Gladiator
The film "Gladiator" is an excellent example of my thesis statement. I believe that every hero needs a villain to build their character. The two are essential and compliment each other whilst at the same time opposing one another. In "Gladiator" the main protagonist Maximus starts out as a war hero, but few truly know his story and achievements. He is a simple man who ultimately wants to leave the army and live out his days as a farmer with his family. The plot of the film isn't shown until after the Emperor is killed. Commodus attempts to have Maximus killed, and this starts Maximus's new life as a gladiator. Commodus then kills Maximus's family and this is the event that brings our protagonist over the edge. Maximus vows to begin a new life of revenge and kill Commodus for the atrocities he has committed against Maximus and his family. Throughout his journey Maximus has many opportunities in which he could be killed but he continues to persevere and pursue his main goal of killing the emperor. Once Maximus reaches the main stage, Commodus recognizes the man he tried to kill, and consistently makes attempts on his life in the arena. After each fight Maximus becomes more popular, and more confident in his abilities. This is a great example of the villain essentially giving the hero what he needed to succeed. Commodus unknowingly gave his enemy a stage to defy him and prosper. This allowed for Maximus to make an impression on many Romans and also meet potential allies. Commodus continued to oppose him and attempt to kill Maximus, but this only added fuel to the fire and created a nice build up for an expected fight scene. The audience was blessed by a action packed battle between the two and it gave Maximus a chance to achieve his end goal.
I believe that this film is one of the better examples of my thesis. This is because Maximus was handpicked by the emperor to become his successor. Maximus refused the offer which left the position open for Commodus to take once the emperor died. Maximus clearly did not want Commodus to assume this position because he knew Commodus would not be a good emperor. As the story progressed, it seems that Maximus was turning into the protector of Rome. He knew killing Commodus would allow for a better successor. In a twisted way, he needed Commodus to fight him in the arena to show the Romans who Commodus really was. He also was allowed to pick the successor by the connections he made as a Gladiator. All of these parts came together because of what Commodus did early on in the show. His rash actions came back to hurt him in the long run. He made it possible for Maximus to defy him and he chose to fight Maximus in the arena. Commodus plays a huge role in the success story of Maximus because he essentially created the infamous gladiator.
