Smashbomb

Spartacus (1960)

1960 | Adventure, History, War

8.3

(23 Ratings)

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And here it was! The film that Douglas as star and producer had been working towards for his whole life. At the age of 43 he threw his entire being into making this the difining moment of his career. Although we do remember it with extreme fondness, it was a troubled production by any stretch. Original director Anthony Mann was fired by Douglas months into filming and replaced by Kubrick, who Douglas admired unreservedly after Paths of Glory. The trouble was that Kubrick himself was out-growing Douglas creatively and the two also clashed, to an almost catastrophic degree. Film legend will tell it different ways, but such was Douglas’ ego by this point that he virtually directed it himself; a fact Kubrick would never again endure, to the point of almost disowning the final product. So many iconic moments and a re-watchability factor belie what a painful experience it was for all its stars. Douglas had to watch on again as this time Peter Ustinov won the supporting actor gong, whilst Douglas was not even nominated. A great irony that his life’s work culminated in a film that to some extent broke his heart.