Jonathan Bruce
READING TIME: 7 MINUTES
Ridley Scott has had a long directorial career of more than forty years under his belt. Having
shot to fame with 1979’s Alien, the English filmmaker has helmed classics such as Blade
Runner (1982), crime caper Thelma and Louise (1991), the war flick Black Hawk Down (2001),
and the space exploration epic Prometheus (2012). He also dips into various genres, such as
the disaster film White Squall (1996), the gritty cop drama American Gangster (2007), and the
misunderstood romantic comedy A Good Year (2006). He’s had a difficult ten years with Alien
Covenant, The Last Duel and Napoleon underperforming at the box office.
Ultimately, one shining example among Scott’s filmography is the epic Gladiator, which won
the Academy Award for Best Picture of 2000. It won an additional four Oscars, including Best
Actor for New Zealand actor Russell Crowe. The film also kickstarted a wave of historical epic
films during the 2000s, most of which did not measure up to Scott’s film. Now, twenty-four
years later, the director returns to ancient Rome with Gladiator II. Most people question the
necessity of a sequel, considering the first movie ended with Crowe’s character dying. The real question is: does the follow-up stand on its own merits?

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Set sixteen years after Gladiator, the Roman Empire still has yet to realize the late Emperor
Marcus Aurelius’ dream of a republic. While Maximus Decius Meridius became a hero in the
Colosseum before dying, he has more or less been forgotten by the general population of
Rome. The Empire is now being ruled by twin brothers Geta (Joseph Quinn) and Caracalla
(Fred Hechinger), who are both emotionally unstable and prone to fits of temper. Whereas Geta is the more cold and calculating of the duo, Caracalla is more unbalanced- due to cognitive brain erosion- and confides in his pet monkey.
Lucius Verus Aurelius (Paul Mescal) is living a quiet life under the name of “Hanno” in the North African province of Numidia. Following the end of the first film, he had been sent away for his own safety, because he’s the grandson and rightful heir to Marcus Aurelius. Lucius is happily married to Arishat (Yuval Gonen), but he has been estranged from his mother Lucilla (Connie Nielsen) for the last ten years. The tranquility of Numidia comes to an end when the Roman general Acacius (Pedro Pascal) launches a naval attack. The attack on results in Arhishat’s death, and Lucius is captured as a prisoner of war.
Now a slave, Lucius is purchased by Macrinus (Denzel Washington), a slaver and stable owner
who enjoys being a power-broker in Rome. It transpires that Macrinus was a former slave and
gladiator himself before he managed to win enough victories and purchase his freedom. He
learns of Lucius’s grudge against General Acacius and Rome, so he offers to help the young
man kill the general if he builds up a following as a gladiator. Lucius, however, remains silent
about his true name and Roman background. Upon being forced to fight at a party for the
emperors, he makes a good impression on the upper-class and hints at his Roman background
by quoting poetry. This causes Macrinus to become suspicious of Lucius’ true identity.

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Meanwhile, Acacius struggles with being a general and fighting wars for the Empire. It
transpires that he is married to Lucilla and feels fed up with war. Acacius longs to retire from
the army and spend time with his wife, but the emperors refuse to allow him to leave. They
have plans for him to lead future military campaigns in Persia and India. Lucilla reveals to her
husband that a group of Roman senators led by Senator Gracchus (Derek Jacobi) are
conspiring to dethrone Geta and Caracalla, and he reluctantly joins the plot for the sake of
restoring the republic.
Upon arriving in Rome, Lucius begins fighting in the Colosseum and wins the respect of the
crowd. When Acacius and Lucilla attend one such gladiatorial event, Lucius spots his mother,
and she manages to recognize him. After the match, Lucilla visits her son and attempts to talk
with him, but he coldly rebuffs her and asks her to leave. However, she has a secret to reveal
about Lucius: he is the secret son of the late Maximus. It transpires that he and Lucilla had an
affair nearly thirty years ago, and she passed off Lucius as her late first husband’s child. While
he’s still angry over being sent away, Lucius comes to realize why his mother chose to do what
she did, but he’s still vengeful towards Acacius for killing Arishat. During his next gladiatorial
fight, Lucius attempts to shoot at the general but misses.
As the plot against the emperors moves forward, Acacius learns from Lucilla about Lucius’
status, and he becomes determined to free his stepson from being a slave. Ultimately, a shady
contact of Macrinus exposes the plot, which leads to the conspirators being arrested and
imprisoned. Due to his status as a general, Acacius is spared from execution by the emperors,
but he is forced to fight in the Colosseum. To make things interesting, Geta and Caracalla
decide to pit Acacius against Lucius in a fight to the death. Now the question remains: who will
come through as the winner? Can Acacius manage to get through to Lucius? And what is
Macrinus really planning?
Paul Mescal brings a youthful vigour and a sense of physicality to the role of Lucius. Unlike
Crowe’s stoic yet intense Maximus, Lucius is emotional and less restrained in his movements.
He’s also lighter and agile when it comes to performing his own stunts. Mescal manages to set
himself apart from Crowe by speaking more and delivering Roman poetry at times. It enables
the actor stand out and not come off as a copy of his predecessor.

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It is Denzel Washington who steals the show as Macrinus. He is smooth, affable, and
gregarious in nature, and one cannot help but be amused by him. Yet beneath his likeable
nature, he masks a darker, more ambitious side. His scenes opposite Mescale, Pascal and
Nielsen are among the most captivating in the film. One could draw parallels to the first movie’s slave owner Proximo (played by the late Oliver Reed), who goes from being a greedy
opportunist concerned about wealth to a more caring individual. However, Washington elevates what could have been a cliché supporting role and makes himself stand out even more.

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Pedro Pascal shines as the world-weary General Acacius. Having worked steadily in television
for years, the thespian actor proves himself to be capable of holding his own in film. Pascal is
strategic and fluid in his movements as a fighter. He manages to maintain a quiet, stoic
demeanour in the first half of the film before opening up emotionally in the second half. Oddly
enough, Pascal manages to give off a wise, fatherly aura when leading his troops, which adds
to his onscreen presence.

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Connie Nielsen brings a warmth and vulnerability to Lucilla. Having reprised her role from the
original movie, she shows a jaded, knowing side to the character. It seems appropriate that the
actress plays a more active role in the plot, given her son and husband’s lives are at stake.
Nielsen’s familiarity with the gladiatorial world and the Roman Empire serve her well, because
she is able to comprehend the danger which she is dealing with.

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The rest of the cast does well with what they’re given. Quinn and Hechinger are both
captivating yet unsettling as Geta and Caracalla, respectively. Despite playing two erratic
rulers, one can easily buy them as twin brothers, because their interactions with each other are realistic. Lior Raz brings a tough, stoic presence to the role of gladiatorial trainer Viggo. Peter Mensah delivers a moving, understated performance as the Numidian gladiator Jugurtha, who resents being enslaved and forced to fight in the arena. Alexander Karim’s Ravi is a warm, supportive medic to the gladiators, and he provides a light banter with Mescal in the movie’s second and third acts. Perhaps the most underserved actor is Derek Jacobi as Senator Gracchus, who appears as part of the conspiracy but doesn’t get much to do within the larger context of the film.
Scott settles back into the director’s chair with ease. The film does feel like a natural extension
of the first movie at times, but it doesn’t try to copy the plot beat-for beat. Instead, it tries to
extend the world and flesh out the characterizations even more. John Mathieson returns as
cinematographer for this film, and his photography is gritty, coarse and vivid in all its details.
Editors Claire Simpson and Sam Restivo maintain a crisp, smooth pacing of the narrative, and
it never feels dull or plodding. Harry Gregson-Williams takes over as composer from Hans
Zimmer, and his score is both stirring and tense to listen to. While it has echoes of the original
film’s music (included Lisa Gerard’s vocalizations), Gregson-Williams succeeds in making it
sound unique and moving.
As is par for the course, there is some artistic license taken with the events and setting of the
film. While the characters of Lucius and Acacius are fictional, Lucilla and Macrinus were based
on some real historical figures from Roman history. Macrinus is loosely based on Marcus
Ophellus Macrinus, a real emperor from the region of Algeria. There has been some criticism of recasting the character as a former slave from Africa. In addition, Geta and Caracalla are
depicted as twins, whereas the real life figures were really one year apart in age. Furthermore,
the film makes some changes to the nature of gladiator combat, such as having Lucius riding a
rhinoceros during a later fight. Indeed, there are no recorded instances of gladiators riding on
rhinoceroses in the arena. Scott depicts sharks being brought into the Colosseum for naval
battles. While the Colosseum was flooded to stage naval fights, there is no evidence that
sharks were imported for the sake of entertainment.

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Overall, Gladiator II is a fine epic and a worthy follow-up to the original movie. Scott has
regained his stride as a director. Mescal, Washington, Nielsen and Pascal deliver fine
performances within the film. The cinematography, editing, and score are equally impressive.
Three out of four stars.