Pan and Slam

Gladiator II

R 2h 28m

• Director
  • Ridley Scott
• Stars
  • Connie Nielsen
  • Paul Mescal
  • Denzel Washington

by Jason Koenigsberg

Twenty-four years after Gladiator there is a sequel. The first movie rejuvenated the sword and sandals epic, as well as director Ridley Scott’s career while simultaneously making Russell Crowe a megastar and Joaquin Phoenix a big name as well. It went on to win Academy Awards for Best Picture and Best Actor for Crowe and it’s legacy stands as one of the defining movies at the dawn of the twenty-first century. Now a sequel to Gladiator may seem like it will wreak with desperation but it was in fact being planned over twenty years ago after the first movie came out. Ridley Scott’s return to the Roman Empire offers a lot of admire and also a lot to scratch your head about.

Gladiator II opens up with the Paramount logo instead of Dreamworks, because alas, Spielberg’s production company which won Academy Awards and made billions of dollars is no more. The logo is followed by opening credits over a stylized animated summary of the events from the original film. The first shot is a hand grabbing rice meant to be reminiscent of the previous films first shot, a hand touching some grains of wheat. There is some text to catch the audience up to where in Rome we are after the events of the first film and that this is a Rome much worse and decaying from a corrupt government. Once again, another movie with a not so subtle immediate jab at the United States current situation. Political commentary is almost becoming a lost art in cinema with it being such low hanging fruit that anyone with an eighth grade education could criticize American politics in a screenplay. The politics of the Gladiator do reflect the politics of the USA. When the first film came out our government was thriving and people were prospering under the Clinton era. Today we have suffered several wars since then, have a struggling economy, and are failing under selfish and corrupt leaders from both sides. Back to the movie, Gladiator II mirrors the first film with its opening shot and its opening scene being an epic battle sequence. This time the fighting takes place on land and sea and the historic naval battle in Gladiator II is one of the best since Charlton Heston starred in Ben-Hur (1959). A soldier who turns out to be the main character played by Paul Mescal witnesses his wife’s death in the battle. His people are conquered by the Roman army led by Pedro Pascal in this sequence. Our main character is captured, sold into slavery, and trained to be a gladiator.

The lead actors played by Mescal and Pascal are serviceable but they certainly lack the charisma of Russell Crowe and Joaquin Phoenix from the first film. Crowe’s ghost looms large throughout the film and is pivotal to the plot. It is highly unlikely either new actor who picks up the sword will earn Academy Award nominations or skyrocket to superstardom like the Crowe and Phoenix did for the previous film. However one actor who few would argue against him earning Best Supporting Actor nominations is Denzel Washington. He is sort of the Proximo character, played by Oliver Reed in the previous film, of this movie with a few more tricks up his toga. In fact this character is unlike any we have seen Denzel Washington play and it is a pleasure to see him relish this role and the third act provides him with a lot of twists and turns. People may be able to criticize Gladiator II as a whole but nobody can deny that Denzel does not once again excel in one of the juiciest roles of his long and illustrious career. He is easily the best part of this movie. It was also nice to see Connie Nielsen and Derek Jacobi return in their roles from the first movie. Ms. Nielsen looks great and is given a lot to do in this movie allowing her character to run the gamut of emotions, one only wishes we could say the same for Mr. Jacobi.

The plot involves a surprise regarding Paul Mescal’s character and his connection to Connie Nielsen’s and it would not be wise to speak of their dynamics anymore even though it sort of tarnishes aspects of some characters from the first film. Their relationship creates a convoluted plot involving the throne of the Roman Empire and allows for more coincidences than a Star Wars movie. The serendipitous plot makes a lot of the characters actions feel contrived and wish for a smarter screenplay with better dialogue. Despite the weaknesses in the script Gladiator II has some of the most visually sumptuous cinematography as most Ridley Scott movies do and memorable battle sequences at the very beginning and near the end.

Not all of the action is commendable. There is an early fight sequence with some really bad CGI baboons and later on some sharks and rhinos are just as unconvincing computerized manifestations. Gladiator II does drag at times in the second act but the third act is filled with surprises that will make the viewer lean forward in their seat. This is a tough one to call but the plot contrivances are just too silly to recommend and for as great as some of the performances are, Denzel Washington in particular, others are the polar opposite and borderline forgettable. Gladiator II sadly falls into the bin of long awaited unnecessary sequels.

Skip it and stay home and stream the original Gladiator which holds up even better today than it did nearly a quarter century ago.