“His performance is incredible” Joaquin Phoenix deserved an Oscar for Gladiator: Russell Crowe is ashamed of having won the award 24 years ago

Gladiator: the rebirth of the peplum at the cinema

The peplum is a very particular genre of cinema, fallen into disuse due to its generally pharaonic cost. Featuring a fantasized vision of ancient history or mythology, these films have long enjoyed immense success. Cleopatra, Samson and Delilah, Ben-Hur, Spartacus or even Clash of the Titans are just a few examples among the dozens and dozens of feature films released. However, the peplum became rare in the 70s and almost disappeared in the 90s. But it was without counting on Ridley Scott, who for his part was determined to prove that the formula could be modernized with a tighter subject and a staging as spectacular as ever.

This is how the film was imagined Gladiator. The latter tells the story of Maximus Decimus Meridius, a Roman general particularly appreciated by Marcus Aurelius, then emperor. Unfortunately, the death of the emperor also marked the end of the career of Maximus, betrayed by the emperor’s son, Commodus. Fallen, he is hunted down by his former soldiers and left for dead. He is recovered by a slave trader who heals him, and who finally allows him to enlist as a gladiator. Maximus obviously shows great talent, and gives everything to be sent to the Colosseum in Rome, where he can try to take revenge. If historical characters are present and certain reconstructions hit the mark, Gladiator is pure fiction, the events occurring there ultimately having little historical significance.

But whatever, the film is of a formidable efficiency, notably thanks to its sets, its music, and its top-notch casting. We indeed find Russell Crowe, Joaquin Phoenix, Connie Nielsen (who we will find in Galdiator 2), Oliver Reed, Derek Jacobi and even Richard Harris (Dumbledore in the first two Harry Potter). Enough to support the success of the work, which generated over $465 million at the box office for a budget of 102 million.

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Russell Crowe does not budge: Joaquin Phoenix deserved his Oscar

This commercial success was also accompanied by critical success, with no less than 12 Oscar nominations for 5 statuettes : best sound, best costumes, best film, best visual effects and best actor. Add to that 5 BAFTAs, 3 Empire Awards, 2 Golden Globes and 3 Satellite Awards. The statuette for best actor in a leading role therefore went to Russell Crowethe actor playing Maximus. However, 24 years after the film’s release, the actor is still embarrassed to have been more rewarded than Joaquin Phoenixwho played the terrible Commodus. Nominated for best supporting role at the Oscars, he was beaten by Benicio Del Toro in Traffic.

The last time I saw the film, I was a little embarrassed about the fact that I received so many accolades for it. (…) My character, Maximus, may be the driving force of the story, but there is much more. I don’t know why the rest of the world didn’t understand how majestically Joaquin appeared in it. His performance is crazy.

Joaquin Phoenix, who we saw in Signs, Napoleon, The Village, Walk the Line, The Master or even Beau Is Afraid had to wait a long time to lift the precious golden statuette. He was nominated twice with Walk The Line et The Masterbut it was finally in 2020 that he won the Oscar for best actor. If you follow his career, you know that it was for his role as the Joker in the 2020 film of the same name that he won the award. It is currently on display with Joker: Folie à Deuxfilms which are much less unanimous than the first. He shares the lead role with Stefani Germanotta, better known under the pseudonym Lady Gaga, who plays Harley Quinn.

As for Gladiator 2it will be released in just a month. Directed by Ridley Scott, it will follow in the footsteps of Lucius, nephew of Commodus admiring the exploits of Maximus. The film takes place under the emperors Geta (Joseph Quinn) and Caracalla (Fred Hechinger), twenty years after the first film. Lucius (Paul Mescal) has therefore become an adult and will do everything to touch the glory of his idola quest during which he will cross paths with Marcus Acacius (Pedro Pascal), Gracchus (Derek Jacobi) and Juba (Djimon Hounsou). It remains to be seen whether the film, with a budget of 250 million dollars, will know how to rise on the shoulders of his illustrious elder.