It's been nearly a quarter of a century since Gladiator conquered the box office and Academy Awards. Now, at the young age of 86, Ridley Scott is back with the epic follow up to his 2000 classic. At this point in time I tend to gravitate more towards smaller, more intimate films, but this is a return to the big epic spectacles that first got me (and I'm sure many others) into movies, and it is a great return.
Many years after the events of the first film, a now adult Lucius (Paul Mescal) is thrust into the gladiator trade after his home is conquered by the pair of tyrannical twin emperors now leading Rome. His power-hungry owner Macrinus (Denzel Washington), promises to give him a chance against the man who conquered his home, leading Lucius to a rage filled journey into the coliseum.
While this doesn't match the original, it truly offers the epic historical scale you want from a sequel to Gladiator. The sets are big and lavish, the costumes are perfect, and there are countless scenes where seemingly hundreds if not thousands of extras fill the space to truly make this version of Rome feel like a living city. Within this story the people are at unrest with regards to their two emperors, and you can feel that hostile energy all throughout the film. Perhaps the biggest technical marvel though is how marvelously crafted the action is, delivering all the epic combat you could want in grand and at times visceral ways. There are moments that this feels more brutal than its predecessor and I am all for it.
Taking the mantle from Russell Crowe is one of my favourite working actors, Paul Mescal. I went into this hearing mixed things about his performance, so despite having an Aftersun tattoo and praising every performance I've seen of him, I was prepared to be a bit more critical here. Mescal admittedly doesn't have the booming presence that Crowe has, but he commanded scenes a lot more passionately than I expected. When he needs to feel like a leader he steps up and becomes commanding, just not in the same war-general way that Crowe did. There's a rage to his performance that I really enjoyed, giving a new layer to a similar character and delivering some unhinged scenes throughout.
The real star of the show here, as good as Mescal is, has to be Denzel. I never had any doubt that he would deliver, but he is phenomenal. He roams the set with an almost flamboyant energy while conniving his way to power similarly to Littlefinger in Game of Thrones, who just so happens to be my fav character so I naturally loved this. He just brings a terrific swagger and energy that truly steals every scene. I also really enjoyed Pedro Pascal as General Acacius, seeming to be the villain early on only to have his character given a lot more depth. I do wish we could see him doing more fun work as he's such a charming guy, but I can't deny how good he is at being moody. If you loved (hated) Joaquin Phoenix in the first film, you get double trouble here with Joseph Quinn and Fred Hechinger, both giving their own version of the spoiled royal, with Hechinger in particular having some hilarious moments. There are some other solid performances by the ensemble, sadly though Connie Nielsen didn't do much for me, although part of that is definitely how the character was written.
Narratively the film is a bit uneven, bouncing around without a ton of clarity on where things are temporally. I didn't really mind that though, nor did I mind the elements that require suspended disbelief such as the boats and sharks in the coliseum. Sure you can nitpick these bits, but come on, Paul Mescal fighting monkeys and throwing people to the sharks is objectively awesome who cares about historical accuracy.
All in all, it isn't as clean a film as the first. It's messier narratively and while looking great doesn't quite hit its predecessor's highs. It is however, a return to grand epics that we just don't get anymore and done in pretty great fashion. Rating: 4/5
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