BBC television documentary. The Roman arena, one of the greatest legends of the ancient world, still reminds us of the cruel and bloody games. For more than five hundred years, gladiator fights took place here for the entertainment of the privileged class of the empire that ruled Roman society. Wild animal hunts, re-enactments of battles with deadly weapons and mass executions of prisoners were a major part of the widespread and popular spectacle. But why were these death pageants so important to Roman society? Why did the Romans build such large special buildings to host the games and how were these buildings created? And what did it really mean to be a gladiator, a real star? The Colosseum is an excellent documentary that will answer not only these questions. It tells the story of Verus, a man who knows how to fight in the arena. You will also learn about other life destinies of gladiators who lived and died for their cause. The film takes place during the three years before the completion of the Colosseum, the largest Roman arena ever built. The action culminates in AD 80 at the opening games lasting 100 days. The games were only as "successful" as the man who organized them - Titus, one of the most popular emperors in history.

Director: Tilman Remme

Starring: Jamel Aroui, Lotfi Dziri, Jeffrey Gibson, John Benjamin Hickey

Language: English 2.0, Czech 2.0

Subtitles: Czech

Length: 50 minutes