Gladiator II

 

15-January -2025       

A great take on the cruel and bloody Roman arena

Dear watchers, 

Once again Ridley Scott has made a cinematic masterpiece about the cruel Roman colosseum. After the breathtaking performance by Russell Crowe as Maximus Decimus Meridius in Gladiator, people thought that touching such an amazing movie would just hurt it but they were wrong. Ridley Scott’s Gladiator II has proved to be a fantastic addition to the Gladiator franchise, starring Paul Mescal, Denzel Washington, Pedro Pascal, and Connie Nielsen. Many of these extraordinary people have been in countless other films, most notably Pedro Pascal as The Mandolorian (a 4.8 star TV show from Star Wars and Disney) and the series The last of us based on a popular video game. The amazing plot has made over 450 million dollars in under 3 months of its release. 

            This is a movie plot like no other this movie is given the spot of best history action movie ever. Twin emperors (Geta (Joseph Quinn) and Caracalla (Fred Hechinger) are expanding the empire. Unbeknownst to them the people want to rebel against them and the senate is having secret meetings at the home of a past emperor’s daughter (Connie Nielsen). The top general Marcus Acacius (Pedro Pascal) has just claimed Numidia, an African city. When he returns to Rome he is brought to the emperors. The emperor's tell Acacius that there will be gladiatorial games held in his honor, but Acacius just asks to take some time off to spend time with his wife. The greedy emperors say no and say that Acacius must conquer Persia and India. This creates tension between the two and sets up a key part of the plot. 

            The movie really starts when Lucius (Paul Mescal) has his second gladiator fight in the Roman colosseum. After his victory against some starved baboons, a rich slave owner named Macrinus (Denzel Washington) buys Lucius. Then along with some other gladiators, Lucius is taken to the colosseum to participate in the games celebrating General Acacius victory. The group of gladiators are brought to the arena and are told to fight Caracalla and Geta’s champion. About an hour into the movie, right before the second fight Lucius lifts up some sand off the ground and rubs it around his hands. This is a huge reference to the main character in the first Gladiator Maximus Decimus Meridius, and hints that there is a connection between the two. This also shows that the director tried to keep the to movies connected and not unconnected. 

            I could go on and on about the plot but it would take too long. This movie is a masterpiece not only because of its great CGI, or good acting, but its storytelling. The character arcs and the big reveals make for a fantastic show. I hope that when you watch this movie you can be as amazed as me. 

 

Best,

Hudson Ege