Gladiator 2 Review
Be entertained like never before with an action packed, fast paced, historical epic that pays no attention to historical detail.
Fair warning, this is a spoiler-filled review. Lucius Verus must enter the coliseum after he was forced to flee Rome after the death of Maximus Decius Meridius. Lucius had built a life for himself in Africa, and during battle, he was captured by the Roman general, Marcus Acacius.
This movie has nothing short of a stacked cast, headlined by Paul Mescal (Lucius Verus), Denzel Washington (Macrinus), and Pedro Pascal (Marcus Acacius). Each one of these headliners had their opportunity to shine, but Washington took this movie to the next level. Washington plays a master manipulator who seemingly always gets what he wants. He’s so subtle yet not at the same time. The audience knows what he’s up to, but he’s so good at it, you almost want to root for him.
A very large part of this movie was the action, as it should be. From beginning to end, it felt like Ridley Scott was trying to top the action from the first movie. An epic battle sequence in the beginning to introduce the main characters, flooding the coliseum for naval warfare, and a heart pounding one on one duel to decide Rome’s fate. Not many sequels can do just as good as the first, but when it came to the action, Gladiator 2 delivered on all accounts.
One knock on the Gladiator franchise so far has been about how historically inaccurate these movies are. A big point in this movie was the fact that there was a character reading a newspaper. In today’s world, obviously that’s not a big deal. However, Gladiator 2 takes place towards the end of the second century A.D. The problem is that newspapers weren’t a thing until the Roman Empire had long been destroyed. Truthfully, there was no need for a three second shot of someone reading a newspaper. But there’s a bigger point to be brought up. Yes, this movie is set in a very real time and place that existed. However, unless you’re a massive history buff, or have some sort of profession in the history field, something being historically accurate should not be a big deal.
The reason people go to the movies is to detach themselves from the current world they're living in. Watching a movie about overthrowing a corrupt government, and chopping heads off does not need to be accurate to history. The Gladiator series has been made to entertain, and that’s what it is best at.
Obviously Gladiator 2 is a sequel to arguably one of, if not the best original movie from the 2000s. This means that Gladiator 2 has a lot to live up to, and coming 24 years after the first movie is no easy step. Similar to Top Gun: Maverick, Gladiator 2 had a good amount of nostalgia. People were rewatching Gladiator so much in preparation that is was the third most popular movie on Letterboxd the week of the sequels release. There were so many call backs, reused music, and clear motivation from Lucius that was sparked when he heard the name Maximus Decius Meridius. All of these are good things when used properly. Thankfully, most of them were used very well. It never felt too forced, but there were times when it felt like there was too much.
There is a line that has to be drawn when it comes to nostalgia. While it’s not a bad thing, a movie or TV show should not rely so heavily on it that the audience begins to think, “Wow, they’re doing it again.” Nostalgia should make the audience think, “Wow! That’s a reference to the first movie.” There’s parts where Gladiator 2 is the latter of those statements, but there are times when it feels like the former.
Unfortunately, the two Gladiator movies are bound to be compared to each other. Both are very good. Where one lacks, the other makes up for it, and there is no massive flaw in either movie that makes it unwatchable. However, one thing that the sequel does better than the original is having the Roman citizens a priority. Both have the point that the current state of Rome is not what Rome is supposed to be, however Gladiator 2 shows the audience citizens in action. After the execution of the Roman general and hero, Marcus Acacius, Lucius Verus shouts to the crowd in the coliseum, “If this is how Rome treats its heroes, how do you think it’ll treat you?”
Lucius Verus shows the crowd that they mean nothing to the emperor. This gets the crowd riled up, realizing that he is right. After that scene, it is shown that the citizens of Rome have began to protest, burning things in the streets and assembling massive crowds. Overthrowing the Roman government simply feels more real in the sequel because the everyday people of Rome are shown instead of just the people who will be running the empire.
All in all, Gladiator 2 is a historical epic that is meant to be seen on the big screen. Who doesn’t love rallying against absolute tyranny during the darkest of times? Though there are flaws, this movie excels at being its own with great action, and a truly Oscar worthy performance from Denzel Washington. Gladiator 2 seems like it could reignite the historical epic, and for that it gets a 92/100.
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