Readers should be warned, this review may contain spoilers:
The sequel to the classic ‘Gladiator’, ‘Gladiator II’ entails the captivating journey of Maximus’ son, Lucius (or Hannon), played by Paul Mescal. After the death of his father in the arena, Lucius fled Rome to a city called Nimidia where we find him settled with his wife, Arishat, at the beginning. After they are attacked by the Romans, led by the General Acacius (Pedro Pascal), Arishat is killed and Lucius taken prisoner to fight in the Colosseum where he seeks his revenge; little does he know how much he will learn about himself, his family and the destiny Rome has set out for him. The movie was directed by Ridley Scott just as in the first movie and stars the iconic Connie Nielsen as Lucilla, and Denzel Washington as the charming but manipulative Macrinus.
Sat in the cinema at the back of the theatre with my notepad and pen, I look around and notice the variety of the people sitting in the cinema with me. Men, women, young and old had all turned out to watch Paul Mescal claim the role of gladiator. Whilst I don’t think that Mescal was able to capture the same gravitas and nobility of Russel Crowe’s character, I also think that this wasn’t the intended outcome. Whilst Maximus was a noble figure, fallen from grace who learnt the sharp stab of betrayal, Lucius was an outcast from the beginning. However, in tribute to the legacy of Crowe, we watch how Lucius claims his destiny as the saviour of Rome. A message incarnated in one of my favourite scenes where at the end, with the most impactful music playing in the background produced by Harry Gregson-Williams, Lucius resurrects the dream of his grandfather for a Rome as a, “city for the many and a refuge for those in need”.
One of my main critiques of the movie is that Lucilla deserved a much better death scene. Such an iconic character in both the original and sequel movies was given barely any time for the audience to completely process what had happened. I also think that whilst the twin Emperors Geta and Caracalla both did a sensationalist job at playing the roles of the insane leaders, nothing could possibly compare to the psychological evil that lay behind Joaquín Phoenix’s role as the Emperor’s prodigal son, Commodus. However, the real villain Macrinus, once a slave to Lucilla’s father and now a powerful figure in Roman upper circles, caught my eye as I noticed the duality of his and Lucius’ stories which battle themselves out at the end.
Overall, I enjoyed this film, I think it successfully developed the most important themes and messages from the original and whilst there were a few scenes and events that should have been developed more, I still left the cinema feeling little to no disappointment. The performances are incredible and the cinematography is gorgeous, but I’d hope so, with Ridley Scott’s almost interminable career and his longstanding collaboration with cinematographer John Mathieson, they’d be remiss if it was any other way.
Do you feel Gladiator II was a worthy sequel?
