Episode 858: We Want To See the Gladiators. It’s a Movie Called Gladiator.

Overthinking It Podcast

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Hot on the heels of our discussion about Sequel Culture, Matt Belinkie, Mark Lee and Pete Fenzel re-enter the arena to discuss Gladiator 2. In the halcyon summer of 2000, it seemed to some people that liberal democracy had won a final enduring victory, and the original Gladiator’s framing of tyranny versus republican virtue didn’t seem like biting social commentary. Twenty four years later this sequel gives us essentially the same plot, but its endless speechifying about the lost dream of democracy and rule of law feels painfully on the nose. But what are the different strategies the movie presents for countering that tyranny? Meeting violence with violence? Organizing political resistance? Or the Denzel Washington option: chewing the scenery while seizing control of the rickety institutions of state from the inside? We don’t learn very much about real Roman history from this movie, but we might learn something about our future.

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Further Reading

• From Principate to Dominate: When Roman Emperors Became Boastful Autocrats
• Baboon Pictures | Page 4 | AfricaHunting.com
• Better Man | Official Trailer (2024 Movie) – Robbie Williams, Michael Gracey, Jonno Davies:

Episode 858: We Want To See the Gladiators. It’s a Movie Called Gladiator. originally appeared on Overthinking It, the site subjecting the popular culture to a level of scrutiny it probably doesn't deserve. [Latest Posts | Podcast (iTunes Link)]