Gladiator II
Gladiator II
Years after witnessing the death of the revered hero Maximus at the hands of his uncle, Lucius is forced to enter the Colosseum after his home is conquered by the tyrannical Emperors who now lead Rome with an iron fist. With rage in his heart and the future of the Empire at stake, Lucius must look to his past to find strength and honor to return the glory of Rome to its people.
Braden reviewedFebruary 18, 2025
Gladiator II is rather boring and a bit messy. Even in its most striking moments, namely when Denzel Washington or Josphen Quinn and Fred Hechinger are on screen, I couldn't help but feel as though the 'magic' of its predecessor was completely and utterly gone.
24 years removed from Gladiator (which is excellent), Gladiator II is a hollow shell. Not even the spectacle of trial by combat can generate a modicum of the intrigue, excitement or drama of the original. Truly a Hollywood Sequel™️
That being said, Denzel Washington is on one here. He's acting circles around essentially everyone.
This is an easy skip, unless you are really, really into Paul Mescal (who I found to be a fairly weak leading man).