Gladiator (film)/Quotes

Commodus: "Your fame is well deserved, Spaniard. I don't think there's ever been a gladiator to match you. As for this young man, he insists you are Hector reborn. Or was it Hercules? Why doesn't the hero reveal himself and tell us all your real name? You do have a name."
Maximus: "My name is Gladiator." (Turns away)
Commodus: "How dare you show your back to me! Slave, you will remove your helmet and tell me your name."
Maximus: (Turns back, slowly removes helmet) "My name is Maximus Decimus Meridius, commander of the Armies of the North, General of the Felix Legions, loyal servant to the true emperor, Marcus Aurelius. Father to a murdered son, husband to a murdered wife. And I will have my vengeance, in this life or the next."

"What we do in life echoes in eternity."

—Maximus

"Listen to me. Learn from me. I was not the best because I killed quickly. I was the best because the crowd loved me. Win the crowd and you will win your freedom."

—Proximo

"I think he knows what Rome is. Rome is the mob. Conjure magic for them and they'll be distracted. Take away their freedom and still they'll roar. The beating heart of Rome is not the marble of the senate, it's the sand of the coliseum. He'll bring them death - and they will love him for it."

—Gracchus

"Are you not entertained? Is this not why you are here?"

—Maximus

"We who are about to die salute you."

—Gladiators

"Fratres! Three weeks from now I will be harvesting my crops. Imagine where you will be, and it will be so. Hold the line. Stay with me. If you find yourself alone, riding in green fields with the sun on your face, do not be troubled; for you are in Elysium, and you're already dead! [The soldiers laugh] Brothers, what we do in life, echoes in eternity."

--Maximus