Like the rest of you, I was perplexed when it was announced that Ridley Scott was doing a sequel to his hit film Gladiator. The first film seemed like it was wrapped up pretty well. After all the history of Rome, is just that, history. Well, here we are in 2024 and we’ve got Gladiator II coming out. The likes of Maximus are gone, but the arena is still here. Rome has been infected by corruption and it’s twin Emperors (played by Joseph Quinn and Fred Hechinger) are running the city into the ground while sending its armies out to conquer far-off lands. The opening of the film centers on the assault on Numidia by the Roman army. Scott shows that he’s still got it regarding battle scenes here.

The story focuses on Lucius (Paul Mescal), a transplant to Numidia, who doesn’t know much about his past, or at least doesn’t let on what he knows about his past. The Roman army is led by Marcus Acacius (Pedro Pascal), who is now married to Lucilla (Connie Nielsen). Rome conquers Numidia and Lucius is taken in as a slave for the Roman Empire. He finds his way to a “tryout” to be a Gladiator, and Macrinus (Denzel Washington) takes notice of his rage and combat prowess. Along the way, plots to overthrow the Emperors come about, the true story of who Lucius is, and Macrinus’ plot to take over unfolds.

Let’s start with the somewhat shaky portions of Gladiator II, the CGI. I won’t harp on this as much as others will because it’s pretty small in the grand scheme of the film. The sections where there’s big battles going on with ships or other landscapes, do look a bit too smooth and fake. However, the CG on animals in the arena or other sections look great. There’s a scene where a group of gladiators led by Lucius have to fight monkeys and they look fantastic. So it’s a bit mixed, but it really doesn’t take much away from the film.

What else is shaky about Gladiator II? Nothing else.

For a film that originally felt like it didn’t need to exist, especially considering the first film is an absolute masterpiece, this fits right in. Ridley Scott directs the hell out of a story that goes much deeper than just a gladiator finding out his past and his place in the Roman Empire. It’s about the corruption of government officials, the endless drive for power, what adversity can do to people, and other social and systemic issues that we all face to this day. It might be set far in the past, but Gladiator II’s lessons are just as hard-hitting.

Denzel Washington stands above an already excellent cast in his role as Macrinus. If you wanted to see an acting tour-de-force, you get it from Denzel here. Somehow he makes one of the most vicious and unlikeable men on screen into at least a bit relatable. His endless quest for power comes about because of his past. The entire film’s thread is about people running away or trying to hide their past. Seeing him and Mescal go back and forth is just a treat for audiences. Mescal does more than enough to hold his own while sharing the screen. Pascal might not be in the film for as long as his top billing indicates, but his performance is heartbreaking at points.

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The twin emperors played by Joseph Quinn and Fred Hechinger are quite frankly, little freaks. They’re detestable, aloof, unknowing of the issues that plague their society. They fight like brothers and feel very much like the ruling influencer class of today. They act impulsively for more glory, more debauchery, and more excess. Quinn doesn’t have a lot of time or material, but in his short screen time, he gets the message across about how awful these two are.

The highlight of the film is a fight in the arena between Pascal and Mescal. It’s a ballet dance disguised as a fight to the death with swords and other blunt objects. All of the scenes in the arena are top notch with excellent choreography and visceral fights. The violence here is necessary but not overused. When Ridley turns it up, you can feel it, but it’s not just for the sake of being violent. It’s showing how degraded the Roman society has gotten when it comes to cheering on excessive violence.

One performance that might get lost in the shuffle of star power is Alexander Karim as Ravi, the arena doctor, and a former gladiator. He takes Lucius under his wing and adds some of the most personable moments in the film. In a film with so many horrid and reprehensible people doing violent and grisly acts, the one person who’s probably done the most grisly acts in his career is the most soft and touching character in the film.

In a year with plenty of excellent films, Gladiator II stands with little rivals. Between the otherwordly performances and thrilling plot, there’s a lesson for everyone to learn about the excess of an empire led by shortsighted, maniacal people. The quest for power never stops for certain men and Gladiator II shows the horrors and triumph of it all.

Gladiator II releases in theaters on November 22nd, 2024.

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