Gladiator II (2024) Dir: Ridley Scott
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Ridley Scott's roman action film; 'Gladiator', was one of the best films of its time - a near perfect revenge epic. When a sequel was announced, I was initially confused, but I can't deny I was excited. When the trailers arrived, my excitement went through the roof. Expectations were tempered a little by slightly underwhelming initial reviews, but I was still excited for what I imagined would be a huge spectacle.
A spectacle is certainly what we got. The film looked magnificent. The set design, props, and world building were immense, such is the way with Scott's films. The action sequences looked spectacular, particularly the opening battle scene, which was breathtaking. There was one little bit of CGI which looked a little suspect, but the majority of it looked pretty good, I felt.
The score was good, but not as original as I had hoped. It relied too much on the original's iconic score, instead of creating something memorable and new. It had flitters of it, but not enough. Everytime the music seemed to be building to a great crescendo, it didn't quite hit the mark in a satisfying enough manner. Still, I can't say I didn't enjoy the sound.
I was expecting the narrative to track too closely to that of the original, but while it certainly comes close to doing too much of that, I felt that it toed the line well enough, for the most part. Obviously, it must be said, Scott takes plenty of historical liberties with his story, but these films are works of fiction, rather than historical reenactments. As such, I was hugely entertained by the action, politics and drama on-screen.
Paul Mescal didn't quite have the charisma or presence of Russell Crowe, but he sure did look the part. Some of his more poignant scenes were very palatable, as I had anticipated, but what I was keenly surprised by was his action sequences, which were very strong. He nailed the fight scenes, and had the facial expressions on point to back them up.
Denzel Washington did what Denzel Washington does and stole the show. He was magnificent. He strutted through the film like a vibrant peacock. He was so charismatic, so flamboyant and so Shakespearean in delivery. He truly felt like a scheming and cunning pretender.
Pedro Pascal was the picture of gallantry and masculinity in his role. He felt every part the soldier and leader he was portraying, and his action sequences were superb. If it wasn't for how masterful Washington was, I'd be saying that Pascal was the best actor in the film. He really was that good.
Joseph Quinn and Fred Hechinger made for a terribly delightful twosome in their major roles. I wasn't sure what to expect of them initially, but the way they interacted with the other characters was so enjoyable. Quinn in particular was mesmerising, at times. I was so impressed with him.
Connie Nielsen lead a fantastic array of performances in the supporting cast - she was a majestic and level-headed presence in the chaos. I was also a big fan of the likes of Alexander Ravi, Tim McInnerny, Lior Raz, Peter Mensah, Matt Lucas and the returning Derek Jacobi.
Overall, I don't think anyone truly expected this to be as good as the original, and it isn't, but what it is, is a mightily thrilling epic set in one of history's most interesting and striking eras. It may not have the storytelling bite of its predecessor, but it still has so much to dig one's teeth into and absolutely love.
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