MOVIE COMPANY: Dreamworks Pictures & Universal Pictures
CAST: Starring Russell Crowe, Joaquin Phoenix, Connie Nielsen, Oliver Reed, Derek Jacobi, Djimon Hounsou and Richard Harris.
DIRECTED BY: Directed by Ridley Scott
PRODUCED BY: Douglas Wick, David Franzoni, Branko Lustig
RATING: Rated R
INTERNET MOVIE DATABASE URL: http://us.imdb.com/Title?0172495
TYPE OF MOVIE: Action, Drama
DURATION: 2 Hrs., 35 minutes
Discover the unparalleled power and glory of GLADIATOR, a dazzling combination of vivid action and extraordinary storytelling that critics called a “stunning, explosive, breathtaking epic!” (Bill Diehl, ABC Radio Network) Masterfully directed by Ridley Scott (Alien, Blade Runner), GLADIATOR features a riveting performance from Academy Award -nominated star Russell Crowe, hailed by Newsweek as “a genuine larger-than-life hero!”
DVD EXTRAS:
• Region 1 encoding (US and Canada only)
• Color, Closed-captioned, DTS Surround Sound, Widescreen, Dolby, Surround Sound, Digital Sound
• Commentary by director Ridley Scott
• Production notes
• Two-disc set
• “HBO First Look” Making Of
• The Learning Channel’s “The Bloodsport of a Gladiator”
• 25 minutes of Deleted Scenes with director’s commentary
• Treasure Chest 7 minute montage of additional unused footage
• Interview with Hans Zimmer on scoring the film
• Two Behind-the-scenes featurettes
• One-Of-A-Kind production diary written by actor Spencer Treat Clark (“Lucius”)
• Slide show featuring concept art and storyboards
• Photo gallery from Behind-the-scenes of Gladiator set
• Widescreen anamorphic format
• Number of discs: 2
KNOWN DVD SECRET(S):
Hidden trailer:
Insert the bonus features disc, select the “More” option at the main menu, then select the “Trailers & TV Spots” option on the next menu. Press Left to highlight the bird emblem, then press Enter to view a trailer from Chicken Run.
Deleted scene bonus:
Insert the bonus features disc, select the “Original Storyboards” option at the main menu, then select the “More” option on the next menu. Select the Rhino Fight deleted sequence, then highlight the rhino on the center of the first story board and press Enter.
DVD REVIEW:
For so long I have avoided this movie.  Everyone has told me it was good but there was something about the movie that prevent me from watching. Was it Crowe? Was it that I heard it was a long and violent movie? Or is it because I have become a fan of DVD’s and was expecting a major DVD release for the Gladiator?
I think it was the latter because I’m glad I waited. This DVD is packed with special features.
There are a total of two DVD’s. The first is the movie (in which they included a DTS version…audio lovers will love this) and the second DVD features a lot of extras from deleted scenes, montage, interviews, featurettes and more.
As for the story? It’s awesome! I enjoyed it a lot. It wasn’t as violent/bloody as I expected (from the way people were talking about it). The video is brilliant and the audio is available via DTS & Digital 5.1. You can’t go wrong with this DVD because it’s a must buy!
THE MOVIE:Â A
THE DVD EXTRAS:Â A+
THE DVD OVERALL:Â A