Spartacus (miniseries)
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Spartacus | |
---|---|
Drama Action | |
Based on | Spartacus 1951 novel by Howard Fast |
Written by | Teleplay:' Robert Schenkkan |
Directed by | Robert Dornhelm |
Starring | Goran Visnjic Alan Bates Angus Macfadyen Rhona Mitra Ian McNeice Ross Kemp Ben Cross |
Theme music composer | Randy Miller |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
No. of episodes | 2 |
Production | |
Producer | Ted Kurdyla |
Cinematography | Kees Van Oostrum |
Editors | Mark Conte Victor Du Bois Cindy Mollo |
Running time | 171 minutes |
Original release | |
Network | USA Network |
Release | April 18, 2004 |
Spartacus is a 2004 North American miniseries directed by Robert Dornhelm and produced by Ted Kurdyla from a teleplay by Robert Schenkkan. It aired over two nights on the USA Network, and stars Goran Visnjic, Alan Bates (in his final television appearance), Angus Macfadyen, Rhona Mitra, Ian McNeice, Ross Kemp and Ben Cross.[1] It is based on the 1951 novel of the same name by Howard Fast.[1][2]
The plot, setting, and costumes are nearly identical to those of Stanley Kubrick's 1960 version; however, this adaptation follows Howard Fast's novel more closely than does Kubrick's film. (Two of the more noticeable omissions from the new adaptation are the "I am Spartacus!" scene and the reunion of Spartacus and his wife after the battle.) The miniseries is shown as a story a woman narrates to her son, who are later revealed to be Spartacus' wife and son.
A notable piece of dramatic license has Spartacus' son born exactly at the moment Spartacus dies in battle. As Marcus Crassus and Pompey Magnus are being proclaimed co-consuls, the announcer calls Rome an Empire, when it was still a Republic at the time. However, in contemporary Latin, the meaning of “Imperium“, empire, just meant area where one exercises power.
Plot
The Gaul woman Varinia (
Cast
- Goran Višnjić as Spartacus
- Alan Bates as Antonius Agrippa
- Marcus Crassus
- Rhona Mitra as Varinia, Spartacus' wife
- Lentulus Batiatus
- Paul Kynman as Crixus
- Paul Telfer as Gannicus
- James Frain as David
- Henry Simmons as Draba
- Chris Jarman as Nordo
- Ross Kemp as Cinna
- Ben Cross as Titus Glabrus, based on Gaius Claudius Glaber
- Niall Refoy as Publius Maximus, based on Publius Varinius
- Pompey Magnus
- Richard Dillane as Julius Caesar
See also
- List of historical drama films
- List of films set in ancient Rome
- List of films featuring slavery
- Third Servile War
- Spartacus (2010 TV series)
References
- ^ a b Lowry, Brian (11 April 2004). "Spartacus". Variety. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
- The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
External links
Quotations related to Spartacus (miniseries) at Wikiquote
- Spartacus at IMDb
- Spartacus at AllMovie
- Spartacus at the TCM Movie Database