Gladiator Family Quotes

How we cite our quotes: All quotations are from Gladiator.

Quote #4

MARCUS AURELIUS: Your faults as a son, is my failure as a father.

Marcus Aurelius takes responsibility for his failings as a father, and even asks for Commodus' forgiveness in this scene (his gestures suggest as much). It's not enough. His "failure as a father" ultimately leads to his death.

Quote #5

COMMODUS: I call it love. I'm their father. The people are my children. And I shall hold them to my bosom and embrace them tightly.

Again, lots of irony from Commodus. He unwittingly attempts to give the Romans the paternal love he was denied, but he really just wants to control them. Besides, the last guy he "embraced" ended up dead.

Quote #6

LUCILLA: My brother hates all the world, and you most of all…because my father loved you.

This is another clue to Commodus' anger and frustration. We've gotten hints throughout the movie that Marcus Aurelius loved Maximus more than Commodus. Lucilla knows that, and she knows this is why Commodus hates Maximus.