Gladiators of Rome

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source: Gladiators of Rome

Really well done. I didn't realize it was animation when I set the DVR. It is fine for kids, but is interesting enough for adults to enjoy, too. I saw the English version when it was on one of the free cable channels. I can understand why kids today aren't interested in the cartoons from years ago, the technology has advanced so much. We follow a young boy from Pompeii to Rome, where he is weak and timid and not really interested in much. His stepfather tries to make him strong and bold, and find and develop his talents. And therein lies the plot. I would say for around 6 years old and up, and definitely all the way up through adulthood.

Timo is a young orphan who is saved from the tragedy of the Pompeii volcano, and adopted by General Chirone, founder of the famous Academy of Gladiators. The young boy grows up surrounded by all kinds of gladiators, but shows no interest in becoming one of them. Everything changes when he meets Lucilla, who is promised to Cassio, considered by many to be the best gladiator in Rome and the Emperor's famous nephew. Cute, I liked it, a cute animation, with a very dramatic, sad beginning, historically located in Pompeii and Rome, let's wrap it up with a lot of action and some romanticism... The script attracted me less, the charismatic and simple characters (actually only the protagonist and the little children) however conquered the average film... Regular...

Simple but good movie with funny characters and characterized properly in their simplicity. While not shining for the complexity of the plot, it is a dignified and functional work.

to criticize it is the first temptation. and to criticize hard. but, in essence, it is only a nice animation. not convincing, not seductive, far to be great. but a sort of innocent joke with a generous theme, using old ingredients - love, competition,the error and the work to become the best from Karate Kid model, Ancient Rome as theoretical frame and few crazy characters. and the work is done. pure entertainment, amusing and far by great expectations, it is a sort of animation who could be a fresh air after the serious, high budget and large team of Pixar or Disney. in same measure, Galdiators of Rome preserves the flavor of old fashion animations.and the message. nothing new about gladiators or Rome. but a good dose of smiles. that is all.

This movie was done by some of the same people who did the Nickelodeon episodes of Winx Club, including the Americans of Paramount/Viacom who SHOULD know what they're doing, so I am surprised that the English version is so much clunkier compared to the original Italian one. I watched some of the original Italian and all of the English version, but the Italian version was easier to sit through and I don't even speak that language. In the English dub, there were some lip sync issues and out-of-place slang (very Dreamworks-y), and the voice actors did a "meh" job, especially Timo (the main character). The Italian ones just seemed to try harder, plus in Italy, the voices were an all-star cast including Belen Rodriguez. The 3D animation was the best part, and it looks very similar to the 3D scenes in Winx. Some of the scenes look well-lit and beautiful, but other times the faces look too stiff/doll-like and it is distracting.

source: Gladiators of Rome

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