Gladiator II – Quick Review

I went to see Gladiator II on the day it came out.

One year after Ridley Scott bored us with the interminable details of [American] Napoleon Bonaparte’s love life in his Napoleon, he’s back with another historical epic, Gladiator II. 

Here are the answers to the burning questions you never thought you needed to ask.

Why is there a new Gladiator film?

First, there was Top Gun Maverick, then Hollywood snuck Beetlejuice Beetlejuice out on us. Now we have Gladiator II, 24 years after the Russell Crowe original. Without a recent superhero blockbuster, the Hollywood studios are cashing in on nostalgia.

I rewatched the original Gladiator the other day and while I don’t think it’s aged too well, it’s a pretty decent Roman swords and sandals movie. 

Remind me, what happens in the original Gladiator?

Briefly, the plot concerns Russell Crowe going from Roman general extraordinaire, Maximus Decimus Meridius, to a slave thanks to the Emperor Commodus, played by Joaquin Phoenix. Did I mention Commodus also killed his wife and family?  

Maximus rises through the ranks in the gladiator world and gets his revenge on those who wronged him.
It’s pretty jarring to hear Joaquin Phoenix do an English accent in Gladiator, when he was firmly American when playing Napoleon last year. Denzel Washington just acts like Training Day Denzel.

I guess at 86 years old, Ridley Scott no longer expects his actors to blend into the past in his new movies. 

I’m not sure who decided that Romans spoke in English accents, but it’s an accepted part of cinema and it’s strange to hear anything else.

What Happens in Gladiator II?

24 years after the original movie Gladiator, Rome is a mess again and led by corruption. This time there are two emperors.

Gladiator II’s story follows Lucius Verus: on a similar trajectory as Maximus from the first film and the connections to the first film become clearer over time. This aspect is the weakest part of the film, the first hour of the film rivals the original, but the deeper we get into the characters’ motivations things the pace slacks.

The action scenes in the arena are gory and satisfying and are easily the best part of the film. There’s a water scene that seems implausible but actually happened.

Who’s in Gladiator II?

The star of the show is Denzel Washington, he commands every scene he’s in and hams it up. Sometimes I felt like he’s in his own film and everyone else is just there to enjoy the show.

Paul Mescal plays the protagonist, Hano, in his first Hollywood role since breaking out with Normal People. Interesting aside that his co-star Daisy Edgar-Jones, starred in the enjoyable Where the Crawdads Sing, both actors are doing well.

It’s surprising to watch Mescal being so expressive in here compared to how inert Connell could be.

I found him a very convincing leading man who develops throughout the film, his arc ends in a satisfying way. Perhaps leaving room for a sequel but I guess we’ll see once the box office numbers come in.

The throwback characters to the characters from the first film felt superfluous. I still didn’t find Connie Nielsen’s character compelling;  but as the only female character of consequence in either film, she has a lot of heavy lifting to do.

It was also good to see Brother Derek Jacoby having a bit of fun in this one too.

Is Gladiator II any good?

The combat is better than the first one, but that’s to be expected from a film with today’s stunt work. They had very creative uses of animals too.

The story was serviceable, especially in the first act, and the final action scene was a bit underwhelming – but overall it holds the film together.

The best part are the two leading men Denzel Washington and Paul Mescal, it won’t win any Oscars this time but it was fun.

So, which film is better?

Depends on what you want, the first Gladiator undeniably had a better story than the sequel. It was a weird year for movies, but the original won five Oscars. Russell Crowe has many iconic moments and even inspired MF DOOM’s mask; it was one of the signature films of the 2000s for a reason.

The action is better in Gladiator II, and the story struggles to maintain momentum throughout, but it’s a great popcorn flick.

4 decapitated heads out of 5.