Gladiator II (2024)
Legacy sequels (sequels coming over a decade or more after its predecessor) are increasingly common. They are not entirely new. 1990 saw the release of the massively underrated The Two Jakes, a follow-up to 1974's Chinatown, and 1986 saw the release of The Color of Money, a good sequel to 1961's The Hustler. Legacy sequels have been getting more popular in recent years. Some, like Top Gun: Maverick and Blade Runner 2049, have improved upon their originals. Unfortunately, Gladiator II is not in that category.
Is Gladiator
II bad? No, but it rarely rises above the level of "fine" or "okay." Lucius
(Paul Mescal), the son of the first film's hero Maximus (Russell Crowe) and
Lucilla (Connie Nielsen), is living peacefully with his wife in Africa when an
invading Roman army led by Acacius (Pedro Pascal) kills Lucius' wife and takes
him into slavery.
Once
a slave, he is purchased by the cunning Macrinus (Denzel Washington), an owner
of gladiators. Lucius quickly makes a name for himself fighting at the
Colosseum against an array of enemies both human and animal (baboons and a
rhinoceros are among the film's antagonists). Twin emperors (Joseph Quinn and
Fred Hechinger) are the other antagonists, ruling Rome with capriciousness and
cruelty.
The
best part of Gladiator II is Washington's performance as Macrinus. He's
clearly having a lot of fun with the role and the film gets a jolt of life
whenever he's on screen.
Unfortunately,
the problem Gladiator II has is it often feels like a rehash of the
original. Paul Mescal isn't bad as Lucius, but he lacks Russell Crowe's
charisma as an action hero. The absence of Crowe is felt in another fashion,
too. The best legacy sequels work because they provide additional depth and
scope to a character audiences loved and connected with, but Maximus from the
original Gladiator is dead. So Gladiator II just treads over
familiar ground with a new character and a sequel's common directive of "like
the original, but more." Instead of one crazy emperor, there are now two. The
first film had plenty of gore, but the second one rises to a new level.
Devoted fans of the original will likely see enough to be entertained here, but the film's 155-minute running time means even casual fans of the original might get restless before it ends.
