It’s hard to live up to the legacy of a great film when you make a sequel to that film. Not every film can be The Empire Strikes Back or The Godfather Part 2 which are generally considered the two greatest sequels. So, for me, when I heard that they were going to make a sequel to Gladiator, an already great film that can stand on its own, admittedly my first question was, why? Did Gladiator really need a sequel? Probably not, but here we are, and now I also have to admit that while not as good as the original, the sequel does a good enough job to live up to its legacy. Gladiator 2 is better than I thought it would be, not perfect, but still, a good film! And let’s face it, Ridley Scott has not always been the best at making sequels to his already great films. Aliens doesn’t count because that was a James Cameron movie!!!
Three things stand out in Gladiator 2 which makes it a film worth seeing and more importantly, a worthy sequel to a near-perfect film! The action in this film is just as In the first film Even when it tries to capture the same formula from the first. But there’s no denying that you get a lot of great action that will keep you on the edge of your seat. The second thing, The performances were really good and I have to compliment Paul Mescal for doing his best at capturing an Oscar-worthy performance the same as Russell Crowe in the first film. Russell Crowe may have been better, but Paul Mescal stands on his own and delivers one hell of a performance even if the dialogue at times is not as good. But the performance that truly stands out is Denzel Washington as the scheming and mostly Machiavellian Roman who seizes control of the Roman Senate and uses success in the gladiatorial arena to improve his station within Rome. It’s a very Richard III type of performance and while there was no doubt that Denzel Washington would not get out of the park because he is a great actor, the real question I had, would his performance even if over-the-top at times make sense in the story… It did! Yes, Denzel Washington can always play a great hero, but he’s always been better as a bad guy. I certainly enjoyed his performance as Macbeth and while he may never play Richard III, this is the closest he will come to that kind of performance… there’s no arguing that his performance is great and stands out in this film. I have to admit, that he is better than Joaquin Phoenix as the antagonist. But like most great films, it is the performances that make the movie. Connie Nielsen was just as good as she was in the first one and Pedro Pascal does a fine job as well, even though he is overshadowed by better performances.
However, Gladiator 2 is not perfect. It certainly isn’t as good as the first film and I don’t know if they could have made a better movie than the first. But despite its problems which we will discuss, the story is quite interesting. This is not a spoiler since it’s already been announced that the main character is Lucius from the first film and the way they tell his story and how he ends up back in Rome as a gladiator is interesting. It’s a great truck’s position to the character of Maximus. But like most Ridley Scott films, it’s hard for him to make a great film or a perfect film in 2 hours. That is this movie’s biggest flaw. It’s a fine movie and tells a great story, but there’s so much more to the story of what happens with these characters in the 16 years since the story of the first film and we do not spend enough time getting caught up with the backstory of these characters and what has happened to them. We get glimpses. I don’t doubt that there is a director’s cut that will be close to 3 hours and that will be the better film. Gladiator too very much reminds me of his film Kingdom of Heaven where the theatrical release was entertaining and an okay film, but it doesn’t match the greatness of the 3-hour director’s cut Ridley Scott makes amazing historical epics. Even if Napoleon wasn’t his best film, his director’s cut is certainly better. There are always added scenes that fill in the space and help the main scenes connect more efficiently. There’s a lot of story to tell with Gladiator 2. The audience needs to know more about Lucius’ life when he was in hiding. We get a few flashbacks that bring the audience up to date with The current status of the character, but there’s so much more to his story than just ending up as a gladiator and becoming the Prince of Rome. There’s more to his mother’s story and what happened to her losing her son and then remarrying. But more importantly, we don’t know anything about Denzel Washington’s character, a few conversations give us some hint of his past, but we should know more. The pacing is fine for a theatric release when it comes to Gladiator 2. The action is good, but there’s much more to the story that the audience deserves to know. So as a critic, I watch this film the same way I watch the theatrical release of Kingdom of Heaven which I do love as a film, but I left the theater wanting to know more and wanting to see the director’s cut. And if you think it’s not necessary to tell this story, well I would argue that Ridley Scott’s director’s cut of Blade Runner is the superior film. After all, it is the version that ends up on streaming services.
I like Gladiator 2. It’s a good film. It’s a great experience in the theater just like the first one, but it does suffer from editing and making the story too short which no amount of action or great performances can fix. I enjoyed the sequel which completely surprised me how they could make a great movie and tell an epic story after the first film. But perhaps the greatest lesson here is never to lose faith in Ridley Scott to be able to tell a great story or at least an average one that’s still entertaining as we saw with Napoleon. Gladiator 2 for me is a good solid 8. It’s a good movie that should be experienced in the theater and has a great story that truly connects to the first film. Yes, it lives up to the legacy of the first film, but sadly, now I just want to see the director’s cut, which I know will be better. But it doesn’t take my enjoyment from watching a sequel that could have certainly been worse. Gladiator 2 is good and if you love the first movie then you should certainly see the sequel!
