Two quick observations: (1) The movie’s title character and protagonist may very well possess the most straight-up-manly name ever created. Maximus. Decimus. Meridius. It has the solemn gravitas of a university motto while, at the same time, implying awe-inducing combat skills and fable-worthy sexual prowess. And, (2) It’s impossible to think of any actor who could’ve played the part any better than Russell Crowe. You believed he was a stud in the arena and a champion in the bedroom. He looke just as good in the ermine-draped splendor of a Roman general as he did in the generally unflattering cut of a slave’s tunic. More than that, he got audiences to buy into Ridley Scott’s handsome swords-and-sandals epic by imbuing his tragic and principled hero with an earnest decency that gives the big-budget genre movie some genuine emotional heft.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ol67qo3WhJk]