Ridley Scott’s Gleefully Gonzo Gladiator II Is Bigger Than Its Predecessor – But Not Better [Review]

Warning: The following article contains mild spoilers for Gladiator II.

Let’s address the elephant in the room – or rather, the rhino the arena – up front: Gladiator II isn’t anywhere near as good as its 2000 predecessor.

Heck, this belated follow-up’s not a good movie, period. It’s bloated, messy, and emotionally hollow. It also wrings every ounce of cheap nostalgia out of the original Gladiator it can, even as it disregards so much of what made that flick truly special to begin with. On paper, it’s an utter failure.

Yet, in practice, Gladiator II is (like so many of director Ridley Scott’s more recent films) an undeniably watchable film as much for its flaws as in spite of them.

Picking up 16 years after Gladiator, Gladiator II gives us a new vengeance-fuelled warrior to root for: Hanno (Paul Mescal). Well, not entirely new; in a “twist” so obvious Paramount Pictures spoiled it in the trailers, Hanno is really Lucius Verus: a supporting character in Gladiator here revealed as the illegitimate offspring of that film’s protagonist, Maximus, and Lucilla (Connie Nielsen). Hanno/Lucius winds up press-ganged into the gladiatorial games under ex-slave Macrinus (Denzel Washington), who sees in his new recruit a means of securing greater sway with cruel co-emperors Geta (Joseph Quinn) and Caracalla (Fred Hechinger). Lucius grudgingly plays along, on one condition: that Macrinus bring him face-to-face with Marcus Acacius (Pedro Pascal) – the Roman general responsible for the death of Lucius’ wife.

Related: Is the Gladiator Franchise Based on a True Story?

In case the above doesn’t make it readily apparent, Scott and screenwriter David Scarpa have approached Gladiator II with a Colosseum crowd’s mentality. It’s all about more, more, more. More cartoonishly wicked villains, more elaborate action set pieces, more trippy ethereal sequences, and more anachronistic politics and historical inaccuracies. This, coupled with the sequel’s age certification pushing violence, lends a gonzo glee to proceedings that’s easy to appreciate. Nothing about this strange, often silly sword-and-sandal epic feels like the product of studio notes. It’s compelling purely to see what Scott’s going to throw our way next. If nothing else, you won’t get bored during Gladiator II‘s 148-minute runtime.

The movie’s brisk pacing also helps its two-hour-plus runtime whizz by – to a fault. Gladiator 2 rams through its character-oriented scenes like Marcus Acacius’ triremes slamming into the Numidian coast. As a result, pretty much every major emotional beat in the film plays out on 1.2x speed. Characters’ motivations and relationships abruptly pivot; entire arcs handwaved with clunky dialogue and forced callbacks to Gladiator. It’s unfair on the cast, especially Mescal (already struggling to escape the shadow cast by OG franchise headliner Russell Crowe). Everyone does their best, but only Washington truly shines – and then, by leaning into the borderline camp of the piece.

Related: Gladiator II: How Is Pedro Pascal’s Marcus Acacius Connected to Russell Crowe’s Maximus?

If this all sounds a bit clumsy compared to the elegant simplicity of Gladiator, that’s because it is. The longer Gladiator II runs, the more you’ll wish Scott channelled the stripped back storytelling of his earlier film, with its single, hissable villain and readily apparent stakes. Lucius’ target shifts so often – and his ultimate goal along with it – that by the time we reach Gladiator II‘s home stretch, we’ve completely lost sight of what our hero is fighting for, much less why we should care. Again, Mescal does his best; he’s a charismatic actor with a knack for smouldering fury. But not even a final, sub-Rocky IV speech is enough to sell the rousing finale Scott and Scarpa are shooting for.

On the plus side, everything looks great, at least. But then, Scott and his long-time cinematographer John Mathieson rarely disappoint on that score. Equally, Gladiator II‘s VFX mostly hit the mark. The jaw-dropping opening battle alone warrants the cost of an IMAX ticket, and the various dust-ups that follow are no less spectacular. Yet even these sequences suffer the shortcomings of Scott’s “more is more” mindset, saddled with more pixel-powered elements than the overburdened effects artists can believably realize. Notably, Gladiator II‘s menagerie of CGI beasts are all differing levels of unconvincing, particularly the primates Lucius tangles with early on. It’s distracting and dulls the impact of what are otherwise first-rate set pieces.

Related: Gladiator Remains a Celebration of Spectacle, 20 Years Later

And with its visceral thrills not quite clicking, Gladiator II‘s other, deeper problems are harder to ignore. Specifically, it doesn’t add up to much. The first Gladiator is an old school revenge yarn that nevertheless does a decent job exploring themes such as family, duty, honor, and power. Gladiator II mines similar ground, but because everything’s so rushed, it doesn’t unearth much. Interesting ideas are picked up and almost immediately put down. Even Macrinus’ clearly articulated thoughts on politics and payback aren’t developed enough to really hit home. Meanwhile, the most fascinating concept of the lot (Marcus’ aims versus his actions) is squandered entirely.

But every time wasted opportunities such as this start to grate, Scott serves up another shot of adrenaline to distract us. Emotionally and thematically deficient it may be, but Gladiator II is easily one of 2024’s most shamelessly fun movies. How could it not be, with the filmmaker behind it pulling it out all the stops? You can almost picture Scott echoing Maximus and defiantly bellowing “Are you not entertained?” at moviegoers as they leave his kitchen sink blockbuster. And the truth is, Gladiator II is indeed entertaining. It’s just not very satisfying – on its own, or as a sequel.

Gladiator II arrives in cinemas on Nov. 22, 2024.