Paul Mescal and Pedro Pascal come head to head in Gladiator II. Photo: Paramount Studios.
The original Gladiator is a bit of an anomaly.
None of the cast really knew what they were signing up for, the script was incomplete during principal photography and despite now being a bankable genre, swords and sandals hadn’t been popular in film for nearly 40 years.
So how does a movie with so much going against it win Best Picture, Best Lead Actor, Best Special Effects at the Oscars and go down as one of the best timepiece movies of all time? Honestly, I don’t know. But clearly, the stars aligned for director Ridley Scott, and now, 24 years later, we get the follow-up to the iconic masterpiece.
Going into Gladiator II, I was nervous. The first is beloved by so many, including myself. It ended on such a high that nearly a quarter of a century later, it is still being parodied. How can a sequel possibly warrant its own existence, let alone be any good?
With that being said, I thoroughly enjoyed my time with Gladiator II. Is it as good as the first? No. Is it still one of the best historical epics of the last few years? Hell yeah!
Picking up a couple of decades after the original, the viewers find themselves following Hanno (Paul Mescal), a mysterious warrior adopted by an African civilisation looking to repel an expanding Roman army.
After an epic opening battle, Hanno’s wife is murdered by the army of Roman general Marcus Acacius (Pedro Pascal). In a similar fashion to the first film, Hanno is sold into slavery and forced to compete in gladiatorial combat in order to win his freedom.
While there is a lot more to know and learn about this film prior to going to the cinema to see it, I think this is all the information one needs to enjoy this story properly.
I tried my best to avoid trailers and such going in because I loved the first and wanted no outside opinion steering my thoughts one way or the other. This was the right call. What we learn about Hanno and Marcus is so intriguing that it separates this film from the first while being deserving of the Gladiator II title.
While no character here is as intriguing as Maximus or Commadus, Ridley Scott and Co have constructed a story that I personally really enjoyed.
In saying this, the film does a lot of leg work to get the audience up to speed while also introducing the power struggle at the heart of the narrative.
This causes the first hour to drag, a lot.
Despite an awesome battle that kicks off proceedings, so much of the first hour felt like a rehash of the first film. Fortunately, the three-hour run time means the remaining two-thirds of the film are able to shine, once the roadwork has been laid.
The last two hours are incredible. The combat is phenomenal, the acting is top-tier (especially Denzel Washington as arms dealer and slave owner Macrinus), the political scheming is up there with early Game of Thrones and the production is mind-blowing.
There is a specific moment in this film where everything kicks off. It’s almost like Ridley Scott said, “Yep, enough of that! Time for the real movie to begin.”
I had the good fortune of seeing this in IMAX, and it was one of the best looking and sounding experiences I’ve ever had in a cinema. I was so invested that I genuinely cheered during some combat scenes (yes, I know how corny that sounds but it’s true) and cried during one certain reveal.
This movie is epic, there’s no two ways about it. For the best experience, I recommend doing a double feature and watching the first one as close as possible to Gladiator II. While the first film’s story and characters are more interesting, the combat in the sequel is definitely grander. So I believe, depending on what mood you’re in will determine which you’d prefer to watch.
Ultimately, if Russell Crowe were to come up to me and ask “Are you not entertained?” upon leaving the cinema, I would have said “Woah, you’re Russell Crowe!” followed swiftly by “Yes, I definitely was!”
Gladiator II is showing in cinemas across the country.
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