THE PLOT THUS FAR
A new hero is born in this hilarious, animated adventure of epic proportions. Timo, a student at the Gladiators’ Academy in Rome, has no desire to become a legendary gladiator like his stepfather. That is, until the mesmerizing Lucilla walks into his life. With the help of an unlikely band of sidekicks, Timo is determined to be the gladiator of her dreams and embarks on an action-packed journey to become the Colosseum’s first victor.
WHAT WE THOUGHT
“Gladiators of Rome” is a poorly dubbed and awkwardly staged CG movie from Italy. What makes it funnier is that the film is set in Pompeii. History being what it is, you’ll spend most of the film eagerly awaiting the Volcano to erupt. You don’t get that favor, as the film forces you deep into the dimension of the Gladiator School structure. People play around and cute sidekicks get introduced, but this is bottom feeding animation. My daughter couldn’t stay focused during it, but she might have been too young for it.
There is a ton of foreign animation being dubbed and brought into America. I don’t get what has spawned the sudden influx, but I wish we could port over the same presentations that these films get years ago in their home countries. Hell, this movie was release in HD and 3D during its 2012 release in Italy. But, Paramount didn’t want to take a chance on it. I guess that’s how we can explain away a few of these recent pushes. Oh well, you should know what you’re getting into by looking at the box art.
The DVD comes with no special features. The A/V Quality is on par for most recent standard definition animation releases. The transfer isn’t amazing, but it works. The same goes for the Dolby 5.1 audio track. In the end, I’d recommend a purchase to the curious.
RELEASE DATE: 02/17/2015