Gladiator -- Battle in Germania

Taking place during emperor Marcus Aurelius' campaign against the Germanic barbarians of Europe, this battle demonstrates the look, feel and tactics of Rome in its heyday. This is not the Roman republic of Julius Ceasar but rather the Roman empire of some centuries advancement.

We can see here that the Romans have made use of many kinds of technological advancements such as ballistas and catapults as well as the more visually impressive (possibly as a result of the film taking liberties) fire arrows. They also make use of tried and true ancient battle tactics such as a form of the phalanx made famous by the Greeks. We also see the use of the very standard tactic of the pincer maneuver, which is essentially positioning one army in more than one side around the other army. This creates what is in effect a two front war.

The Battle in Germania is one of the most impressive depictions of war in cinema history. It contains many memorable one liners with heavy philosophical bent, such as this conversation: "People should know when they are conquered." "Would you Quntus? Would I?" It is a rather short battle but it is expertly paced, making each second count. It also tries to showcase as many aspects of war as possible, showing all sorts of detail such as soldiers, negotiations, technology and tactics. And to cap it all off the music by Hans Zimmer is heavily inspired by the amazing Mars: Bringer of War from Gustav Holst's The Planets Suite. It may be short but it is one amazing scene.