Commodus

Emperor Commodus Born on the 31st of August, 161 AD, Marcus Aurelius Commodus Antoninus Augustus, later known as Commodus, was the Roman Emperor from 180 AD to 192 AD. He was the first Emperor to succeed his blood father since since Titus succeeded Vespasian in 79, and was also the first Emperor to be born “in the purple”, which means he was born during his father’s reign. Commodus is largely considered one of the worser Emperors to have ruled the Roman Empire. Though he ruled for quite a long period of time, by the end of his rule, his own ego had back quite prevalent throughout the empire. Commodus had always placed emphasis on his own divine right. Numerous statues portraying him as Hercules were placed all over the empire, against the senate's wishes. Commodus also later claimed to be the son of jupiter, the representative of the supreme god of the Roman pantheon. His ego grew to megalomaniacal proportions, as evident in the way he celebrated his power. Rather than honour his descent from Marcus Aurelius, the actual source of his power, Commodus…

Character-wise, Gladiator is historically unsound. There is little historicity in the film’s antagonist, Commodus. Scott clearly misread descriptions of Commodus’s physique and appearance. According to a Roman civil servant, Commodus was, at the time of his father, Marcus Aurelius’s, death, in the prime of youth… his hair, naturally blond and curly gleamed in the sunlight as if it were on fire (History of the Roman Empire, 2007, chapter 7). Gladiator’s Commodus, however, has short, straight hair…

Maximus Decimus Meridius take his place as emperor. However, Marcus Aurelius’ son, Commodus, takes matters into his own hands to guarantee that he will be the one to be proclaimed heir and ultimately, Caesar. Although, the film explores the history of Rome by including several historical figures, it is mainly based on a fictional plot. “Gladiator” includes significant figures, however modifying them and their backstories immensely, and presenting the famous gladiator fights of Rome in a way that…

A man is robbed of his name tries to gain freedom of his people, in this historical drama directed by Ridley Scott, released in 2003. The death of Marcus Aurelius in the year 180 A.D threw the Roman Empire into chaos. Maximus, one of the Roman army`s trusted generals and advisor to the emperor was sent to be executed when Marcus`s son Commodus rises to throne. Maximus manages to escape but is captured by slave traders, renamed Spaniard and became a gladiator by force. His battle experience…

figure, the Roman emperor Commodus is a fascinating character. Even more interesting are the varying portrayals of him. Director Ridley Scott saw an opportunity for this character when he directed his 2000 epic, Gladiator. Gladiator has been deemed a visual masterpiece that brings Ancient Rome to modern audiences. There is no doubt that the movie is visually stunning with its sweeping views that show the grandeur of the Coliseum, large gladiator battles, beautiful landscapes, and beautiful…

Marcus Aurelius (Richard Harris), reveals to his son, Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix), that he wishes for Maximus to become his successor. In a fit of rage, Commodus murders his father and declares himself as Marcus Aurelius’ successor. Soon after, Commodus calls for Maximus and orders him to swear fealty. Refusing to pledge his allegiance to the new emperor of Rome, Maximus walks out and Commodus orders for his execution at the break of dawn. Fortunately,…

Maximus and Commodus are two brothers in Gladiator that have two very different personalities. Maximus is the one who has conquered every challenge and every obstacle in his life, and he is not offered the throne after former leader Marcus Aurelius dies. Commodus is given the throne, and takes absolute power. It is seen that he is more of the jealous and envious brother, because Maximus takes nothing for granted and works for everything. I watched Gladiator and I’ll admit that it is a great…

Gladiator- First Quarter Extra Credit The Ridley Scott movie, “Gladiator”, starring Russell Crowe as Maximus, is the story of a Roman general who was asked to become the new emperor of Rome by the dying Marcus Aurelius. This angered and power-hungry the son of Marcus, Commodus, then killed his father before Maximus could make his decision. Commodus became the new emperor of Rome and ordered for Maximus to be killed. Maximus escaped from the officers who were going to execute him, and stole their…

In the 2000 film Gladiator, Maximus, a Roman general, is betrayed and forced to live as a slave in the arenas as a gladiator, where his strength and courage alone can free him from his imprisonment. With the ultimate goal of enacting revenge on Commodus, the emperor who put his family to death, Maximus proves himself on the battlefield by defeating numerous opponents, many very gruesomely, in the name of vengeance attempting to earn a rudiarius (a sword granted as a sign of freedom to…

The most prominent example of this is Emperor Commodus’ sister Lucilla. He is sympathetic towards her for two main reasons. First the hinting of the old flame cliché that they shared. Second, and possibly most important, Emperor Commodus uses her son to control her. Maximus shows such sympathy toward Lucilla because his wife and son was taken from him by Emperor Commodus. He doesn’t want anyone else to share that fate. An Official hero, according to Ray, “were preeminently worldly, comfortable…