Review: Gladiator II

16 February, 2025 William Eguizabal 0 Comments 2 categories

Title: Gladiator II
MPA Rating: R
Director: Ridley Scott
Starring: Paul Mescal, Denzel Washington, Pedro Pascal
Runtime: 2 hrs 28 mins

What It Is: Lucius (Mescal) is taken from his people, his wife murdered. Captured and forced into the gladiatorial arena, he must fight for his life night after night. When the sly Macrinus (Washington) offers him a chance to earn the right to face his original captor, General Acacius (Pascal), it’s an opportunity he simply cannot refuse.

But there’s more to Lucius than meets the eye. That becomes especially evident once he steps into the arena, where he demonstrates his absolute prowess as a gladiator.

What We Think: Dude, what the hell is Ridley Scott doing? He might just not have it anymore. Before this, he made the awful Napoleon, and now this? There’s just nothing to chew on here. All the stakes are pretty much diffused by the beginning of the third act.

Denzel is devilishly slick, delivering a performance with multiple layers. He keeps us guessing, making us flip-flop on our opinion of him throughout the film. Meanwhile, Paul Mescal is simply too talented to be in a film like this—one that lacks any real structural strength.

Simply put, this is a perplexing misstep from a once-incredible director. Why make a sequel to arguably your best 21st-century film, especially when it doesn’t come close to having the same impact as the first installment?

Our Grade: C-, Man, I really wanted to like this one—Gladiator is one of my personal favorites. But there’s just nothing going on here. The film’s main “plot twist” is visible from space. And even after you figure it out—which you will in about 0.25 seconds—it doesn’t feel satisfying. It doesn’t make the film better. It just further sullies the name of one of cinema history’s most deserving Best Picture winners.

Skip this. It’s mediocre in every possible way.