Fifteen years after the script to Nick Cave’s proposed sequel to Gladiator leaked, an official follow-up finally rides into cinemas, courtesy of Sir Ridley and screenwriter David Scarpa (who also wrote All The Money in the World and Napoleon) and featuring considerably less Christ-killing that the Bad Seed intended. The coup of casting man-of-the-moment Paul Mescal as the heir to Russell Crowe’s Maximus Decimus Meridius all but ensures legions of Gen Z and Millenial fans will be flocking to cinemas, alongside folks for whom the Roman Empire is their Roman Empire. Johnny-Come-Lately sequels to Scott properties are nothing new (Blade Runner 2049 directed by Denis Villeneuve, Prometheus and Alien Covenant overseen by Scott) but a Gladiator follow-up seems like a particularly interesting proposition considering most of the main characters had died by the end of the first film.
This leaves Lucilla (Connie Nielsen), who has shacked up with General Marcus Acacius (Pedro Pascal) after sending her son Lucius – the blond moppet played by Spencer Treat Clark in Scott’s 2000 film – away for his own safety. Lucius, now a strapping 20-something, lives a simple life in Numidia with his wife, until the Roman army rocks up at the behest of twin emperors Caracalla and Geta (Fred Hechinger and Joseph Quinn) and start swinging swords. After losing his wife to one of General Acacius’s arrows, Lucius finds himself on a slave ship bound for Rome, where he is promptly bought by cheerful slaver Macrinus (Denzel Washington) who sees his potential as a gladiator.
Perhaps this all sounds a bit familiar to those who have seen Sir Rid’s original. A beardy bloke with a vaguely British accent wants revenge after his home and family are murdered at the hands of Rome; said beardy bloke ends up hacking his way to vengeance as a gladiator. The sequel does hit a lot of the same plot points as the original, with the unfortunate caveat that – with the exceptions of Washington and Nielsen – none of the cast are very good. The normally reliable Mescal is a pale imitation of Crowe, although it’s down to the uninspired script rather than his acting – Lucius has little emotional range beyond rage, and while this works to grand effect in the early gladiator battle between Lucius and a bunch of bloodthirsty baboons, the wind goes out of his sails quickly.
Much has been made of the scale in this sequel too, particularly the epic Colosseum naval battle featuring a load of sharks, but these setpieces are frustratingly short – there’s a lot of build-up to big moments that are over in a flash. Similarly, tension between characters seems to evaporate all too easily, meaning it’s hard to really see any weight in their words or actions. This, combined with the flimsy conceit that a fundamentally corrupt institution can be changed from the inside out with a few good men, means that Gladiator II lacks both the gravitas and simple but satisfying narrative arc which made its foundation such a refreshing epic.
It’s a case of throwing everything at the wall and seeing what sticks; Washington’s gleefully opportunistic villain is fun, but Quinn and Hechinger are giving two half impressions of a whole Joaquin Phoenix, and Pedro Pascal – imminently charming off-screen – has all the dramatic flair of a dull sword. Despite occasional flashes of inspiration – the baboon fight, some pleasingly visceral gore – this sequel lacks both the impact of its inspiration and the fresh ideas necessary to stand on its own two feet.
ANTICIPATION.
As an avowed Late Scott fan, I'm locked in. 4
ENJOYMENT.
Really peaks with the baboon fight. 3
IN RETROSPECT.
Not a complete write-off, but certainly not the triumph we deserved. 2
Directed by
Ridley Scott
Starring
Paul Mescal, Pedro Pascal, Fred Hechinger, Connie Nielsen, Denzel Washington
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