Dir. Stanley Kubrick
Kirk Douglas dominates Kubrick’s sword and sandal epic as the gladiator who defies an empire. Having worked with Kubrick on Paths of Glory, it was Douglas, also executive producer on Spartacus, who hired him to replace Anthony Mann after only the first week of shooting. The film was the most expensive made in the US up to that time, and the only one that Kubrick didn’t have complete artistic control over. However, despite some creative battles, he was still able to bring out his masterful cinematic techniques and intellectual ambitions within an industry framework.