4. It Has Incredible Action Sequences
Speaking of Blockbuster filmmaking, I think one thing people tend to overlook or forget when it comes to Gladiator is that it was released in May of 2000, kicking off the summer Blockbuster season. Many pundits complain that the Academy Awards too often ignore the action genre, and instead tend to reward boring historical dramas, a category to which many people seem to believe Gladiator belongs. But have we all forgotten that, at its core, Gladiator is an action film? And one of the best of the genre, at that! It starts off with a ten-minute battle scene on a massive scale, echoing imagery that we would later see in - yes, here it is again - The Lord of the Rings trilogy, among others. Subsequently we are treated to what are undoubtedly the best, bloodiest gladiatorial combat scenes ever filmed, from Maximus' first arena match ("Are you not entertained?") to the chariot battle to the iconic tiger fight. Sure, Gladiator spends a lot of time developing character and allowing its plot to unfold. But for extended stretches of time in the film, Scott puts all that aside and pulls an assortment of stylistic tricks out of his hat to craft some of the most riveting, exciting and brutal action scenes to grace a mainstream film.