Original artwork, not a still
Three weeks from now, I will be harvesting my crops. Imagine where you will be, and it will be so.
Behind the line
What it means
Our interpretation.
Maximus talks about a calm, ordinary future, a farm and a harvest, moments before the worst day of his men's lives, and the normality is what makes the line stick. It is quoted as an anti-panic mantra and as an example of leading by picturing the far side of the ordeal. The film's farm and field imagery comes back at the end of the story, which gives this early line a long echo.
Context reviewed
In context
Spoilers for GladiatorShow the scene
The opening battle of Gladiator (2000), in the forests of Germania in AD 180. General Maximus has ordered the catapults loaded and the infantry to advance, and before the signal he speaks to his officers, Quintus among them. Three weeks from now he will be harvesting his crops, he says; imagine where you will be, and it will be so. He then calls out to hold the line. The battle was shot at Bourne Wood near Farnham, Surrey, where director Ridley Scott obtained permission to burn a section of forest that the Forestry Commission planned to clear.
Sources (2)
- Gladiator transcriptOpening battle, before the chargeReference checked
- Wikipedia: Gladiator (2000 film)FilmingReference checked
Context reviewed
