SPARCTICLE

Today's NYTimes Best 1176 Best Film was Kubrick's

Spartacus (1960)

Burdened with a tiresome love story and a bunch of stars who really don't fit the situation, this film becomes tedious very quickly undermining the motivation to sit and watch for three hours.

I gave up.

I was getting drowsy as, yet again, Kirk Douglas and Jean Simmons made small talk.

Lawrence Olivier put on a false Roman nose for his part and acts Shakesperean. Charles Laughton hams it up. Tony Curtis is one consonant away from Brooklyn in all his lines. Peter Ustinov is pretty good but I think he is playing it for camp and so he is an amusement.

I suppose a lot of my reaction is to a rather dated set of conventions for so called 'spectaculars' or road shows of this era.

They had overtures and intermissions and, usually, an overblown sense of self.

This would have been a lot better film on a smaller scale and without all the foo foo love interest.

Also, the music sucks.

I didn't like it and I didn't stay until the end. (I know what happens and I didn't want to watch that).

It will, therefore, sadly, be a 1 out of Netflix5.

Did I mention that this has the well known bath scene between Olivier and Curtis where Larry tries to get Tony to have a cuddle. It is really, really dated.