"Gladiator"

We can see the use of these techniques in several scenes including the scene where Commodus kills his father, Marcus Aurelius. The camera zooms into a close-up shot of Commodus and Marcus which takes up the whole frame of the shot. The use of a close-up shot in this scene  lets the viewers feel personally involved in the scene as they are so close to the two characters and lets them see the emotions of Commodus up close as he weeps in front of his father, showing us the facial expression which seems to be a mix of sorrow and frustration. The scene is also set in low-key lighting which makes the scene very dark and more intense to the viewers as they can only see a few facial features in the few patches of bright light. The dark lighting also signifies the turning point in the scene as hatred fills Commodus leading to him killing his father. The scene also uses a low shot angle to set Commodus above his father and the viewers which makes it look as if Commodus now has the power  while his weak father does not. The use of a close-up shot, low-key lighting, and angle leads to an intense scene between father and son and signifies the turning point of the scene where Commodus will kill his father and become the mighty emperor.

Similar cinematic techniques are used in the scene where Commodus and Maximus enter the colosseum from the platform below. The scene implements close-up shots to zoom in on the characters Maximus and Commodus separately to reveal their emotions. Maximus is seen looking down at the ground with a blank stare as he was just stabbed in the back moments prior while Commodus has his head raised up high as if he is ascending. The use of a close-up helps us see the drastic difference between the two characters and shows the advantage and confidence Commodus has over Maximus because he sabotaged the fight.  The lighting is used to illuminate both characters in a bright white light and symbolize both of their deaths in the following fight. Once again, the camera angle is set at a low angle shot to make the viewers "look up" at the ascending characters. This is used as another representation of the inevitable death of the two as they are raised away from the viewers. The use of a close-up shot, bright lighting, and a low camera angle helps the viewer interpret the power difference between Commodus and Maximus in the scene and allude to their end.

The final scene where Maximus defeats Emperor Commodus also uses cinematic techniques to enrich the scene for the viewers. The scene once again implements a close-up shot in order for the viewers to really see the raw emotion and expression of shock on Commodus' face as he is stabbed in the neck by the weakened Maximus. The scene differs from prior scenes as the shot angle is set at the relative eye angle of Maximus and Commodus. Instead, the scene puts Maximus just a bit higher than Commodus to represent the power he now has over the arrogant emperor and does not set him towering over Commodus to show that his power is still minimal as he will soon face the same fate as the emperor, death. Showing this power advantage while keeping the angle at eye-level lets the viewers interpret the scene as a small power shift between the two. The use of a close-up and positioning Maximus above Commodus while keeping the angle at eye-level leads to a deep scene where Commodus realizes he has been defeated and lost all his power.

The use of cinematic techniques has led to scenes with amazing storytelling simply through visuals and gives the characters further depth for the viewers to enjoy. Cinematic techniques such as close-ups, shot angles, and lighting have helped enrich the scenes throughout the movie and have added to the masterpiece work that was put into this movie.