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| Spartacus [HD DVD] [1960] | ![Spartacus [HD DVD] [1960]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51OtU4nkj8L._SL500_.jpg) | Director: Stanley Kubrick
Actors: Kirk Douglas, Laurence Olivier, Jean Simmons, Peter Ustinov, Tony Curtis
Studio: Universal Pictures UK
Category: DVD
List Price: £19.99
Buy New: £0.88
as of 9/9/2010 23:31 CEST details
You Save: £19.11 (96%)
New (23) Used (3) from £0.88
Seller: findprice
Rating:  35 reviews
Sales Rank: 10,312
Format: Anamorphic, PAL
Language: English (Original Language)
Rating: Parental Guidance
Media: HD DVD
Aspect Ratio: 16:9 - 1.78:1
Number Of Discs: 1
Running Time: 186 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 7.1 x 5.4 x 0.6
EAN: 5050582531350
Theatrical Release Date: 1960
Release Date: November 5, 2007
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.co.uk Review
Stanley Kubrick was only 31 years old when Kirk Douglas (star of Kubrick's classic Paths of Glory) recruited the young director to pilot this epic saga, in which the rebellious slave Spartacus (played by Douglas) leads a freedom revolt against the decadent Roman Empire. Kubrick would later disown the film because it was not a personal project--he was merely a director-for-hire--but Spartacus remains one of the best of Hollywood's grand historical epics. With an intelligent screenplay by then-blacklisted writer Dalton Trumbo (from a novel by Howard Fast), its message of moral integrity and courageous conviction is still quite powerful, and the all-star cast (including Charles Laughton in full toga) is full of entertaining surprises. Fully restored in 1991 to include scenes deleted from the original 1960 release, the full-length Spartacus is a grand-scale cinematic marvel, offering some of the most awesome battles ever filmed and a central performance by Douglas that's as sensitively emotional as it is intensely heroic. Jean Simmons plays the slave woman who becomes Spartacus's wife, and Peter Ustinov steals the show with his frequently hilarious, Oscar-winning performance as a slave trader who shamelessly curries favor with his Roman superiors. The restored version also includes a formerly deleted bathhouse scene in which Laurence Olivier plays a bisexual Roman senator (with restored dialogue dubbed by Anthony Hopkins) who gets hot and bothered over a slave servant played by Tony Curtis. These and other restored scenes expand the film to just over three hours in length. Despite some forgivable lulls, this is a rousing and substantial drama that grabs and holds your attention. Breaking tradition with sophisticated themes and a downbeat (yet eminently noble) conclusion, Spartacus is a thinking person's epic, rising above mere spectacle with a story as impressive as its widescreen action and Oscar-winning sets. --Jeff Shannon
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 35
 spartacus(import) September 7, 2010
gobber
Four decades before Gladiator there was the epic Spartacus and they
don't come more epic than when you have Stanley Kubrick at the helm.
Kirk Douglas plays the title character who rebels against the rule
of the roman empire.
The disc is of very good quality and yes it is a pity it's been split but that asides this was meant for blu-ray.
 Remind Me To Take Other People's Good Advice July 15, 2010
Mark Barry at Reckless Records, London (UK)
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
*** For the HD DVD Version only ***
I had read that this HD-DVD was awful in terms of the print - and I thought to myself, it can't be all that bad. Remind me to listen to other people's good advice...
For about 70 to 80% of the film, the print is scratchy, full of blocking and at times woefully washed out. It unfortunately gets in the way of concentrating on the movie.
Half way through it, I switched off. I know I'm never going to play this ever again. What a disappointment...
Unless you absolutely have to have this, then it's one to avoid I'm afraid.
A very entertaining move April 11, 2010
AJW (Essex)
Stanley Kubrick entered the big time here, being asked to substitute for director Anthony Mann, who was the first choice for Spartacus, in and fact did direct the opening scenes of the movie. Kubrick clearly has to work within certain creative boundaries, imposed by either the studio or Douglas, as the films producer. Some scenes are melodramatic and some of the moralising is a bit too obvious, particularly the scenes with Douglas and Simmonds and Douglas to the masses, albeit Olivier does make his scenes with Simmonds more interesting and less saccharine. In fact Olivier, Ustinov and Charles Laughton are the best performances in the film, with Olivier's Crassus oozing power, but becoming more vulnerable when seeing its impact (or lack thereof) on Spartacus; Ustinov's opportunist who nevertheless evokes sympathy as the 'survivor' character and Laughton's character's clever manipulations of gullible senators and his political sparring with Crassus in the 'Republican v Dictator' duel. Douglas is solid enough, albeit in archetypal Hollywood Leading Man mode, and certainly a role that is not quite as interesting as say for example, his performance in Paths of Glory, his previous collaboration with Kubrick.
Despite this, and the rather obvious flamboyant approach to the design and photography, which was to show "look at the money we are spending on this" ($12 million, a lot at the time), Kubrick brings competent direction and more fleshed out (supporting) characters than usual for a film of this size and scope. Editing is first rate, as is Alex North's music, and the action sequences are generally well handled. The best sequences are the gladiator combat scenes in front of the Crassus character early on in the film, and the arrival of the Roman Legions on the site of the films final battle, where image, editing and music come together brilliantly. The films climax is a bold and interesting choice, and works so well partly because Douglas plays his character in a more understated fashion in this part of the film. Its also interesting to see Crassus try many times, and fail every time to get one over Spartacus, even though at first glance it looks like Crassus does.
The plot, while loosely based on history, is the best part of the film, and while there are one or two convenient co-incidences, is doesn't mar the film and is no more than in any populist large scale Hollywood Movie. The political machinations that Spartacus becomes involved in are very prescient and still apply to situations seen by holders of power today, and this key subtext was clearly articulated, especially the handing over of more power to a leader in the interests of 'security'.
Overall, a very entertaining action film, with an atypical but highly effective climax. It was Kubrick's last experience of the Hollywood System, and from now on Kubrick would work independently out of England, which would give his subsequent films a very different look and feel. Great value as a very cheap HD DVD with an absolutely fantastic image and excellent sound.
History February 17, 2010
Paul Moortgat
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
I recommend it. I know it for so long, and now I bought it. At last.
Spartacus DVD 1960 February 12, 2010
John Mallon (Dublin)
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
Excellent Movie, at this price You can't go wrong! Re-edited with great sound and picture.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 35
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