Gladiator: The Making of the Ridley Scott Epic (Pictorial Moviebook) - Softcover

Scott, Ridley; Parkes, Walter; Black, Sharon; Landau, Diana; Franzoni, David

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1557044317 ISBN 13: 9781557044310

Publisher: Newmarket Press, 2000

Synopsis

The official illustrated companion book to the winner of five Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actor (Russell Crowe), Costume Design, Sound, and Visual Effects.

Director Ridley Scott (Blade Runner, Thelma and Louise, Alien) brings the glorious battles of the ancient Roman arena back to the big screen. Set against the splendor and barbarity of the Roman Empire in AD 180, Gladiator tells an epic story of courage and revenge: The great Roman general Maximus (Russell Crowe) has been forced into exile and slavery by the jealous heir to the throne, Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix). Trained as a gladiator, Maximus returns to Rome, intent on avenging the murder of his family by Commodus, now emperor. The one power stronger than that of the emperor is the will of the people, and Maximus knows he can attain his revenge only by becoming the greatest hero in all the Empire. Russell Crowe heads up an international cast that includes Joaquin Phoenix, Connie Nielson, Oliver Reed, Derek Jacobi, Djimon Hounsou, and Richard Harris. Directed by Ridley Scott from a script by David Franzoni and John Logan, Gladiator is produced by Franzoni, Douglas Wick, and Branko Lustig, with Walter F. Parkes serving as executive producer.

This is the official full-color companion book, featuring excerpts from the screenplay, historical sidebars and illustrations, details on period costumes and epic set designs, behind-the-scenes photographs from the location filming, and interviews with the screenwriters, actors, and director.

About this title

Review:

Historians not affiliated with the movie Gladiator praise it as the most realistic depiction of Roman combat ever committed to celluloid. Gladiator: The Making of the Ridley Scott Epic illustrates how the filmmakers achieved that authenticity. It's the official tie-in, and one of the handsomest movie books Newmarket Press has ever produced. (No, it's not as fancy as The Art of the Matrix, but it's not that kind of massive book--this one is for the howling yet discerning fans in the cineplex coliseum.) The filmmakers explain how they coped with the considerable weight of Roman movie tradition--"Transcending the Toga," they call it--mostly by drawing their inspiration more from Gérôme's 1872 gladiator painting Pollice Verso ("Thumbs Down"), an evocative rendering of the life-or-death drama subject to the emperor's whim. Ridley Scott is famous as a director (the modern equivalent of an emperor), but he started out as a painter at London's Royal College of Art, and his training has served him well.

Explications of scary stunts and ingenious special-effects scenes, crisp film stills, fascinating storyboards, architectural renderings, thumbnail histories, cast profiles, production drawings of boar-tusk helmets and spiky maces--this little book packs in a lot of information, and enlarges one's appreciation of a very big movie. --Tim Appelo

About the Author:

Ridley Scott is the director of G.I. Jane, White Squall, 1492: Conquest of Paradise, Thelma and Louise, Black Rain, Someone to Watch Over Me, Legend, Blade Runner, Alien, The Duellist, and the forthcoming Hannibal (2000).

David H. Franzoni's previous films include Amistad and Jumpin' Jack Flash.

John Logan was a screenwriter for RKO 281, Any Given Sunday, and Bats.

About this edition

• Publisher: Newmarket Press
• Publication date: 2000
• ISBN 10: 1557044317
• ISBN 13: 9781557044310
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 160