THE GLADIATOR GAMES
IN THIS BUILDING...
WERE PLAYED
FOR AT LEAST 400 YEARS.
THERE'S A FASCINATION
IN THE HUMAN PSYCHE
WITH VIOLENCE AND SUFFERING.
[ Man ]  "I HAPPENED
TO CALL IN AT A MIDDAY
SHOW IN THE AMPHITHEATER...
"EXPECTING SOME SPORT,
 FUN AND RELAXATION.
"IT WAS JUST THE OPPOSITE.
"BY COMPARISON,
 THE FIGHTS THAT HAD ALREADY
 TAKEN PLACE WERE MERCIFUL.
"NOW THEY REALLY
 GOT DOWN TO BUSINESS,
 WITH SHEER MURDER.
"IN THE MORNING,
 MEN ARE THROWN TO THE BEASTS.
AT NOON, THEY ARE THROWN
TO THE SPECTATORS."  SENECA.
[ Spectators Shouting ]
WE ASK ALL THE TIME,
"COULD WE BE LIKE THESE GUYS ?
"COULD WE SIT
 AROUND 50,000 PEOPLE
 IN A GREAT BUILDING...
WATCHING SOMEONE DIE,
CHEERING ?"
GLADIATORIAL COMBAT
IS TERMED "BLOODSPORT."
THIS MEANS A SPORT
WHERE BLOOD IS SHED.
IT IS NOT A SPORT...
JUST TO THE POINT
WHERE A WINNER AND A LOSER
IS DECLARED.
IT MUST END IN THE DEATH
OF ONE OF THE CONTESTANTS.
[ Narrator ]
WHO WERE THESE
ANCIENT WARRIORS ?
WHERE DID THESE MASKED MEN
COME FROM, AND WHAT KIND
OF LIFE DID THEY LEAD ?
IN THE NEXT HOUR,
WE WILL TAKE YOU
BACK TO ANCIENT ROME...
AND SEE HOW ONE
OF HISTORY'S MOST
SOPHISTICATED CIVILIZATIONS...
COULD ALSO BE VIEWED
AS ONE OF THE MOST BRUTAL
AND SAVAGE OF ALL TIME.
WE WILL LEARN OF THESE
ANCIENT ICONS OF WARFARE...
AND SEE
THAT THE BLOODY SPECTACLES
IN WHICH THEY PARTICIPATED...
MAKE ANY SPORTING EVENT
IN MODERN TIMES SEEM TAME.
HOW SIMILAR ARE THESE
ANCIENT BATTLES TO THE DEATH...
TO TODAY'S SPECTATOR SPORTS ?
LIKE THE ROMANS BEFORE US,
ARE WE INSTINCTIVELY ATTRACTED
TO THE SAME ELEMENTS...
OF SKILL, DANGER, COMBATIVENESS
AND EVEN DEATH THAT THEY WERE ?
AND WITH THE HELP
OF STATE-OF-THE-ART
TECHNICAL WIZARDRY,
WE'LL GET A FIRSTHAND LOOK
AT WHAT LIFE WAS REALLY LIKE...
FOR A ROMAN GLADIATOR...
WITH AN EXCLUSIVE LOOK AT
HOLLYWOOD'S NEWEST EPIC FILM,
GLADIATOR.
I THINK IT'S A GREAT,
OLD-FASHIONED YARN...
THAT'S BEEN
REALLY WELL ILLUSTRATED.
AND WE AIN'T
SEEN THIS BEFORE.
[ Narrator ]  VISIONARY
DIRECTOR RIDLEY SCOTT AND
ACCLAIMED ACTORS RUSSELL CROWE,
JOAQUIN PHOENIX AND
THE LEGENDARY RICHARD HARRIS...
SHARE THEIR THOUGHTS
ON BEING INVOLVED
IN THIS HOLLYWOOD ADVENTURE.
I'VE DONE SOME
PRETTY PHYSICAL STUFF,
BUT THIS IS JUST UNRELENTING.
[ Narrator ]
SO JOIN US WITH SOME OF
THE WORLD'S LEADING SCHOLARS...
AS WE LEARN WHAT WAS FACT
AND WHAT WAS FICTION...
IN THE MYSTERIOUS
AND FASCINATING WORLD
OF THE ROMAN GLADIATOR.
THIS WAS
THE GLADIATOR'S OATH,
WORDS THAT SENT
MEN AND WOMEN...
INTO A WORLD
OF BANISHMENT, ISOLATION
AND POTENTIAL GRISLY DEATH.
IRONICALLY,
THESE WERE ALSO WORDS
THAT BROUGHT A SELECT FEW...
GREAT FAME,
WEALTH AND FREEDOM.
[ Spectators Cheering ]
[ Man ]
THE GLADIATOR
IS THE LOWEST OF THE LOW.
HE IS BELOW
THE HORIZON SOCIALLY.
[ Woman ]
LITERALLY, HE WAS UNSPEAKABLE.
NOBODY COULD TALK ABOUT HIM.
[ Man ]  WE ARE TOLD THAT
GLADIATORS ARE THE MOST SEXUALLY
DESIRED PEOPLE IN THE EMPIRE.
IT'S LIKE BEING
A MODERN SUPERSTAR.
GLADIATORS ARE FIGHTERS...
WHO ARE DEVELOPED
AS A TRADE, AS A BUSINESS.
THEY WERE TRAINED
TO GIVE GOOD ENTERTAINMENT
TO THE PEOPLE.
"IT DOES PEOPLE GOOD
 TO SEE THAT EVEN SLAVES
 CAN FIGHT BRAVELY.
"IF A MERE SLAVE
 CAN SHOW COURAGE,
 WHAT THEN CAN A ROMAN DO ?
"BESIDES, THE GAMES
 HARDEN THE WARRIOR PEOPLE
 TO THE SITES OF CARNAGE...
AND PREPARE THEM
FOR BATTLE."  CICERO.
[ Narrator ]
BATTLE WAS A WAY OF LIFE
IN THE ROMAN EMPIRE.
THE CARNAGE EXPERIENCED
ON THE FRONT LINES OF COMBAT...
REACHED DEEP
INTO THE ROMAN PSYCHE.
I THINK IT'S OBVIOUS
THAT A BIG CONQUEST STATE...
CONTROLS AN ENORMOUS...
SWATHE OF THE FACE
OF THIS EARTH...
DEPENDS ON THE EXERCISE
OF BRUTE FORCE.
SO, IN THAT SENSE,
BRUTALITY IS A PART
OF THEIR SOCIETY.
[ Narrator ]  THE ORIGINS
OF THE GLADIATOR COME NOT FROM
VIOLENT PUBLIC ENTERTAINMENT...
BUT FROM ANCIENT
ETRUSCAN FUNERAL PROCESSIONS...
THAT MADE SACRIFICES
TO THE GODS OF THE UNDERWORLD...
IN HONOR OF THE DECEASED.
[ Wallace-Hadrill ]
SO, TO BEGIN WITH,
GAMES ARE ALWAYS STRICTLY
ASSOCIATED WITH THE DEATH
OF A MEMBER OF THE FAMILY.
AND THEN, AS THE POLITICAL
BONUS OF GIVING GAMES...
BECOMES MORE AND MORE APPARENT,
THEY START TO LOOK FOR EXCUSES.
IT'S NOT JUST
THE DEATH OF A FATHER.
IT'S THE DEATH OF AN UNCLE.
IT'S THE DEATH OF A COUSIN.
AND PEOPLE REMEMBER,
"OH, MY DAD DIED
 20 YEARS AGO.
"I BETTER CELEBRATE
 HIS DEATH NOW,
"BECAUSE NOW
 IS WHEN I'M PUTTING IN
 FOR POLITICAL OFFICE,
AND I WANT TO BE POPULAR."
[ DeConciliis ]
THIS IS TAKING
THAT HUMAN SACRIFICE...
AND MAKING IT
A LITTLE MORE ENTERTAINING...
FOR THOSE
WHO ARE ATTENDING A FUNERAL.
 YOU HAVE FRESCOES
 IN ETRUSCAN TOMBS...
WHERE YOU SEE FIGHTS
BETWEEN, FOR INSTANCE,
ONE MAN WITH A BAG
OVER HIS HEAD WHO CAN'T
SEE WHAT HE'S DOING...
AND ANOTHER MAN
WHO HAS A NASTY DOG
ON A STRING.
AND THE GAME IS,
WILL THE MAN WHO
CAN'T SEE WHAT HE'S DOING...
MANAGE, WITH A BIG CLUB,
TO BEAT THE OTHER MAN,
OR WILL THE DOG WIN ?
[ Narrator ]
THESE MACABRE AMUSEMENTS
WERE THE SEED...
THAT WOULD GROW
INTO AN INDUSTRY
OF SPECTACLES OF DEATH...
THAT WOULD THRIVE
FOR CENTURIES.
UNTIL THIS POINT IN HISTORY,
HUMAN KILLING HAD ONLY BEEN
ACCEPTED IN WARTIME.
GLADIATORS BECAME
THE FIRST HUMAN SACRIFICES...
IN THE NAME
OF PUBLIC ENTERTAINMENT.
SO WHO BECAME GLADIATORS ?
WHERE DID THEY COME FROM
AND WHAT WAS THEIR LIFE LIKE ?
[ Speaking Italian ]
[ Translator ]
GLADIATORS WERE EITHER SLAVES,
PRISONERS OF WAR,
PEOPLE WHO WERE
CONDEMNED TO DEATH...
OR FREE MEN
WHO HAD FALLEN ON HARD TIMES.
THEY CHOSE THIS OCCUPATION
TO REDEEM THEMSELVES...
AND TO MAKE EASY MONEY
 AND FIND GLORY.
[ Narrator ]  HOWEVER, THERE
WAS A SOCIAL STIGMA ASSOCIATED
WITH BEING A GLADIATOR.
THERE IS A TECHNICAL TERM
IN ROMAN LAW, INFAMIA,
FOR SOMEONE WHO IS INFAMOUS.
WHICH MEANT THAT HE COULD NOT
AT ANY TIME STAND FOR OFFICE...
OR DO ANYTHING THAT A MEMBER
OF THE ARISTOCRACY COULD DO.
THERE ARE VARIOUS ACTIVITIES
THEY MAY DO, INFAMIS.
APPEARING ON THE STAGE
AS AN ACTOR COMPLETELY
DESTROYS YOUR SOCIAL STATUS.
BEING A PROSTITUTE
OR BEING AN UNDERTAKER.
AND GLADIATORS ARE THERE...
WITH THOSE WHO ARE COMPLETELY
BENEATH CONTEMPT SOCIALLY.
BUT THE PARADOX IS...
THAT GLADIATORS
WERE MASSIVELY POPULAR.
[ Narrator ]
SO POPULAR THAT MEMBERS
OF THE ARISTOCRACY...
WERE WILLING
TO GIVE UP EVERYTHING
FOR THE THRILL OF THE ARENA...
TO BE A GLADIATOR.
FOR MOST,
IT MEANT CERTAIN DEATH.
AND THAT'S SOMETHING
THAT THE ROMANS THEMSELVES
FOUND QUITE HARD TO UNDERSTAND.
CICERO, FOR INSTANCE, SAYS,
"IT'S REALLY EXTRAORDINARY...
"THAT A MAN CAN TAKE
 THE GLADIATOR'S OATH WILLINGLY.
"'YOU MAY DO ANYTHING
  YOU WANT WITH MY BODY.'
HOW CAN A FREE MAN
VOLUNTARILY SAY THAT ?"
[ Narrator ]  IN FACT,
SO MANY ROMANS OF STATUS
WERE ATTRACTED TO COMBAT,
EMPEROR AUGUSTUS WAS FORCED
TO INITIATE PROHIBITIONS
ON THE ARISTOCRACY...
FROM ENTERING THE ARENA.
[ Man's Voice ]
"IT SHOULD BE PERMISSIBLE...
"FOR NO FEMALE OF FREE BIRTH
 OF LESS THAN 20 YEARS OF AGE...
"AND FOR NO MALE OF FREE BIRTH
 LESS THAN 25 YEARS OF AGE...
"TO PLEDGE HIMSELF
 AS A GLADIATOR...
"OR HIRE OUT HIS SERVICES
 FOR THE ARENA OR STAGE...
EXCEPT FOR THOSE
WHO HAD BEEN CONSIGNED
BY THE DEIFIED AUGUSTUS."
ROMAN SENATE.
ONE OF THE MOST
INTERESTING ISSUES CONNECTED
WITH THE AMPHITHEATER...
IS THE DUAL STATUS
OF THE GLADIATOR,
ON THE ONE HAND REMOVED
FROM POLITE SOCIETY,
ON THE OTHER HAND, A SUPERSTAR.
IT'S SOMETHING THAT THE STATE
FELT VERY UNCOMFORTABLE WITH.
BUT IT MAY BE A MEASURE
OF JUST HOW PROFOUNDLY
IMPORTANT THE GAMES WERE...
THAT THE STATE COULD REMAIN
UNCOMFORTABLE WITH IT
FOR CENTURIES.
THERE WAS NO WAY
OF CHANGING THE SYSTEM.
[ Narrator ]  ANOTHER REASON
THAT A GLADIATOR'S LIFE
MAY HAVE BEEN SO ATTRACTIVE...
WAS TO AVOID
MANDATORY MILITARY SERVICE,
A SERVICE THAT COULD LAST
UP TO 25 YEARS.
IF YOU BECAME A GLADIATOR
AND SURVIVED,
YOU COULD EXPECT TO RETIRE
IN ABOUT FIVE YEARS.
[ Potter ]
THE OFFICIAL PERKS OF THE
GLADIATOR ARE NONE TOO GREAT.
OBVIOUSLY, YOU LIVE
A FAIRLY HARD LIFE.
UNOFFICIALLY, OF COURSE,
YOU'RE A SUPERSTAR.
FREE PEOPLE WERE DRAWN TO IT
BY THE MONEY.
THE AMOUNT THAT YOU
COULD GET PER APPEARANCE
WAS REALLY QUITE HIGH.
THE LOWEST CATEGORY
OF GLADIATOR THAT WE KNOW OF...
COULD GET SOMETHING LIKE
THREE TIMES THE ANNUAL WAGE...
OF A PERSON IN THE ROMAN EMPIRE
FOR A SINGLE APPEARANCE.
AND THAT'S
IF HE'S NEVER DONE IT BEFORE.
A VERY TALENTED GLADIATOR,
AN EXPERIENCED GLADIATOR,
COULD GET 12 TIMES
THE ANNUAL INCOME
FOR A SINGLE APPEARANCE.
[ Wallace-Hadrill ]
THERE IS ALSO THE ELEMENT
OF SEXUAL ATTRACTION,
THAT THE GLADIATORS
ARE STARS IN THEIR LIFETIME.
JUVENAL,
THE WRITER OF SATIRES,
HAS AN ENTIRE SATIRE
ABOUT THE AWFULNESS
OF ROMAN WOMEN.
AND HE SAYS,
"ONE THING IS,
"THESE GREAT ARISTOCRATIC WOMEN
 JUST GO AND SIT IN THE GAMES...
"AND LUST AND DROOL
 OVER GLADIATORS.
"YOU LOOK AT THE GLADIATOR.
 HE ISN'T EVEN HANDSOME.
 HIS NOSE HAS BEEN HACKED OFF.
IT DOESN'T MATTER.
HE'S A GLADIATOR.
SHE WANTS HIM."
[ Narrator ]
JUST LIKE TODAY'S
SPORTING EVENTS,
FAN CLUBS EXISTED
FOR THE MORE POPULAR STARS,
AND YOU COULD BUY
ACTION FIGURE DOLLS
OF YOUR FAVORITE GLADIATOR...
THOUSANDS OF YEARS
BEFORE MICHAEL JORDAN.
A FAMOUS
AND SUCCESSFUL GLADIATOR
WOULD HAVE THIS FOLLOWING...
THAT BELIEVED THAT THERE
WAS SOMETHING MAGICAL
ABOUT HIS NAME...
SO THAT A LATER GENERATION
OF GLADIATORS MIGHT ALSO
TAKE THAT SAME NAME.
THEY TOOK THESE STAGE NAMES,
NAMES LIKE FLAME.
AND SOME OF THEM
WERE QUITE THE OPPOSITE,
CALLING YOURSELF
PEARL OR VIOLET,
WHICH PRESUMABLY WAS MEANT
TO LULL THE OPPOSITION INTO
A SENSE OF FALSE SECURITY.
IF YOU'RE FIGHTING AGAINST
SOMEBODY CALLED PEARL,
YOU PROBABLY THINK
YOU'RE GOING TO BEAT HIM.
A LOT OF GLADIATORS
HAVE VERY SIMILAR NAMES,
NAMES DRAWN
FROM GREEK MYTHOLOGY...
OR NAMES WHICH ARE SYMBOLIC
OF SPEED OR QUICKNESS.
WE CAN HEAR OF PEOPLE...
WHO WOULD CALL THEMSELVES
ACHILLES OR DIOMEDES
WHO WERE GREAT STARS.
[ Narrator ]
THE DEMAND FOR GLADIATORIAL
GAMES BECAME SO GREAT...
THAT IN THE '70s B.C.
A SYSTEM WAS SET UP...
TO FORMALLY TRAIN
LARGE NUMBERS OF GLADIATORS...
TO MEET THE VORACIOUS
DEMANDS FOR GAMES
ALL ACROSS THE EMPIRE.
[ Wallace-Hadrill ]
IT'S THEN IN
THE FIRST CENTURY B.C....
THAT THE ARISTOCRATS IN ROME
ARE SENDING ORDERS...
FOR HUNDREDS OF GLADIATORS
TO PUT ON AT ANY ONE SHOW.
BY THE TIME IT'S CAESAR
OR AUGUSTUS GIVING GAMES,
YOU GET UP TO THOUSANDS.
[ Narrator ]
JULIUS CAESAR IS CREDITED
WITH BRINGING THE SPECTACLE,
AS IT WAS CALLED,
TO THE MASSES.
HE CREATED GLADIATORIAL SCHOOLS
KNOWN AS LUDI...
THAT HOUSED UP
TO 2,000 GLADIATORS
AND WERE OWNED BY THE EMPEROR.
PROFESSIONAL FIGHTERS
LIVED IN GROUPS WITH SLAVES
AND PRISONERS OF WAR.
THE WHOLE UNIT
WAS CALLED A FAMILIA.
LIFE IN THE LUDI WAS SPARTAN.
A GLADIATOR SLEPT
ON A STRAW-FILLED MATTRESS
IN A BLEAK CELL.
THE WALLS STILL BEAR TESTIMONY
TO THEIR DAILY LIVES.
MOST IMPORTANT WAS A RECORD
OF THEIR PERFORMANCE
IN THE ARENA.
[ Wallace-Hadrill ]
EVERY GLADIATOR HAS
THEIR SCORE SHEET.
THEY REMEMBER EXACTLY
HOW MANY FIGHTS
THEY'VE BEEN IN,
EXACTLY HOW MANY TIMES
THEY'VE WON,
HOW MANY TIMES
THEY'VE BEEN LET OFF.
AND THE MORE YOU'VE WON,
THE HIGHER YOUR STATUS IS.
[ Narrator ]  ONE OF THE LARGEST
AND MOST ACTIVE SCHOOLS
WAS BASED IN POMPEII...
UNTIL IT WAS BURIED
BY THE MOUNT VESUVIUS
VOLCANIC ERUPTION IN 79 A.D.
IN THE 18th CENTURY,
ARCHAEOLOGISTS EXCAVATED...
SOME OF THE MOST PERFECTLY
PRESERVED GLADIATORIAL
ARTIFACTS WE HAVE TODAY.
THIS ARCHAEOLOGICAL
GOLD MINE...
GAVE A FIRSTHAND GLIMPSE
OF PRISTINE EXAMPLES
OF HELMETS...
THAT FEATURED
INTRICATE DEPICTIONS
OF FAMOUS ROMAN BATTLES.
THESE HELMETS
HAVE RARELY BEEN SEEN
OUTSIDE OF THEIR DISPLAY...
AT THE MUSEUM
OF NATIONAL ARCHEOLOGY
IN NAPLES, ITALY.
IT IS THOUGHT
THAT THIS ELABORATE ARMOR...
WAS ANOTHER REASON
MANY WERE DRAWN
TO THE SANDS OF THE ARENA.
ALSO FOUND
WERE GLADIATOR SHIELDS,
SHIN GUARDS, ARM BANDS...
AND VARIOUS WEAPONS USED
IN THE HEAT OF BATTLE
ALMOST 2,000 YEARS AGO.
THE SYMBOL
OF THE SENATE,
ALL THE POWER OF ROME.
IT WAS ALSO IN THIS REGION
THAT IN 73 B.C.,
HISTORY'S MOST
FAMOUS GLADIATOR, SPARTACUS,
LED A REVOLT
OF SLAVES AND PEASANTS...
THAT WOULD CHANGE FOREVER
THE WAY ROMAN AUTHORITIES
HANDLED GLADIATORS.
SPARTACUS' REBELLION
IS TRIGGERED...
BY THE FACT THAT HE
ABSOLUTELY REBELS AGAINST
BEING TURNED INTO A SPECTACLE.
HE DOESN'T MIND
RISKING HIS LIFE,
BUT HE WON'T BE A SPECTACLE.
AND THAT MUST HAVE BEEN
A PROBLEM, ABOVE ALL,
FOR THESE PRISONERS OF WAR.
[ Narrator ]
HOLED UP IN THE CRATER
OF MOUNT VESUVIUS,
SPARTACUS DEFEATED
NINE ROMAN COMMANDERS...
BEFORE HE AND HIS CLAN
WERE SLAUGHTERED
AFTER TWO YEARS OF FIGHTING.
FROM THEN ON,
GLADIATOR TRAINING CAMPS
WERE GUARDED 24 HOURS A DAY,
AND GROUPS OF MEN
WHO SPOKE A SIMILAR LANGUAGE
WERE SEPARATED.
THE PROFESSION
ENTAILED A LOT OF RISKS.
AND IT ALSO, OBVIOUSLY,
ENTAILED A GREAT EGO TRIP,
I GUESS,
THAT WHEN YOU WERE OUT THERE
FIGHTING IN FRONT
OF 50,000 PEOPLE,
I SUPPOSE
YOU WENT IN THERE...
TO PROVE
HOW EXCEEDINGLY GOOD YOU WERE.
[ Yelling ]
[ Man's Voice ]  "LOOK AT
GLADIATORS WHO ARE EITHER
RUINED MEN OR BARBARIANS.
"SEE HOW MEN
 WHO HAD BEEN WELL TRAINED
 PREFER TO RECEIVE A BLOW...
"RATHER THAN BASELY AVOID IT.
"HOW FREQUENTLY
 IT IS MADE EVIDENT...
"THAT THERE
 IS NOTHING THEY PUT HIGHER
 THAN GIVING SATISFACTION...
TO THEIR OWNER
OR THEIR PEOPLE."
CICERO.
[ Wallace-Hadrill ]
THERE'S GREAT DISCUSSION ABOUT
THE BRAVERY OF A GLADIATOR.
AS LONG AS
THE GLADIATOR IS BRAVE,
YOU WOULDN'T
NORMALLY KILL HIM.
AND THIS WAS REGARDED
AS A NATURAL REACTION.
COURAGE.  YOU FEEL
SOME SORT OF SYMPATHY
WITH THE PERSON.
YOU APPLAUD THEM,
AND THEREFORE, YOU GIVE THEM
THEIR LIFE BACK AGAIN.
[ Narrator ]
THE ROMAN EMPIRE'S
OBSESSION WITH GLADIATORS...
PERMEATED ALL LEVELS
OF SOCIETY.
EVEN THE EMPEROR
HAD A FAVORITE.
IN POMPEII, ARCHAEOLOGISTS
UNCOVERED A FAN'S GRAFFITI...
OF TWO PAIRS
 OF BATTLING GLADIATORS.
[ Wallace-Hadrill ]
YOU CAN SEE THEIR NAMES
UP ABOVE THEM.
THERE'S SEVERUS.
THERE'S ELBANUS
FIGHTING AWAY.
YOU CAN ACTUALLY DISTINGUISH
THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF ARMOR
THEY'VE GOT.
[ Narrator ]  ANOTHER EXAMPLE
OF THE PERVASIVE INFLUENCE OF
GLADIATORS ON EVERYDAY LIVES...
CAN BE SEEN
IN THESE COMMON HOUSEHOLD
TERRA-COTTA OIL LAMPS...
WHICH ARE DECORATED WITH
ILLUSTRATIONS OF GLADIATORS
AND THEIR ACCESSORIES.
CONTRARY
TO POPULAR BELIEF,
THE MOST SUCCESSFUL GLADIATORS
WERE RARELY KILLED.
THEY WERE TOO EXPENSIVE.
TOO MUCH MONEY HAD BEEN INVESTED
IN THEIR TRAINING AND PROMOTION.
THE PINNACLE
OF A GLADIATOR'S CAREER...
WAS IF HE WAS AWARDED
THE COVETED WOODEN SWORD,
OFTEN PRESENTED
BY THE EMPEROR HIMSELF.
WITH THIS TROPHY,
THE GLADIATOR WOULD BE
GIVEN HIS FREEDOM.
ANOTHER WAY TO FREEDOM
WOULD BE TO BUY IT.
ALTHOUGH GLADIATORS
WERE SLAVES,
THEY WERE ALLOWED TO KEEP
A PERCENTAGE OF THEIR WINNINGS.
MANY FREE GLADIATORS
RETURNED TO THE ARENA...
BECAUSE THEY HAD
BECOME ACCUSTOMED
TO ITS FAME AND FORTUNE.
LIKE SPORTING SUPERSTARS TODAY,
VERY FEW REACH
THE UPPER ECHELON.
FOR MOST GLADIATORS,
EVERY MATCH WAS A FIGHT
FOR THEIR LIVES.
ONE CAN ONLY IMAGINE
WHAT WENT THROUGH THEIR MINDS...
AS THEY WALKED THIS TUNNEL
TO WHAT MAY HAVE BEEN
THEIR LAST APPEARANCE.
[ Potter ]
WHAT YOU SEE IN THE COLOSSEUM
IS A SYMBOL IN MANY WAYS...
OF THE VALUES
 OF ROMAN LIFE.
AS IN ALL SOCIETIES,
THE WAY THAT PEOPLE GO ABOUT
THEIR ENTERTAINMENTS...
IS PERHAPS THE BEST WAY
TO BEGIN TO LOOK AT THEM...
AND BEGIN TO UNDERSTAND WHAT'S
IN THE BACK OF THEIR MIND.
WHAT THE ROMANS REGARDED
AS THE ABSOLUTE PINNACLE
OF THEIR CIVILIZATION...
IS SOMETHING THAT WE RECOGNIZE
AS BEING THOROUGHLY REPUGNANT
AND INHUMANE.
AND I THINK IT'S VERY IMPORTANT
FOR US TO LOOK HARD...
AT WHY THE ROMANS THOUGHT
WHAT THEY WERE DOING
WAS ACCEPTABLE...
AND, IN FACT,
SOMETHING TO BE PROUD OF.
[ Man's Voice ]
"AT THE SIGHT OF BLOOD,
 HE DRANK A DEEP DRAFT OF IT...
"IN ALL ITS MONSTROUS HORROR
 AND COULD NOT TURN AWAY.
"INSTEAD, HE LOST HIS REASON
 AT THE SIGHT OF IT...
"AND TOOK GREAT GULPS
 OF MADNESS.
"HE HAD NO IDEA
 WHAT HE WAS DOING.
"BUT HE WAS ENCHANTED
 BY THE EVIL SPECTACLE...
AND BECAME DRUNK
ON THE BLOODSTAINED PLEASURE."
PLUTARCH.
[ Narrator ]
BY THE FIRST CENTURY A.D.,
THE GAMES HAD BECOME FIRMLY
EMBEDDED IN THE ROMAN CULTURE.
ACROSS THE EMPIRE,
THOUSANDS OF AMPHITHEATERS HAD
BEEN ERECTED FOR LOCAL EVENTS.
[ Coleman ]
IT'S VERY DANGEROUS
TO THINK ABOUT THE COLOSSEUM...
AS THOUGH IT WERE
THE EXCLUSIVE FOCUS
OF AMPHITHEATER INTEREST,
BECAUSE EVERY LITTLE CITY
OF ANY PRETENSION
THROUGHOUT THE EMPIRE...
HAS SOME KIND OF SPACE
WHERE THEY COULD PUT ON
THESE SPECTACLES.
[ Narrator ]
OTHER THAN
THE COLOSSEUM IN ROME,
ONE OF THE LARGEST ARENAS
CONSTRUCTED FOR THE GAMES
IS IN POMPEII.
IT IS THE OLDEST SURVIVING
AMPHITHEATER IN THE WORLD.
[ Wallace-Hadrill ]  THIS
INSCRIPTION RECORDS THE BUILDING
OF THIS AMPHITHEATER IN 80 B.C.
IT'S THE EARLIEST WE HAVE.
AT THE TIME,
THEY HADN'T YET INVENTED
THE WORD "AMPHITHEATER."
AND THEY CALL IT A SPECTACLE.
SPECTACULA.
AND THE INSCRIPTION SAYS,
"QUINTUS VALGAS AND
 MARCUS POKIUS,
THE TWO TOP MAGISTRATES,
BUILT IT FOR THE COLONY
AS A SPECTACLE."
AND THEY DEDICATED IT
TO THEIR FELLOW COLONISTS
IN PERPETUITY.
[ Narrator ]
AS WAS THE CASE
WITH THE FUNERAL GAMES,
THERE WERE PERSONAL
AND POLITICAL MOTIVES...
FOR LOCAL LEADERS
TO SPONSOR SPECTACLES.
[ Coleman ]
AND, OF COURSE,
THE PAYOFF FOR THEM...
WAS THAT IT BECAME
PART OF THEIR LEGACY
TO THEIR TOWN.
PARTICULARLY IN A PRE-CHRISTIAN
CULTURE WHERE THERE'S
NO GUARANTEE OF AN AFTERLIFE,
IT'S TERRIBLY IMPORTANT
TO DO SOMETHING NOW...
FOR WHICH YOU CAN MAKE CERTAIN
THAT YOU GET REMEMBERED.
[ Narrator ]
EVIDENCE OF THIS
CAN STILL BE FOUND...
ON THE ANCIENT GRAVE SITES
IN POMPEII.
[ Wallace-Hadrill ]
IN THE STREET OF TOMBS
OUTSIDE POMPEII,
YOU CAN STILL SEE THE LINK
THAT EXISTED...
BETWEEN GLADIATORIAL GAMES
AND FUNERALS.
ON THEM, YOU COULD FIND
DEPICTED GLADIATORIAL GAMES...
THAT WERE FOUGHT
DURING THEIR FUNERALS.
[ Man ]
THE BEATING HEART OF ROME...
IS NOT THE MARBLE
OF THE SENATE;
IT'S THE SAND OF THE COLOSSEUM.
HE'LL BRING THEM DEATH.
AND THEY WILL LOVE HIM
FOR IT.
[ Potter ]
EMPERORS KEPT
THE POPULATION OF ROME HAPPY...
BY PUTTING ON THESE GAMES.
IT IS A WAY OF KEEPING YOU AWAY
FROM THE MORE IMPORTANT ISSUES.
BUT ON THE OTHER HAND,
IT BECOMES A PART
OF ITS OWN POLITICAL SYSTEM.
[ Narrator ]  TO GIVE YOU
AN IDEA OF THE ENDURING
POPULARITY OF THE GAMES...
AND THE DEMAND
FOR THEIR EXISTENCE,
THESE SPECTACLES
FLOURISHED IN THE EMPIRE
FOR ALMOST 700 YEARS--
FROM 264 B.C. TO 400 A.D.
A LUCKY SPECTATOR
ATTENDING THE EVENTS...
COULD EXPECT BEAST HUNTS
IN THE MORNING...
WITH EXOTIC ANIMALS
FROM AROUND THE WORLD,
PUBLIC EXECUTIONS AT NOON...
AND THE HIGHLY ANTICIPATED
GLADIATORIAL BATTLES
IN THE AFTERNOON.
YOU DON'T JUST HAVE THE GAMES.
YOU HAVE ALL SORTS OF CEREMONIAL
ATTACHED TO IT.
YOU HAVE A GREAT, BIG PROCESSION
WHEN ALL THE GLADIATORS DRESS UP
IN THEIR FINEST RIG.
YOU HAVE A BAND,
MUSIC PLAYING,
PROCESSING DOWN THE STREETS,
ARRIVING IN THE AMPHITHEATER.
AND IN THE GATE, THEY WOULD GO
AROUND THE ARENA SEVERAL TIMES
IN PARADE.
THEY WOULD HAVE
A WARM-UP SESSION.
AND THEN AFTER THAT,
THEY WOULD FILE
IN FRONT OF THE EMPEROR...
SITTING IN HIS BOX.
THEN THEY WOULD DECLARE
HOW THEY WISHED TO FIGHT,
EITHER TO THE FIRST WOUND
OR TO THE DEATH.
IT'S ESSENTIAL TO HAVE
AS MUCH VARIETY AS POSSIBLE
IN THE GAMES.
YOU DON'T JUST
WANT GLADIATORS.
YOU ALSO HAVE ACROBATS,
TIGHTROPE WALKERS.
YOU THEN CROSS OVER
BETWEEN DIFFERENT TYPES.
YOU SEE IF YOU
CAN GET ELEPHANTS
TO DO TIGHTROPE WALKING.
[ Narrator ]
AND IN 63 A.D.,
A NEW ATTRACTION
WAS ADDED TO THE GAMES.
THERE WERE FEMALE GLADIATORS.
THEY WERE REGARDED AS
AN ABSOLUTELY SPECIAL TREAT.
THEY'RE SUFFICIENTLY RARE
THAT YOU WOULD ADVERTISE
THEM UP FRONT...
AS SOMETHING SPECTACULAR
THAT YOU WERE GOING
TO HAVE IN THE SHOW.
PART OF THE INTEREST, OF COURSE,
WOULD BE THAT THEY WOULD FIGHT
WITH AT LEAST ONE BREAST BARE.
AND YOU OBVIOUSLY WOULD GO,
PARTIALLY TO SEE VERY
ATTRACTIVE WOMEN...
IN VERY SCANTY CLOTHES
FIGHTING WITH EACH OTHER.
THE ROMANS WOULDN'T
HAVE WANTED TO SEE
A WOMAN FIGHTING A MAN...
BECAUSE IT WOULD BE
AN UNEQUAL COMBAT, AND THERE
WOULD BE NO FUN IN THAT.
[ Narrator ]
THESE UNUSUAL COMBATANTS SUCH
AS AMAZONIA AND ACHILLEA...
REMAINED IN VOGUE FOR MORE
THAN A CENTURY AND A HALF...
BEFORE EMPEROR SEPTIMIUS SEVERUS
HAD ALL FEMALE GLADIATORS
BANNED IN THE YEAR 200.
ADVERTISING WAS IMPORTANT
IN ANCIENT TIMES.
FILLING THE COLOSSEUM
WAS NO PROBLEM.
BUT IN THE OUTER PROVINCES,
ATTRACTING ENOUGH PEOPLE
TO FILL A 20,000-SEAT ARENA,
LIKE THIS IN POMPEII,
WAS A CHALLENGE.
THE ENTIRE POPULATION OF POMPEII
WAS ONLY 10,000.
[ Wallace-Hadrill ]  THIS IS
THE SIDE OF A HOUSE THAT'S ON
THE MAIN STREET OF POMPEII.
AND ORIGINALLY,
IT WAS ABSOLUTELY COVERED
WITH ADVERTISEMENTS FOR GAMES.
THERE WILL BE A PROCESSION,
A POMP, A VENETIO, A BEAST HUNT.
THERE WILL BE AWNINGS
OVER THE AMPHITHEATER.
THERE WILL BE
A SPECIAL KIND OF BEAST...
THAT LEAPS UPON PEOPLE
WHO WEAR TURQUOISE.
[ Narrator ]
ALSO, TOWN CRIERS WERE USED,
AND A COMMON PRACTICE
WAS TO ADVERTISE ON TOMBS.
THIS IN POMPEII ANNOUNCED
UPCOMING GAMES THAT WOULD
HAVE 20 PAIRS OF GLADIATORS.
IN ONE WELL ADVERTISED CONTEST
 IN 59 A.D.,
A BLOODY RIOT BROKE OUT
BETWEEN THE CITIZENS
OF POMPEII...
AND THE NEIGHBORING TOWN
OF NUCERIA.
BECAUSE OF THIS INCIDENT
DEPICTED IN THIS FAMOUS
FRESCO NOW IN NAPLES,
ALL FUTURE GAMES
WERE BANNED IN POMPEII.
SO WHY WERE THE GAMES
 SO POPULAR ?
IN ADDITION TO THE THRILL
OF WATCHING BLOODSPORTS,
THE AVERAGE PERSON COULD
SIT IN THE SAME BUILDING
AS HIS LOCAL LEADER.
IN ROME,
THIS MEANT THE EMPEROR HIMSELF.
[ Wallace-Hadrill ]
THEY WANT TO KNOW WHAT'S
THE CHARACTER OF THIS GUY.
IS HE ACTUALLY
A RESPONSIBLE SORT OF MAN
WHO OUGHT TO BE AN EMPEROR,
OR IS HE A BEAST ?
HAS HE GOT CRUELTY
BUILT INTO HIM ?
IS HE ENJOYING IT TOO MUCH ?
[ Coleman ]
THE VIOLENCE WAS OBVIOUSLY
A PART OF THE ATTRACTION,
AND WE CAN TELL THAT
FROM SO MANY IMAGES...
WHICH SHOW ACTUAL FLOW OF BLOOD
AND WOUNDS GUSHING AND SO ON.
MOSAICS THAT SPONSORS PUT
ON THEIR FLOORS TO DEMONSTRATE
TO THEIR CLIENTS...
THAT THEY HAD SPONSORED
THIS MAGNIFICENT SPECTACLE.
[ Man's Voice ]
"AND AFTER ONE BITE, SATYRUS
 WAS SO DRENCHED WITH BLOOD...
"THAT AS HE CAME AWAY,
 THE MOB ROARED AND WITNESSED
 TO THIS SECOND BAPTISM.
"'YOU HAVE TAKEN A GOOD BATH !'
THIS WAS THE TRADITIONAL CRY
WITH WHICH AN AUDIENCE
GREETED THE FLOW OF BLOOD."
PERPETUA.
THE POPULARITY
OF SEEING DEATH,
WATCHING DEATH,
IS A VERY, VERY
CURIOUS PHENOMENON.
 REMEMBER, THAT
 IN THE ANCIENT WORLD,
 PEOPLE LIVED WITH DEATH
 ALL AROUND THEM
 ALL THE TIME.
IT WAS A VERY VIOLENT WORLD.
YOUR LIFE WAS VERY SHORT.
THERE WERE NO
PAINKILLING MEDICINES.
YOU LIVED A VERY VIOLENT,
DIFFICULT EXISTENCE.
SO WATCHING
GLADIATORIAL FIGHTS
WAS IN A WAY...
WATCHING IT HAPPEN
TO SOMEBODY ELSE
INSTEAD OF TO YOU.
[ Narrator ]  BLOODSPORTS
MEANT MORE TO THE ROMANS
THAN WATCHING BRUTAL KILLINGS.
THERE WAS ALSO
A GREAT FASCINATION WITH THE
DIFFERENT ARMOR AND WEAPONS...
OF THE GLADIATORS
AND HOW WELL THEY
STOOD UP AGAINST EACH OTHER.
YOU COULD HAVE A RETIARIUS
WHO WAS VERY VULNERABLE...
BECAUSE HE HAD NO ARMOR AT ALL
EXCEPT FOR A VERY SMALL
SHOULDER GUARD,
AND HE WAS PITTED AGAINST
A HEAVILY ARMED GLADIATOR
WHO WAS VIRTUALLY IMPREGNABLE...
BUT WEIGHED DOWN
BY HIS ARMOR,
SO HE COULDN'T
HAVE THE MOBILITY
THAT THE RETIARIUS HAD.
[ Narrator ]  THE RETIARIUS,
OR NET MAN, CARRIED A TRIDENT,
A DAGGER AND A NET...
WITH EDGES THAT
WERE WEIGHED DOWN WITH
METAL BALLS LIKE A FISHNET.
HIS LIKELY OPPONENT
WOULD BE A MERMILLO GLADIATOR,
SOMETIMES REFERRED TO
AS A "FISH MAN,"
BECAUSE HIS PROCESSIONAL
HELMET HAD A FISH ON IT.
THESE TWO TYPES
WERE REPRESENTATIVE OF THE TWO
MAJOR CATEGORIES OF GLADIATORS.
THERE WERE THE PARAMILOTTI
WHO HAD SMALL SHIELDS
AND LIGHT ARMOR...
AND THE SCUTATTI,
WHO HAD BIG HEAVY SHIELDS
AND MUCH ARMOR.
WITHIN THESE CATEGORIES WERE
GLADIATORS THAT FOUGHT WITH A
VERY SPECIFIC STYLE AND DRESS...
BASED ON NATIONS THE ROMANS
HAD CONQUERED IN BATTLE.
SO YOU COULD FIGHT
ON HORSEBACK, AND THOSE
ARE THE ANDIBOTTI...
WHO WOULD GO INTO THE ARENA
WITH A BLINDFOLD ON THEMSELVES
AND ON THE HORSE...
AND THEY WOULD JUST
GO AT EACH OTHER,
WHACKING RIGHT AND LEFT,
AND WAITING TO SEE
WHICH BIT THEY CHOPPED OFF.
[ Narrator ]  THE MOST COMMON
ENCOUNTER WAS A SIMPLE DUEL
BETWEEN TWO GLADIATORS.
THERE'S EVIDENCE
THAT AMPHITHEATER BANDS
WERE PRESENT...
TO PLAY MUSIC TO MATCH
THE MOOD OF THE MATCH,
ALMOST LIKE A MUSIC SCORE
FOR A FEATURE FILM.
A TOP-RANKED GLADIATOR
WOULD RARELY EVER FACE
A FOE OF EQUAL SKILL.
THE MOST POPULAR STARS
FOUGHT ONLY ON RARE
AND IMPORTANT OCCASIONS,
ANYWHERE FROM ONE
TO FIVE TIMES A YEAR.
GLADIATORS ARE
HIGHLY-TRAINED PROFESSIONALS.
YOU HAVE TO PAY
A VERY SUBSTANTIAL FINE
IF YOU GET THE GLADIATOR HURT.
WE GET A FIGURE AS MUCH
AS 50 TIMES THE RENTAL PRICE.
THERE'S A CONTROVERSY
ABOUT HOW MANY GLADIATORS
ACTUALLY DIED...
FIGHTING
IN THE AMPHITHEATER.
SOME PEOPLE WOULD PUT
THE FIGURE AS HIGH
AS 50 PERCENT.
I PREFER A FIGURE SOMEWHERE
BETWEEN FIVE AND TEN PERCENT.
[ Narrator ]
IT IS A FACT
THAT GLADIATORS DID DIE.
WHAT IS NOT KNOWN
IS THE EXACT MANNER...
IN WHICH A GLADIATOR WAS
ORDERED TO KILL HIS OPPONENT.
WELL, WE KNOW
THAT WHEN A GLADIATOR
HAD ACKNOWLEDGED DEFEAT,
THE UMPIRE WOULD APPEAL
TO THE SPECTATORS
FOR A SIGNAL...
AS TO WHETHER THEY BELIEVED
THE GLADIATOR DESERVED
A REPRIEVE...
OR WHETHER HE HAD NOT FOUGHT
WELL ENOUGH...
AND MUST THEREFORE
BE DISPATCHED.
IF THE CROWD APPROVED
OF THE WAY HE FOUGHT,
THEY WOULD YELL,
"MISSIO !  MISSIO !
 HE'S DISMISSED.  HE'S FREE."
IF, INSTEAD,
THEY DID NOT APPROVE
OF THE WAY HE FOUGHT,
THEY WOULD YELL, "GET HIM
IN THE JUGULAR VEIN."
[ Narrator ]  THE PERSON
WHO HAS THE FINAL DECISION
ON LIFE AND DEATH...
IS THE EDITOR OF THE GAMES,
THE MAN WHO'S PUT THEM ON.
IN MANY CASES,
THAT WAS THE EMPEROR HIMSELF.
WE KNOW FOR SURE THAT WHEN
THE GLADIATOR IS DEFEATED...
AND ASKS TO BE LET OFF,
THE SIGN OF SURRENDER
IS PUTTING UP
A FINGER OR A HAND.
THE LITERARY SOURCES
DESCRIBE THE GESTURE...
THAT THE MAN WHO'S GIVING
THE GAMES MAKE.
AND THEY SAY
PRESSING HIS THUMB
OR TURNING HIS THUMB,
WAS IT THUMBS UP
MEANS YOU'RE ALL RIGHT...
OR WAS IT
THE OTHER WAY AROUND ?
AND WHAT HAPPENS IS,
HISTORICALLY, A DECISION
IS MADE BY FILMMAKERS.
AND THE THUMBS-UP SIGN
COMES OUT...
OF A FILMMAKER'S PICTURE
 OF THE ROMAN WORLD...
WHICH THEN BECOMES
A UNIVERSAL SIGN FOR "OKAY."
[ Narrator ]
OCCASIONALLY, A GLADIATOR
WAS FINISHED OFF...
BY A MAN HE HAD
PREVIOUSLY SPARED.
THERE IS AN EPITAPH
TO A FALLEN GLADIATOR...
IN WHICH HE ADVISED THOSE
WHO CAME AFTER HIM TO BEWARE.
IT READ,
"TAKE WARNING FROM MY FATE.
GIVE NO QUARTER,
WHOEVER THE FALLEN MAY BE."
AND IN MANY CASES,
A GLADIATOR WHO WANTED
TO GO OUT WITH DIGNITY,
WHO WANTED TO GO OUT
WITH COURAGE,
WOULD SIMPLY TILT
HIS HEAD BACK AND EXPOSE HIS
JUGULAR VEIN FOR THIS SLICE.
OTHER TIMES,
THEY WOULD BE STABBED.
AND THEN THE WINNING GLADIATOR
WOULD PUT HIS FOOT
ON TOP OF THE BODY...
OF THE ONE
HE HAD JUST CONQUERED.
[ Narrator ]  ANOTHER SPECTACLE
WHICH DREW BIG CROWDS
WAS THE BEAST HUNT,
FEATURING WILD ANIMALS
FROM ALL REACHES
OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE.
THE ANIMALS WERE STALKED
BY PROFESSIONAL HUNTERS
CALLED VENATORIS.
IN MANY WAYS, THE AMPHITHEATER
WAS A UNIVERSAL ZOO.
THERE WAS NO WAY
THE AVERAGE ROMAN COULD
GET OVER TO NORTH AFRICA...
AND SEE A CROCODILE FOR REAL,
RHINOCEROS OR SOMETHING.
BUT YOU COULD SEE THESE
IN THE AMPHITHEATER,
AND THERE WAS A TREMENDOUS
INTEREST IN HOW THEY WORKED,
HOW THE ANIMALS
ACTUALLY BEHAVED,
HOW FAST THEY COULD RUN.
[ Potter ]
A WIDE VARIETY OF ANIMALS
WERE BROUGHT IN.
WE ALSO HAVE ZOOS
OUTSIDE OF ROME
SPECIFICALLY FOR FIERCE ANIMALS,
WHERE THEY WOULD BE RAISED.
YOU'D HAVE YOUR LEOPARDS,
YOUR LIONS.  CLEARLY,
GAZELLES WERE VERY POPULAR.
OSTRICHES WERE VERY POPULAR.
IN FACT,
SOME ANIMALS WOULD REAPPEAR...
FROM ENTERTAINMENT
TO ENTERTAINMENT.
WE KNOW THAT THERE WERE
PARTICULARLY FEROCIOUS BEARS
WHO PEOPLE WOULD COME TO SEE.
THEY WOULD HAVE NAMES
LIKE FIERCE, NASTY,
DEATH, ET CETERA.
[ Narrator ]
THE OTHER EVENTS OF THE DAY...
WOULD INCLUDE PUBLIC EXECUTIONS
OF CONDEMNED PRISONERS
AND CHRISTIANS.
ALL THESE PUBLIC DISPLAYS
SERVED A COMMON PURPOSE
FOR THE ROMANS.
WE LOOK AT THE CONFLICT
BETWEEN MAN AND BEAST...
AND THINK ABOUT
HOW THIS REPRESENTS
A CONTROL OVER NATURE.
AND THEN,
OF COURSE, WHEN WE LOOK
AT THE EXECUTION OF CRIMINALS,
WHAT YOU SEE THERE IS
SOCIETY TAKING ON ITS ENEMIES.
AND THE TOTALITY
OF THE DISPLAY--
THE CONTROL OVER NATURE,
THE CONTROL OVER YOUR ENEMIES,
THE VALOR OF THE COMBATANTS--
IS WHAT SEEMS
TO HAVE EXCITED THE ROMANS.
WE KNOW THAT, UM,
EXECUTION IN ANTIQUITY
WAS ALWAYS PUBLIC,
PARTLY FOR
DETERRENT PURPOSES,
PARTLY SO THAT THE PUBLIC
COULD SEE THAT PROPER
RETRIBUTION WAS BEING TAKEN.
[ Narrator ]
THE TOTAL CARNAGE OF HUMANS
AND ANIMALS WAS STAGGERING.
ON THE OPENING DAY
OF THE COLOSSEUM,
IT WAS REPORTED
THAT "5,000 BEASTS
WERE DISPOSED OF...
WITH THE RIGHT DEGREE
OF CRUELTY."
AND WHAT OF THE GLADIATOR ?
HOW MUST IT FEEL AS ONE
IS ABOUT TO ENTER AN ARENA...
WITH 50,000 TO 80,000 PEOPLE
ALL THERE TO WITNESS
THE FIGHT FOR LIFE OR DEATH ?
[ Potter ]  THERE'S GOT TO BE A
TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF ADRENALINE
RUNNING THROUGH YOUR VEINS...
AS YOU STEP OUT THERE
AND FACE THE PERSON.
OF COURSE EVERY ONCE IN A WHILE,
PEOPLE COMPLETELY LOSE IT
AND RUN AWAY.
[ Narrator ]
IT WAS QUITE COMMON FOR
PRISONERS TO COMMIT SUICIDE...
OTHER THAN FACE CERTAIN DEATH
BY SWORD OR BEAST.
NOT FOR FEAR OF DEATH,
BUT FOR THE HUMILIATION
OF BEING KILLED...
AS A FORM OF ENTERTAINMENT.
THE GAMES
TOOK A QUANTUM LEAP...
IN SIZE, SCALE
AND SAVAGERY...
WHEN GLADIATORS
TOOK TO THE SANDS
OF THE HOUSE OF DEATH.
[ Man's Voice ]
"A CONDEMNED CRIMINAL WHO,
 HANGING ON NO UNREAL CROSS,
"GAVE UP HIS VITALS
 TO A CALEDONIAN BEAR,
"HIS MANGLED LIMBS
 STILL LIVING,
THOUGH PARTS DRIPPED GORE
AND IN ALL HIS BODY
WAS NOWHERE A BODY'S SHAPE."
[ Bear Roaring ]
MARTIAL.
[ Coleman ]
PROVINCIALS FROM
VERY, VERY FAR AFIELD...
WOULD MAKE
THE PILGRIMAGE TO ROME...
TO SEE THE GREATEST AMPHITHEATER
AND THE MOST EXTRAVAGANT
SPECTACLES,
HOPEFULLY IN THE PRESENCE
OF THE ONE PERSON
WHO RULED THE WORLD,
NAMELY THE ROMAN EMPEROR.
[ Wallace-Hadrill ]
THE COLOSSEUM IS
AN ABSOLUTE FEAT OF ENGINEERING.
SIMPLY IN TERMS
OF DESIGN AND EXECUTION,
IT IS ONE OF THE GREATEST
ROMAN ACHIEVEMENTS.
AND THE PARADOX IS,
THAT WITH ALL THIS TECHNOLOGY,
WHAT THEY'RE CREATING
IS A MACHINE FOR KILLING.
[ Narrator ]  IT WAS
BUILT TO MAKE A STATEMENT,
AND IT WAS BUILT TO LAST.
FOR 20 CENTURIES, WE HAVE
MARVELED AT ITS DESIGN...
AND HAVE BEEN DRAWN TO IT
WITH THOUGHTS OF THE DEATH
AND PAIN...
THAT THIS MONUMENT PRODUCED.
[ Man Announcing ]
WE ARE PLEASED TO GIVE YOU...
THE LEGIONNAIRE,
ARSEPIUS.
[ Spectators Cheering ]
[ Narrator ]
THE BUILDING WAS OPEN
TO THE PUBLIC IN 79 A.D....
AND WAS CALLED
THE FLAVIAN AMPHITHEATER, NAMED
AFTER THE FLAVIAN DYNASTY...
WHICH REPLACED NERO.
IN FACT, THE COLOSSEUM
WAS BUILT DIRECTLY
OVER NERO'S PRIVATE LAKE.
SO BY BUILDING
THIS COLOSSEUM HERE,
YOU'RE GIVING BACK
TO THE PEOPLE...
ALL OF THIS PIECE
OF DOWNTOWN REAL ESTATE,
AND YOU'RE TAKING
PRIVATE IMPERIAL PROPERTY
AND OPENING IT FOR PUBLIC USE.
IT IS ALSO ONE OF THE GREATEST
EXPRESSIONS OF IMPERIAL POWER...
JUST BECAUSE OF THE SHEER SIZE
OF THE BUILDING.
[ Narrator ]
THE BUILDING COVERED SIX ACRES,
STOOD 160 FEET HIGH...
AND HELD ANYWHERE FROM
45,000 TO 80,000 SPECTATORS,
DEPENDING ON STANDING ROOM.
THE ROMANS WASTED NO TIME...
IN OFFERING THE BIGGEST
SPECTACLES EVER STAGED
FOR ITS CITIZENS.
[ Potter ]
ROME IS THE ENTERTAINMENT
CAPITAL OF THE WORLD.
IT IS WHERE ALL THE BEST
PERFORMERS ARE GOING TO BE.
IT IS WHERE THE CENTER
OF ENTERTAINMENT--
WHERE THE STANDARDS ARE SET.
IT'S THE L.A. OF ITS TIME.
[ Narrator ]
IN CELEBRATING THE OPENING
OF THE AMPHITHEATER,
EMPEROR TITUS GAVE GAMES
FOR A HUNDRED STRAIGHT DAYS...
AND BOASTED
OF THE 9,000 ANIMALS
THAT WERE KILLED.
TRAJAN GAVE ONE SET OF GAMES
THAT LASTED AN AMAZING
122 CONSECUTIVE DAYS...
IN WHICH SOME CLAIM 11,000
PEOPLE AND 10,000 ANIMALS
WERE KILLED.
[ Wallace-Hadrill ]
THE SCALE OF THESE
IMPERIAL PERFORMANCES...
IS ABSOLUTELY STUPENDOUS.
AUGUSTUS PUTS IN HIS WILL
THE PRECISE NUMBERS
OF GLADIATORS...
THAT PERFORMED IN HIS REIGN
 THAT HE PAID FOR,
AND THAT IS 10,000.
[ Potter ]
EMPERORS, IN A SENSE, HAVE
TO COMPETE WITH EACH OTHER...
WITH THE MEMORY OF THE GAMES
THAT OTHER PEOPLE HAVE GIVEN.
YOU DON'T WANT TO GET
A REPUTATION AS A CHEAPSKATE.
YOU'VE GOT TO DO AT LEAST
AS WELL AS YOUR PREDECESSOR,
IF NOT GO ONE BETTER.
[ Narrator ]  AND IF
JULIUS CAESAR DID WHAT SOME
EXPERTS BELIEVE WAS POSSIBLE,
HE STUNNED THE ROMANS
WHEN HE HAD THE FLOOR
OF THE COLOSSEUM FLOODED...
TO STAGE EXTRAVAGANT
SEA BATTLES,
REENACTED WITH SHIPS
MANNED BY SLAVES AND PRISONERS.
TO MAKE IT MORE INTERESTING,
THE SHIPS WOULD BE SET ON FIRE
AS MEN BATTLED FOR THEIR LIVES.
WHETHER THESE NAVAL BATTLES
EVER TOOK PLACE IS HOTLY DEBATED
AMONGST THE SCHOLARS.
IT DOESN'T SEEM THAT YOU
COULD FLOOD THE COLOSSEUM.
IT'S GOT A WOODEN FLOOR.
IF YOU TRIED
TO POUR WATER INTO IT,
THERE'S NO CLEAR WAY
OF HOW YOU COULD GET IT OUT.
AND IT'S NOT ACTUALLY CLEAR
HOW YOU COULD HOOK IT UP
VERY EASILY TO GET IT IN.
YOU CAN'T STAGE A NAVAL BATTLE
IN THE COLOSSEUM
AS WE NOW HAVE IT...
BECAUSE THE UNDERNEATH PART
HAS BEEN TURNED
INTO BEAST CAGES.
BUT IN THE VERY BEGINNING
WHEN IT WAS FIRST BUILT,
THAT UNDERNEATH PART
HADN'T YET BEEN CONSTRUCTED.
AND AT THAT STAGE,
IT WAS POSSIBLE TO FLOOD IT.
THE COLOSSEUM
BECAME THE TEMPLATE...
FOR ALL OTHER
MAJOR AMPHITHEATERS.
AND WE SEE LATER AMPHITHEATERS
COPYING THE KINDS OF THINGS
THAT THE COLOSSEUM PIONEERED.
AND PARTICULARLY,
ONE THINKS ABOUT
THE SUBTERRANEAN STRUCTURES.
[ Narrator ]
BENEATH THE FLOOR
OF THE COLOSSEUM,
YOU'D FIND A MAZE
OF CORRIDORS, RAMPS, LIFTS,
PULLEYS, CAGES
AND TRAPDOORS...
MANNED BY HUNDREDS OF SLAVES
TO COORDINATE PRECISELY-TIMED
THEATRICAL SURPRISES.
THE BEST EXAMPLE
OF THESE INNER WORKINGS BELOW...
CAN BE FOUND
IN A SURVIVING RUIN
IN POZZUOLI, ITALY.
WE'RE ACTUALLY
UNDERNEATH THE ARENA...
IN THIS ENORMOUS
VAULTED SPACE,
TWO STORIES HIGH,
CONTAINING THE CAGES
FOR THE WILD ANIMALS
AND FOR THE GLADIATORS...
WHO COULD BE LET OUT
AND SENT UP THROUGH
A SERIES OF TRAPDOORS...
TO EMERGE ON STAGE
UP ABOVE US.
[ Coleman ]  I THINK
IT'S IMPORTANT TO REALIZE HOW
SEDUCTIVE THE AMPHITHEATER WAS.
ALL OF THEIR POMP AND CEREMONY,
THE EXTRAVAGANCE OF IT ALL,
MUST HAVE BEEN ADDICTIVE.
FIFTY THOUSAND ROMANS...
WATCHING...
EVERY MOVEMENT
OF YOUR SWORD,
WILLING YOU TO MAKE
THAT KILLER BLOW.
PERHAPS THE MAIN THING
IS THE SUDDEN SENSE
THAT YOU GET...
WHEN YOU ENTER
A BUILDING LIKE THAT,
BEING PART OF
A SUDDENLY CREATED SOCIETY...
THAT HAS COME THERE
WITH A COMMON INTEREST.
[ Narrator ]  AND A SHARED
PASSION EVEN PROMPTED SOME
EMPERORS TO ENTER THE ARENA.
 EMPEROR COMMODUS
 WOULD GET INTO THE ARENA,
BOTH IN
GLADIATORIAL FIGHTS...
AND ALSO IN FIGHTING
DIRECTLY WILD ANIMALS.
THIS WAS MUCH APPRECIATED
BY THE CROWD.
IT WAS A SORT
OF EXTRA BEYOND
THE PROGRAM SPECTACLE.
COMMODUS IS A HUGE,
HEAVILY-MUSCLED PERSON
WITH A THICK NECK...
WHO, IT WAS RUMORED,
MIGHT POSSIBLY BE
THE SON OF A GLADIATOR...
AND THE VERY
PROMISCUOUS WIFE OF
MARCUS AURELIUS, FAUSTINA.
[ Narrator ]  BY 2 A.D.,
ROME WAS HOME TO A MILLION
PEOPLE FROM ALL OVER THE GLOBE.
WHEN IT CAME TO ENTERTAINMENT,
THE GAMES OF THE COLOSSEUM
APPEALED TO ALL.
[ Wallace-Hadrill ]
THEY CAN'T SIMPLY GO
TO THE THEATER...
AND LISTEN TO SOMETHING
IN LATIN OR GREEK,
BECAUSE THEY DON'T NECESSARILY
ALL SPEAK LATIN OR GREEK.
GLADIATORIAL GAMES ARE
WONDERFULLY ACCESSIBLE
FOR EVERYBODY.
NO LINGUISTIC BARRIER.
AND IT'S SOMETHING
THEY CAN ALL APPRECIATE,
CAN ALL PARTICIPATE IN.
[ Narrator ]
NEXT TO THE COST OF MAINTAINING
THE MASSIVE ROMAN ARMY,
STAGING THESE EXTRAVAGANT GAMES
WAS THE MOST EXPENSIVE VENTURE
FOR THE EMPIRE.
[ Coleman ]
THE GAMES WERE A
MULTIMILLION-DOLLAR INDUSTRY...
IN ROMAN TERMS.
AND IT WAS A HUGE INVESTMENT
IN THE ENTIRE INFRASTRUCTURE,
NOT JUST THE SUPPLY
OF GLADIATORS AND BEASTS...
BUT ALSO THE CLEANING
OF THE COLOSSEUM.
THE WHOLE OF THE OUTSIDE OF
THE AMPHITHEATER WAS RIGGED
WITH SERVICE BUILDINGS.
[ Narrator ]  THIS INCLUDED
THE SCENERY BUILDING,
THE HOSPITAL, THE ARMORY...
AND THE HUGE DISPOSAL PIT
FOR ALL THE CORPSES,
BOTH ANIMAL AND HUMAN.
IN ADDITION
TO FINANCING THE PERSONNEL
IN ALL THESE DEPARTMENTS,
HUNDREDS OF SAILORS
WERE EMPLOYED...
TO MAN THE HUGE AWNING
THAT SHADED THE ARENA.
SPECTATORS WERE TREATED
TO FREE BREAD AND TOKENS
THAT COULD BE CASHED IN...
FOR LARGE GIFTS,
EVEN REAL ESTATE.
AMIDST THE 20 CENTURIES
OF TRASH,
AN EXCAVATION
OF A COLOSSEUM DRAIN
IN THE 1970s...
UNCOVERED OTHER TOKENS
THAT WERE USED
FOR A MORE SINISTER PURPOSE.
AND AMONG THIS REFUSE
WAS ALSO FOUND
LITTLE LEAD TOKENS...
WHICH HAD BEEN SOLD
TO PEOPLE...
WITH THE NAME
OF THE GLADIATOR THAT
THE PERSON WISHED TO DIE.
AND SO THESE ARE
SORT OF BAD-LUCK TOKENS,
MUCH LIKE A SORT
OF VOODOO DOLL.
[ Narrator ]  THE SCALE
OF THE KILLINGS IN THE ARENA
INCREASED DRAMATICALLY.
TRAJEN BOASTED
OF 5,000 GLADIATORS
IN THE RING AT ONE TIME,
AND THE PERSECUTION
OF CHRISTIANS REACHED
ALARMING HEIGHTS.
YET, EVEN THIS DIDN'T SATISFY
THE PUBLIC'S BLOOD LUST.
THE ROMANS-- THE MORE
THEY WATCHED, THE MORE
THEY SEE PEOPLE BEING KILLED,
THE MORE USED TO IT
THEY BECOME,
AND THE MORE INDIFFERENT
TO IT, MORALLY, THEY BECOME.
[ Narrator ]  THIS INSATIABLE
THIRST FOR BLOOD HAD TO COME
TO AN END, AND IT DID.
BUT THE CONNECTION OF VIOLENCE
AND PUBLIC ENTERTAINMENT
HAS CONTINUED TO THRIVE...
AND CAN STILL BE FOUND
IN MODERN SPORTS TODAY.
TWO THOUSAND YEARS AGO,
THE ROMAN MASSES WERE DRAWN
TO THE SPECTACLE.
TODAY, HOLLYWOOD CREATES
ITS OWN SPECTACLE.
ALONG WITH TRAPDOORS
AND CHAINED COMBATANTS,
IT USES ADVANCED
COMPUTER-GENERATED IMAGERY.
THE GLADIATOR'S LIFE
IS EXTREMELY DANGEROUS.
WE HAD TO DO SOME
OF THE VERY DANGEROUS THINGS
THAT GLADIATORS DO...
THAT JUST COULDN'T BE DONE
WITHOUT VISUAL EFFECTS.
[ Crowe ]  I WAS DRAWN
TO THOSE ANIMALS, JUST LIKE,
UH, FASCINATED BY THEM.
LIONS AND TIGERS--
PRETTY SPECIAL.
YOU JUST KEEP GOING--
[ Imitating Lion ]
YOU GOT TO BE CONSCIOUSLY AWARE,
REMIND YOURSELF WHAT
YOU'RE DEALING WITH.
'CAUSE IF HE GETS
A HOLD OF YOU,
YOU'D BE DEAD IN A SECOND.
[ Narrator ]  RUSSELL CROWE
WORKED VERY CLOSELY
WITH THE TIGERS.
A BLUE SCREEN WAS USED
TO REMOVE THE ANIMAL TRAINERS,
AND OTHER DIGITAL ELEMENTS
ENHANCED THE REALITY
OF THE SCENE.
WE REPLACED THE TEAM
THAT WAS HOLDING THE TIGER.
AND WE ALSO DID
SOME ATMOSPHERIC DUST WHERE
WE DUST UP THE WHOLE PLATE...
AND DID THESE
EXTENDED SHADOWS...
TO MAKE IT LOOK LIKE
RUSSELL CROWE AND THE TIGER
ARE NEARLY IN CONTACT.
WHERE I ENJOY MYSELF MOST,
I THINK, IS CREATING WORLDS.
SOMETIMES NEW WORLDS,
I.E. SCIENCE FICTION,
OR RECREATING WORLDS
WHICH IS HISTORICAL.
THIS IS A WORLD
I HADN'T EVER THOUGHT ABOUT.
I MEAN, HOW OFTEN DO YOU GET
TO BUILD THE COLOSSEUM,
DO THE GERMAN FRONT
IN THE DANUBE...
WHERE YOU HAVE
THOUSANDS OF TROOPS FIGHTING ?
[ Man ]
CUT !  ONE MORE !  ONE MORE !
[ Scott ]
YOU SUDDENLY REALIZE WHEN
YOU ACTUALLY DO THESE FILMS,
EVERY MOVE IS LIKE NOT
MOVING TEN PEOPLE,
BUT CAN YOU MOVE THOSE
THOUSAND PEOPLE OVER THERE
'CAUSE THE LIGHT'S CHANGING ?
[ Crowe ]
IT'S BEEN A LONG TIME SINCE A
FILM WITH THIS SUBJECT MATTER...
HAS BEEN MADE
ON THIS SCALE.
[ Narrator ]  CROWE AND
DIRECTOR RIDLEY SCOTT ARE
PART OF AN IMPRESSIVE TEAM...
MAKING THE FIRST GLADIATOR
FILM SINCE SPARTACUS
40 YEARS AGO.
IT'S GOING TO BE A MAGNIFICENT
MARRIAGE OF OLD-FASHIONED
FILMMAKING VALUES...
AND ABSOLUTE CUTTING-EDGE
TECHNOLOGY IN TERMS OF THE
COMPUTER WORK THAT WE'RE DOING.
ON MY SIGNAL,
UNLEASH HELL.
YOU HAVE PROVED YOUR VALOR
YET AGAIN, MAXIMUS.
HE'S THE GENERAL OF THE ARMY
AND IS THE HERO OF OUR STORY.
WELL, MAX GOES ON
A VERY STRANGE JOURNEY.
AT THE BEGINNING OF THE FILM,
HE'S A GENERAL IN THE ARMY
WHO DOESN'T REALLY WANT
TO BE THERE ANYMORE.
HOW CAN I REWARD
ROME'S GREATEST GENERAL ?
LET ME GO HOME.
[ Narrator ]
RICHARD HARRIS PORTRAYS
EMPEROR MARCUS AURELIUS...
AND JOAQUIN PHOENIX IS SON
COMMODUS, THE HEIR APPARENT
TO THE ROMAN EMPIRE.
HAVE I MISSED IT ?
HAVE I MISSED
THE BATTLE ?
YOU HAVE MISSED
THE WAR.
I'VE ALWAYS BEEN ENVIOUS OF HIM.
HE'S A MAN OF HONOR...
AND GREAT INNER STRENGTH.
[ Scott ]  CLEARLY,
MARCUS AURELIUS WOULD HAVE
PREFERRED MAXIMUS AS HIS SON.
THE MARCUS AURELIUS CHARACTER
IS CONSCIOUS OF THE FACT...
THAT HIS SON IS--
QUOTES FROM THE FILM--
IS "NOT A MORAL MAN."
SO THE SON'S ASSUMPTION
THAT HE WOULD STEP IN THE SHOES
OF HIS FATHER WAS ABSOLUTE.
SO IT BEGINS
WHEN THE FATHER SAYS--
YOU WILL
NOT BE EMPEROR.
WHICH WISER, OLDER MAN
IS TO TAKE MY PLACE ?
MY POWERS
WILL PASS TO MAXIMUS.
[ Narrator ]
BUT COMMODUS HAD OTHER PLANS
FOR THE GENERAL AND HIS FAMILY.
RIDE UNTIL DAWN...
AND THEN EXECUTE HIM.
LOOK AT ME !
PROMISE ME THAT YOU
WILL LOOK AFTER MY FAMILY.
YOUR FAMILY
WILL MEET YOU
IN THE AFTERLIFE.
 - NO !
 - [ Thunderclap ]
[ Crowe ]
SO FROM BEING A GENERAL WHO'S
IN CONTROL OF 10,000 TROOPS...
IS NOW SHACKLED,
BEING SOLD OFF AS A SLAVE
IN A MARKET IN MOROCCO.
HE THEN REALIZES THE ONLY WAY
 HE CAN STAY ALIVE...
IS TO KILL.
SO HE HAS TO BRING
WHAT HE USED TO DO
AS A PROFESSIONAL.
IF HE BECOMES
A REALLY GOOD GLADIATOR,
THEN HE CAN GET
IN FRONT OF THIS GUY
AND EXACT HIS REVENGE.
[ Crowd Chanting ]
MAXIMUS !  MAXIMUS !
THE YOUNG EMPEROR HAS ARRANGED
A SERIES OF SPECTACLES...
TO COMMEMORATE HIS FATHER,
MARCUS AURELIUS.
[ Phoenix ]
THAT'S THE WHOLE IRONY
OF THIS STORY.
THE VERY GAMES
HE WANTS TO BRING--
HIS WHOLE IDEA
OF GETTING THE MASSES
TO RESPOND TO HIM...
IS WHAT ULTIMATELY
BRINGS HIS NEMESIS TO ROME.
YOU WILL REMOVE YOUR HELMET
AND TELL ME YOUR NAME.
MY NAME IS GLADIATOR.
 FATHER
 TO A MURDERED SON,
HUSBAND
TO A MURDERED WIFE.
I WILL HAVE
MY VENGEANCE.
TODAY I SAW A SLAVE
BECOME MORE POWERFUL
THAN THE EMPEROR OF ROME.
WE THINK THAT IT'S
SO BEYOND OUR COMPREHENSION
THAT WE CAN'T UNDERSTAND...
HOW 80,000 PEOPLE COULD
WATCH PEOPLE WAVE SWORDS
AT EACH OTHER IN THE COLOSSEUM.
ON THE OTHER HAND,
YOU TURN ON TELEVISION NOWADAYS
ANY DAY OF THE WEEK...
AND YOU'LL SEE WILD ANIMAL
ATTACKS, PEOPLE BEING WASHED
AWAY IN FLOODS, WHAT HAVE YOU.
BASICALLY,
GLADIATORIAL CONTESTS,
WHETHER IT'S ONE-ON-ONE,
BOXING,
AMERICAN FOOTBALL,
BULLFIGHTING, SOCCER,
IT'S A FUNNY KIND
OF PARALLEL TO THAT.
AND WAS IT ANY DIFFERENT
FROM THEN, OTHER THAN
THE FACT THAT PEOPLE DIED ?
NO.  FUNDAMENTALLY,
IT'S THE SAME.
[ Narrator ]
CONSTANTINE THE GREAT BANNED
ALL GLADIATORIAL CONTESTS...
IN 325 A.D.
BUT THEY CONTINUED
UNTIL 500 A.D.
SCHOLARS HAVE MANY THEORIES
AS TO WHY THE GAMES ENDED:
THE INFLUENCE OF CHRISTIANITY,
THE PROHIBITIVE COSTS
OF IMPORTING EXOTIC BEASTS...
AND, FINALLY,
THE SPECTACLE SIMPLY
LOST THEIR SOCIAL PURPOSE.
HOWEVER, 2,000 YEARS
AFTER THE DEMISE OF THIS
POPULAR PUBLIC ENTERTAINMENT,
WE STILL ASK THE QUESTIONS.
COULD WE BE LIKE IT ?
OR ARE THEY COMPLETELY
DIFFERENT FROM US ?
ARE THEY MONSTERS ?
DID THEY WORK DIFFERENTLY
AS HUMAN BEINGS ?
AND I THINK WE KNOW
THAT THERE'S A BIT IN US...
THAT IS ABSOLUTELY THERE
WITH THE ROMANS;
WE COULD BE LIKE THEM.
