The rebellious Thracian Spartacus, born and raised a slave, is sold to Gladiator trainer Batiatus. After weeks of being trained to kill for the arena, Spartacus turns on his owners and leads the other slaves in rebellion. As the rebels move from town to town, their numbers swell as escaped slaves join their ranks. Under the leadership of Spartacus, they make their way to southern Italy, where they will cross the sea and return to their homes.
The most courageous thing about it, from today's standards, is that it closes without an obligatory happy ending, and an audience that has watched for 187 minutes doesn't get a tidy, mindless conclusion.
– Roger Ebert,
Chicago Sun-Times,
1 Jan 2000
rotten:
It is a spotty, uneven drama.
– Bosley Crowther,
New York Times,
9 May 2002
fresh:
Asurprisingly apt companion piece to Paths of Glory in its consideration of the mechanisms of power.
– Derek Adams,
Time Out,
9 Feb 2006
fresh:
This may be the most literate of all the spectacles set in antiquity.