Welcome to the World of "Gladiator Football" by Jonathan Glazer

When one thinks of the city of Florence, Italy, what normally comes to mind are the rarefied works of Michelangelo and Titian in the Uffizi Gallery, or the architectural grandeur of Il Duomo. However, a commercial shot for Canon by acclaimed director Jonathan Glazer sheds light on another stunningly dynamic, albeit brutal, side of Florentine culture. The event depicted is the ‘Calcico Storico,’ a football game with deep historical roots taking place every June, and entails two teams of 27 men, each fighting to get a ball over a 4-foot high fence at either end of the pitch. The matches, or should we say battles, are fought in front of the Santa Croce church between four teams representing the four districts of the city, and the winners take home a cow. Watch the belief-defying commercial above and leave a comment below.