Gladiator fans just have to wait a little longer until the epic sequel to the Ridley Scott blockbuster hits theaters. This week in Gladiator II, Normal People star Paul Mescal steps into Russell Crowe’s shoes to once again face massive battles in the Roman arena and embark on a personal quest for revenge.
Before the cinema release are now Gladiator II reviews appeared, which are predominantly positive. But there are also opposing voices.
Positive reviews hail Gladiator II as the blockbuster spectacle of the year
The sequel currently has a pretty good average of 84 percent on the US review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes. In her BBC review, Caryn James writes, among other things:
How can you not love a movie that features swords, sandals, sharks in the flooded Roman Colosseum, Denzel Washington in flowing robes, and Paul Mescal biting a baboon? There’s much more, both serious and over-the-top, in Ridley Scott’s exciting and entertaining sequel to Gladiator, which won the Best Picture Oscar nearly a quarter century ago. Full of spectacle and spectacular performances is Gladiator II by far the best popcorn movie of the year.
Check out another German Gladiator II trailer here:
Gladiator 2 – Trailer 2 (German) HD
In her review for Entertainment Weekly, Maureen Lee Lenker also praises the new lead actor:
Mescal is a more than worthy successor to Russell Crowe, his Roman profile giving him a patrician aura that belies his instinctive strength. He carries the film with an energy that screams hero with a capital “H.” The paradox of its raw beauty is as if tailor-made for this story of a gladiator whose strongest weapon is hope – and Mescal delivers a movie star role that is a stark reminder of why he is one of the most sought-after actors of his generation.
For The Daily Beast, Nick Schager also highlights director Ridley Scott’s opulent production:
With thrilling intensity, Gladiator II conveys the weight of Roman ships, the ferocity of the ocean, the heat of burning catapult missiles, the exertions of men pulling ropes and rowing oars, and the brutality of clashing swords and arrows penetrating flesh. Everything resonates with wildness, not to mention overwhelming scale, whether the director gigantic conflicts on land and at sea, individual brawls in the gigantic Colosseum or conspiratorial conversations between those in power staged in richly decorated rooms.
Better yet, Scott’s CGI shots of his massive locations are an improvement over those in Gladiator, giving the material an extra level of lavish authenticity. Negative Gladiator II reviews also exist
But the reviews for the action sequel are not all positive. Vikram Murthi writes for IndieWire, for example:
Unfortunately, the film’s action sequences, which are arguably its biggest draw, do little to distract from the lackluster narrative. Gladiator II follows the original’s lead, starting with a large-scale war battle before moving on to more intimate skirmishes, however does not radiate great intensity.
It would be easy to blame the apparent unreality of the digital effects on display, be they the animals, the water or the environment, but Gladiator relied heavily on similar, if less developed, technology nearly a quarter century ago. However, a mild sense of visual chaos dominates here, which doesn’t fit with a repetitive editing rhythm that makes each bloody blow seem mechanical and emotionless.
Hannah Strong also writes quite disappointedly for Little White Lies:
This sequel also placed a lot of emphasis on scale, particularly the epic sea battle in the Colosseum with lots of sharks, but these set pieces are frustratingly short – there is a lot of preparation for big moments that are over in a flash. Likewise, the tension between characters seems to evaporate all too easily, meaning it’s difficult to see any real weight in their words or actions. Combined with the thin premise of a fundamentally corrupt institution with a few good men on the inside can be changed out, this means that Gladiator II lacks both the seriousness and the simple but satisfying narrative approach that made its predecessor such a refreshing epic. When does Gladiator II open in cinemas?
From then on November 14, 2024 you can see the blockbuster for yourself. Then Ridley Scott’s Gladiator sequel starts in our cinemas.