I could not disagree more with Bryce on this film. Of all the gladiator type films I've seen over the years, this one stands among the top five.
The two films that followed were actually prequels, rather than sequels, but neither was as good as this one.
Vadis was among the best of the muscle-hound actors, even better than Reeves, in many ways. He could play good guys, as well as bad guys, and he even succeeded at playing bad guys better than good. His acting was athletic and animated...and he was at least as handsome as Reeves.
What happens to his character was shocking and unexpected, which actually made it better than the usual, to me. I like films that veer off in an unexpected direction, and that's exactly what the director had in mind, I suspect. Life is full of unexpected events. The ending was way cool! If you want to see what a fine actor Vadis was, check out the spaghetti western called Deguello. He's brilliant in it! All in all, this film is one the best of it's kind...good story, good acting, and all.
The two films that followed were actually prequels, rather than sequels, but neither was as good as this one.
Vadis was among the best of the muscle-hound actors, even better than Reeves, in many ways. He could play good guys, as well as bad guys, and he even succeeded at playing bad guys better than good. His acting was athletic and animated...and he was at least as handsome as Reeves.
What happens to his character was shocking and unexpected, which actually made it better than the usual, to me. I like films that veer off in an unexpected direction, and that's exactly what the director had in mind, I suspect. Life is full of unexpected events. The ending was way cool! If you want to see what a fine actor Vadis was, check out the spaghetti western called Deguello. He's brilliant in it! All in all, this film is one the best of it's kind...good story, good acting, and all.