At the time of its first release in 1960, “Spartacus” was hailed as the first intellectual epic since the silent days – the first Roman or Biblical saga to deal with ideas as well as spectacle. Even the ending was daring. The crucified hero is denied a conventional victory, and has to be consoled with the hope that his ideas will survive.

Seen three decades later in a lovingly restored version, “Spartacus” still plays like an extraordinary epic, and its intellectual strength is still there. But other elements of the film have dated. The most courageous thing about it, from today’s standards, is that it closes without an obligatory happy ending, and an audience that has watched for 187 minutes doesn’t get a tidy, mindless conclusion…more

TIFF screening info on the Magnificent 70MM Series as well as Spartacus screening times