Spartacus: Blood and Sand [** SPOILERS **]

don ramo

gogo wrote: »

Andy Whitefield who plays Spartacus has got cancer so, production of the second series is on hold while he gets treatment, he'll be in the first two episodes of the prequel, buts that it until the actual second series is out.
There not showing the prequel until spring 2011 either, seems like a lifetime away.
Loving this series.

i think we all know by now that spartacus had cancer, this thread is like a hotbed waiting for more spartacus,

don ramo

gogo wrote: »

Some of the acting is brutal, early on in the series when there was a lot of the men in the ludus scenes, the 'hearty laughter' and such was terrible. It has to be said tho that the cgi is worse, cue 'orange thundery sky scene'. Its been such a hugh hit in the states, that the next season will be better, bigger budget and all that.

Saying all that, you cant fault the script, the writing is excellent, fast flowing and with enough twists and turns to keep viewers busy.

and as some of the showrunners were saying breaking out is only a few little pages of the story,

gogo

don ramo wrote: »

i think we all know by now that spartacus had cancer, this thread is like a hotbed waiting for more spartacus,

Apologies

Dont normally come in here at all, and didnt read full thread.

Richard Dower

Guardian praises season finale: http://www.guardian.co.uk/tv-and-radio/tvandradioblog/2010/aug/17/spartacus-blood-sand-finale

Basq

The season finale was cracking alright!

ziedth

Does anyone else think that it's a real pity that John Hannah won't be around in season 2?

He made the series IMHO.

Richard Dower

We have the prequel for Hannah, why are people STILL saying Lucretia is still alive?????

Basq

ziedth wrote: »

Does anyone else think that it's a real pity that John Hannah won't be around in season 2?

He made the series IMHO.

Agreed.. his was one of the only real worthwhile performances in it. Can't say anyone else character appealed to me as much!

Richard Dower wrote: »

We have the prequel for Hannah, why are people STILL saying Lucretia is still alive?????

Weren't the producers forced by Starz to come up with a plan for keeping Lawless in season 2?

Richard Dower

^ ooh!....you need some article links to back that info up Basq!

Basq

Richard Dower wrote: »

^ ooh!....you need some article links to back that info up Basq!

There we go!

ziedth

basquille wrote: »

Agreed.. his was one of the only real worthwhile performances in it. Can't say anyone else character appealed to me as much!

I liked Docture (spellng very questionable) in it too,

I also have one. I'm not over familar with the true legend of Spartacus but to me it just seems that he picked "let's march on rome" out of thin air. Surely having killed them all they could just wander off back to wherever. It just seemed to jump from 3 to 8 in the scale of the story.

Richard Dower

18,000 thread views!...well done to all :-)

http://spartacus.ausxip.com/

don ramo

Richard Dower wrote: »

18,000 thread views!...well done to all :-)

http://spartacus.ausxip.com/

forum?:D

Richard Dower

LOL!...lazy tv night last night, so i watched the last three episodes of Sparty again, sometimes the first time round you miss things, some dialogue is unclear and general "must see it again" kicks in.

What a blast!, big grin on my face during the ludis rampage!...haha!, second time round it's kinda funny as well, the sheer insanity of it all, Vauro's wife gave that dweeb kid a right stabbing, she was covered head to toe in blood!

I was watching Lucritia in her final moments, definate signs of life....but close to death me thinks, it'll be interesting to see how DeKnight brings her back....hope he does it clever.

It's just a great piece of entertainment, i hope the Blu-Ray release has extended episodes or deleted scenes. Love to see this in full 1080p!

SuprSi

I have to admit, I haven't enjoyed a series as much as this in ages. I'm actually going out of my way to either watch it or record it. I missed some of the earlier episodes so will have to download them, but I'm massively entertained by the whole thing and last nights episode on TV3 was no different.

Richard Dower

Details on the Blu-Ray: http://whysoblu.com/spartacus-s1-blu-ray-trailer/

The monumental Starz Original series comes home when Anchor Bay Entertainment releases the critical and audience smash as an heroic four-disc DVD and Blu-ray™ on September 21st!

Executive produced by Rob Tapert, Sam Raimi, Joshua Donen and Steven S. DeKnight, “SPARTACUS: BLOOD AND SAND – The Complete First Season” on DVD and Blu-ray™ promises to take fans even deeper into the deadly brutality of gladiator games and the decadent machinations of Roman society with hours of bonus features delving behind the scenes into the making of a modern epic, including interviews and commentaries from the actors and filmmakers, augmented with rare production footage exploring the series’ ground-breaking visualeffects, production and costume design.

*
DVD and Blu-ray™ bonus features:
• Featurettes: Gladiator Camp, History Rewritten, Make-up Effects, The Hole, And more!
• Audio Commentaries
• Episodes with Enhanced Digital Effects
/> • Behind-The-Scenes Footage
• Bloopers
• Trailers
*
/> Exclusive Blu-ray™ bonus feature:
• Four “Directors’ Cut Extended Episodes” personally selected by Executive Producer Rob Tapert

BRILLIANT!!!!

Enhanced digital effects?....what does this mean?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_6Y4ABfmd40

http://www.movieweb.com/dvd/DVkMQlltccBKnt/the-woman-of-spartacus

JP Liz V1

Spartacus: Blood and Sand creator Steven S. DeKnight has confirmed that the second season of the show will introduce a new villain to replace Batiatus.

Richard Dower

JP Liz V1 wrote: »

Spartacus: Blood and Sand creator Steven S. DeKnight has confirmed that the second season of the show will introduce a new villain to replace Batiatus.

following on......The showrunner added that he was considering the idea of a romance between Spartacus and Ilithyia (Viva Bianca).

"It's a tricky thing since she tried to kill him several times," DeKnight said. "[Also] he firmly connects her to Glaber, who he partially blames for the death of his wife."

that angle makes no sense?....it would make more sense for him to hook up with Mira.

ScrubsfanChris

Have a look at the European release date:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Spartacus-Blood-Sand-1-Blu-ray/dp/B003LLMX4G/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1284675230&sr=8-2

"This title will be released on May 2, 2011." :eek:

Lets hope the N. American (A) release is region free.

robby^5

Richard Dower wrote: »

Enhanced digital effects?....what does this mean?

Well a lot of it was shot on green-screen and the show made Starz a boat load of cash, so they've probably gone back and redone some of the dodgier effects.

Sideshow Mark

EW are reporting that sadly Spatacus won't be in Season 2.

caspa307

the actor that plays spartacus, is recovering cancer which he got after filming series 1, unfortunatly its back.

the sequel(prequel) focuses on batiatus rise to power
http://www.deadline.com/2010/09/spartacus-star-andy-whitfield-wont-return-for-season-2-future-of-starzs-series-is-in-limbo/

Richard Dower

Jesus...this is horrible news!, such a young man...my thoughts and prayers are with him and his family at this time.

Andy Whitfield, star of Starz's "Spartacus: Blood and Sand," has been advised by his doctors to immediately resume aggressive treatment for a recurrence of cancer, as a result of which he will not be returning for the series' second season, which was tentatively set to air in September 2011.

"It's with a deep sense of disappointment that I must step aside from such an exceptional project as Spartacus and all the wonderful people involved. It seems that it is time for myself and my family to embark on another extraordinary journey. Thank you sincerely for the support so far," said Whitfield.

"Our hearts and prayers are with Andy and his family during this difficult time," said Starz President and CEO Chris Albrecht. "Andy is not only an incredible actor whose portrayal of Spartacus made an indelible impression on Starz audiences, he is also an amazing human being whose courage, strength, and grace in the face of adversity have inspired all of us."

No decisions have yet been made about the future of the series. "Right now, we just want to extend our concern and support to Andy and his family," said Carmi Zlotnik, Managing Director, Starz Media. "We will address our programming plans at some later date."

Starz still plans to air the prequel to Spartacus: Blood and Sand in January 2011. Entitled Spartacus: Gods of the Arena, it focuses on the House of Batiatus before Spartacus arrives in Capua and stars returning cast members John Hannah, Lucy Lawless, Peter Mensah and Manu Bennett, along with newcomer Dustin Clare

calex71

Just awful for the guy :eek:

Richard Dower

So what now?....can the show continue?, if they recast would fans accept it?....thing is, Spartacus is very popular, i wouldn't like to see the franchise thrown away based on one actor. That sounds cold but i think they really have a fine quality show with alot of story to tell.

I hope they can find a way to bring the show back.

I have an idea!...why not continue the prequel route, that way they keep Batiatus + Lucy Lawless + everyone else expect Andy, i don't know the timeline....but they could continue on the prequel for another 13 episodes or more, that would give Andy time or a final decision on wether he can come back.

Thoughts?

don ramo

devastaing news for the actor id say, did they say they have to take a more agressive approach to the cancer,

some how i think andy wont really care if his role is recast, he has just broken out as an actor, and will have plenty of approaches when he has finaly beaten this, but i couldnt see him complaining to much of the role was recast, (dunno if its been done before but could they recast him for 1 season, or would that be weird)

the problem is is there another actor out there that can match andys spartacus, the role isnt just about looking ripped and kicking the snot out of people, people are now invested in spartacus, what drives him, season 1 is only a few pages of the story, theres a lot more to tell, andy has left some big shoes to fill,

Richard Dower

don ramo wrote: »

devastaing news for the actor id say, did they say they have to take a more agressive approach to the cancer,

some how i think andy wont really care if his role is recast, he has just broken out as an actor, and will have plenty of approaches when he has finaly beaten this, but i couldnt see him complaining to much of the role was recast, (dunno if its been done before but could they recast him for 1 season, or would that be weird)

the problem is is there another actor out there that can match andys spartacus, the role isnt just about looking ripped and kicking the snot out of people, people are now invested in spartacus, what drives him, season 1 is only a few pages of the story, theres a lot more to tell, andy has left some big shoes to fill,

Yes , which dosen't bode well...it means the cancer has become more aggressive + the treatment will be much more harsh on him, take him longer to recover.

I agree in principle that Andy is "tied" to Spartacus, that's why i say i wonder if fans would accept another actor playing Andy's role...it could work out if they got someone, it's hard to say tbh.

Basq

Jaysus... poor Andy Whitfield. Feel real sorry for the guy!

me-skywalker

Ok random out of nowhere question witha gazillion answers BUT....

Is it any good?

On first impression, looks to me to be a full of blood, fights, gratuitous nudity and lacking any originality through a period in time which has been covered through the film plenty of times.

Richard Dower

20,000 page views, almost universal praise....you do the math.