. Another example of this theme, is that at the end of both Gladiator and Blade Runner there is a scene of the son meeting their father, or the father dying before so.

The director’s main message of Good vs. Evil is expressed well in Gladiator. However many other critics will claim that the movie is simply another film revolving around gore, passionate revenge, and personal triumph. The film’s theme could be interpreted that good will always triumph over evil despite all the challenges. However I’d like to interpret the theme of this film is that hope relies within oneself and only true happiness can be found this way. In the film the Maximus goes from a leading commander to a slave of the Roman Emperor. Forced to fight battles, he gains the favoritism of thousands of citizens and catches the eye of many political powers. In time he learns the king murdered his family and seeks revenges on him. In the final scene he manages to kill the king at the cost of his, and the citadel gathers around him to honor him. He is seen going through a grassy field, to which he’d always flashback to, and is content that he is able to see his family once again.

7. The target audience is aimed at those 18 and older. The film itself is not too controversial for a teen to understand, but the use of violence and other illicit adult behavior might render it unsuitable for minors. Despite this, the film essentially could attract a large percentage of the male audience. Gladiator is a strategic film that follows the audince formula of all great films: violence, first-class animation, great casting, more violence, revenge, and more graphic fight scenes. Gladiator increased its publicity through trailers and simply because it was a film created by Ridley Scott. The musical composition as well could attract the audience, as it’s a beautiful composition of breathtaking scores and pieces help tie the film together.

RESOURCES:

"Ridley Scott." Wikipedia - the free encyclopedia. Wikipedia, 24 jan 2012. Web. 26 Jan 2012. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ridley_Scott>.

Oscars. Director Ridley Scott discussing "Gladiator". 2008. video. YoutubeWeb. 26 Jan 2012. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x2jDbgQ57ZM>.

Scott, Ridley. "Ridley Scott: The Holywood Interview." Venice Magazine. Interview by Alex Simon. 28 Feb 2008. Venice Magazine, Venice. 2000. Print. <http://thehollywoodinterview.blogspot.com/2008/02/ridley-scott-hollywood-interview.html>.

Rob, Wilson. "Ridley Scott's Gladiator and the spectacle of empire: global/local rumblings inside the Pax Americana.." Euorpean Journal of American Culture. 21.2 (2002): 62. Web. 26 Jan. 2012. <http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?vid=7&hid=12&sid=a3b14ece-e207-4387-9da1-f52ca7064e65@sessionmgr4&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ==

Rob, Wilson. "Gladiator and the Myths of Rome." History Today. 55.4 (2005): 37-43. Web. 26 Jan. 2012. <http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?vid=7&hid=14&sid=a3b14ece-e207-4387-9da1-f52ca7064e65@sessionmgr4&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ==