Gladiator II (2024) Review:

Gladiator II is a 2024 epic historical action-adventure drama film directed by Ridley Scott. The screenplay was written by David Scarpa, and this serves as a sequel to Gladiator (2000), also directed by Ridley Scott. It’s produced by Scott Free Productions and Lucy Fisher/Douglas Wick Productions, and it is distributed by Paramount Pictures. It stars Paul Mescal. Co-starring alongside him are Pedro Pascual, Joseph Quinn, Fred Hechinger, Lior Raz, Derek Jacobi, Peter Mensah, Matt Lucas, Alexander Karim, Connie Nielsen, and Denzel Washington.

“The movie is set sixteen years after the events of Gladiator (2000), after Maximus’ death. The story here follows the character of Lucius (Paul Mescal), who was the former heir of the Roman Empire but is forced into hiding and is now under an alias. However, following some events, Lucius is seeking revenge, where he is put into a coliseum and fights as a gladiator. Meanwhile, Rome is now under the rule of two tyrannical emperors. Lucius must look into the past and find strength. With this, he’ll put Rome back into its glory.”

Gladiator (2000) is a phenomenal film. It’s masterfully crafted by Ridley Scott. It’s filled with fantastic set pieces and an excellent cast. It has plenty of memorable scenes and dialogue and is entertaining to watch. However, to be completely honest, I didn’t really have high expectations for its sequel. As much as I loved the original Gladiator film, it certainly didn’t need a sequel. Sure, it has a very stacked cast, but the trailers didn’t really grab my attention. After watching it, this movie here is a bit better than what I was expecting.

Gladiator II (2024) is a fairly solid sequel. It’s very well directed by Ridley Scott. It’s big, epic, and bombastic in its spectacle. The cast is amazing. Visually, it looks solid, and a lot of the set pieces here are pretty great. It does have its issues. There are some instances where the script could’ve been better. The story can feel rushed in some portions of the film. Not only that, some of the characters here also felt very underutilized. That said, this sequel did manage to exceed a bit of my expectations. Here are my thoughts on the movie:

Positives:
- It’s incredibly well-directed. When it comes to making this type of epic film, director Ridley Scott always does a fantastic job at executing it. He does a terrific job handling many different elements. The epic scope of the movie was handled also really well. It’s bombastic. In terms of its overall tone, this aspect right here was also executed very well.
- It has an excellent cast. The performances are incredible. Paul Mescal did an amazing job in the film. The same thing can also be said with Pedro Pascal’s performance. Denzel Washington is a standout among the cast. He is just chewing out every scene he appears in. The rest all did an incredible job. There is also some pretty great chemistry here.
- The story was decent. It certainly has its shortcomings, but it also has its moments here and there. It did manage to keep me intrigued for a fair amount of the runtime. I thought the setting here was also handled fairly well. Aside from that, the themes that the film tackles throughout its runtime are handled very well. There is a fairly nice balance.
- Visually, it looks very solid. There are a lot of shots here that are absolutely terrific to look at. The visuals do a great job at capturing the film’s overall scope. There is also some fairly effective atmosphere in here. The music that was composed by Harry Gregson-Williams is also pretty terrific. It just fits the overall tone and scope of the movie well.
- In terms of its overall production, this aspect right here was handled incredibly well. The set designs, the costumes, etc. are all really well done. Without a doubt, it’s a very well-crafted film. Aside from that, there are also some pretty great moments here. A lot of the action set pieces are very epic. As a whole, this one is also entertaining to watch.

Negatives:
- As for my issues with the film, while the script here is fairly decent, it does have its issues here and there. There were some inconsistencies with its flow. The first half does feel like a rehash of the first film, with a lot of familiar story beats. It wasn’t ‘till its second half hits, where the film starts to have its own direction. It did start to pick itself.
- Aside from that, the narrative also feels underdeveloped. There are moments where it feels rushed. Like, there are some storylines here that could’ve used a couple of more minutes for them to be fully realized. The same thing can also be said with the characters here. While some of them are interesting, some were also underutilized here.
- Because of the inconsistencies within the flow of its script, it ended up affecting its overall pacing as well. Like I’ve mentioned, there are moments where the film feels really rushed. It could’ve been much longer, which I’m sure this film has an extended cut. There are also a couple of shots here wherein the film’s CGI is a little bit noticeable.

Final Thoughts:
Overall, Gladiator II (2024) is a fairly solid sequel. Director Ridley Scott does a pretty phenomenal job with the film’s overall direction, executing a lot of aspects very well, as well as capturing its sense of scale. The cast is outstanding. The performances are incredible. Paul Mescal is fantastic. Pedro Pascal also did a really solid job in the movie. Denzel Washington is one of the standouts of the cast, as he stole every scene that he is in. Aside from the performances, the overall chemistry between the cast here is also pretty excellent.

In terms of its overall tone, this aspect of the film was also handled incredibly well. There is a nice balance between its action and its drama. Speaking of its action, they’re directed very well, and they are also pretty entertaining to watch. It is quite brutal. Again, the overall scope of the film here is just handled really well. As for the script, while I did enjoy it, it has its issues here and there. The narrative can feel rushed in some aspects. In my opinion, it felt a little underdeveloped. The same thing can also be said with the characters.

Visually, the film looks incredible. There are a lot of shots here that are gorgeous to look at. It captures its epic scale incredibly well. There is some very solid atmosphere here. Not only that, the music is also really good. It has excellent production. The sets, costumes, etc. all look fantastic. They’re all handled really well. Sure, there are a few instances where the CGI was a little bit noticeable, but as a whole, this right here is, without a doubt, a pretty well-made movie. Aside from that, there are also plenty of scenes that are solid.

Since the story moves at a quick pace, it does end up affecting its overall pacing. There are some moments where it is rushed. The film could have been a lot longer, and I’m very sure this will have an extended cut. Nevertheless, despite a couple of issues here and there, as a whole, this is still a fairly solid film. Of course, it’s not as outstanding as the original film (not even close), but for what it is, this sequel right here actually surprised me quite a bit. It was pretty competent in its execution, and it is also quite entertaining to watch.

7.5/10

What are your thoughts?