From Jeff Nelson

Ridley Scott’s Gladiator wields power in its cultural relevance, continuing to influence cinema across genre boundaries. Twenty-four years later, he returns to the world of blood and sand, once again offering an abundance of both. Gladiator II throws bigger threats into the Colosseum, but the storytelling is less epic this time around.

Lucius (Paul Mescal) – the son of Maximus (Russell Crowe) and Lucilla (Connie Nielsen) – is taken prisoner from his homeland in Numidia. He’s forced into slavery, where fighting to the death as a gladiator is his only pathway to freedom. He trains under Macrinus (Denzel Washington), who has plans of his own against the tyrannical rule of twin Emperors Geta (Joseph Quinn) and Caracalla (Fred Hechinger).

Scott picks up the story around two decades after the 2000 original. Lucius was forced to leave his life behind as the heir to the Roman Empire and now lives a very different life. His world crumbles at his feet when General Marcus Acacius (Pedro Pascal) and his Roman soldiers burn it all to ash. In ways that echo his father’s journey, he’s filled with a hunger for vengeance that only Roman blood can satisfy. His return to Rome ignites old fires, interrupting the ongoing fight for power and influence.

Macrinus selects his gladiators based on one attribute: rage. Lucius is brimming with it, inspiring him to face fearsome foes. He encounters numerous trials, including monstrous apes, naval combat, and rhinos. Scott undoubtedly wanted to throw other textures of combat into the Colosseum, yet the action still falls short of the predecessor’s sequences. Lucius targets Acacius with his short-sighted anger, but the looming dangers associated with the sociopathic emperors and the plotting Macrinus pose greater dangers for Rome and its planned expansion. The emperors are one-dimensional threats, while Macrinus proves the film’s most compelling character.

Gladiator II glazes over its plot points, failing to give dramatic weight to the plot threads that matter. The narrative is about legacy and identity, yet it doesn’t give the familiar characters any nuance. They’re treated as bothersome loose ends, rather than essential pieces to the puzzle. Lucius’ journey transitions into a soap opera when blood isn’t soaking into the Colosseum’s soil. How are we supposed to care about its characters when David Scarpa’s screenplay doesn’t even take an interest in them?

Mescal is a profound rising talent, although he’s miscast as Lucius. It doesn’t help that the character’s journey is derivative of Crowe’s Maximus’, stopping him from contributing anything new to the role. Washington’s Macrinus steals the show, balancing a twisted sense of humor and an intimidating intensity. He occasionally abandons the character’s isms, simply playing himself. But, he remains the film’s shining beacon.

Gladiator II is a rehash of its predecessor that entertains on the Colosseum grounds but falls narratively flat. Violence and the resulting deaths hold little weight, reducing this epic world of gladiators and political games to an inert and minor story. Scott occasionally leans into the ridiculousness of the historical inaccuracies, but one could argue it doesn’t embrace it enough to excuse the repetition. 

Rating: 2.5/5

Gladiator II hits theaters on November 22nd, 2024.

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