For director Ridley Scott, it was one look at a 19th-century neoclassical work of art that convinced him to make the Oscar-winning picture “Gladiator.” Jean-Léon Gérôme’s painting “Pollice Verso” depicts an armored gladiator in the ring, triumphantly facing onlookers as the crowd reacts with thumbs turned down, signaling their approval for the fighter to deliver […]
WILDsound Festival 