The 2000 film Gladiator is easily one of the biggest action movies of all time, even going as far as being nominated for twelve Oscars and winning five. It’s become a cinema staple up there with The Godfather and The Wizard of Oz. It’s also been seen as a perfect standalone movie for a couple of decades. Now, however, a sequel, simply titled Gladiator II, has hit theaters. Does it honor the original film’s legacy, or does it deserve to fall in the arena? Let’s take a look to see if this long-awaited sequel gets a thumbs-up or thumbs-down.

The Good

Gladiator II serves as a terrific follow-up to the classic 2000 film. It organically furthers the story while taking it in intriguing new directions. It honors the original movie while also building off of it. It shows the audience what happens next for the Roman Empire and the characters introduced, and it never feels unnecessary. It excels in everything a sequel should do.

Like its predecessor, Gladiator II covers themes that are important even to our modern day political climate. It uses messages regarding corruption, social class issues, the need for political reform, and how political leaders may even be harmful to the people they govern, among others. It all makes for a powerful moviegoing experience that’s able to make one think about the issues we experience in our own world, as well as encourage us to fight for needed change.

The production design of the film is spectacular. The sets built for the movie are stupendous, using larger than life structures and backgrounds to recreate Ancient Roman architecture. The props and costumes look so real that everything feels lifelike. It’s nice to see a modern movie know when to use CGI and when to use traditional effects, all of which are visually stunning. Not only does it all look incredible, but it creates a sense of immersion that is relatively unmatched.

Between the war skirmishes and gladiatorial battles, the action throughout the movie is something that must be seen by all. The fights are well-choreographed, and each stab and slash can be felt just by seeing it. The gore that occurs as a result of it all is jaw-dropping without feeling like a slasher flick. Something that stands out from the first movie is that the action is shaken up a bit each time by adding something new or different, whether it be boats, animals, or various weapons. It’s all rather exciting and satisfying to see.

All of the acting is impressive as well. Each performance feels authentic as the characters, even the most eccentric, are brought to life. Despite every actor bringing their A-game, Denzel Washington completely steals the show. He’s had a long, successful career, and this will still go down as one of his best and most memorable performances. Despite being an antagonist, he manages to get the audience on his side for parts of the movie, and it’s extremely impressive. It would be no surprise to see him, or anyone else on the cast, to get some nominations their way.

There are plenty of emotional twists and turns throughout the plot. It’s another strong way that it stands out from its predecessor, something that many legacy sequels fail to do. There’s no shortage of surprises as characters backstab each other, forgive each other, and switch sides. It keeps everything feeling suspenseful and unpredictable, and keeps the audience on the edge of their seat for the duration of the film. Ridley Scott clearly knows how to play with the audience’s emotions.

The Bad

It’s a fairly long movie that manages to feel captivating all the way through. However, the pacing does dip a little in the middle. There are a couple moments that do feel a bit slow. It’s far from the biggest issue, though, as interesting things are still occurring and it does make the action scenes feel more exhilarating. It’s just worth noting that the movie does slow down a bit for some people’s liking.

While Gladiator II is a fantastic film, it does mostly just as a follow-up. It continues the previous story and regularly brings up the events of the first movie. It’s essentially an extension of the classic film, but a good one. It’s also not a huge issue since this is a “part two,” so needing to see the first should be at least somewhat expected.

There have been complaints online regarding historical accuracies throughout the film. Yes, the movie is not completely historically accurate, and that will distract some folks. It’s not a real problem, though, since it’s a work of historical fiction. It’s trying to tell a fictional story; it’s not a biopic or documentary. If someone has that complaint about this film but not something like  Inglorious Bastards, they’re just hypocrites. It’s not a real issue and doesn’t take away from the quality of the movie, but clearly some folks are taken back by the historical fiction genre in recent years.

There’s a point in the movie when the protagonist, Lucius, is giving a motivational speech to multiple armies. The speech is quite moving, perfectly captures the movie’s messages, and represents his character reaching his full arc. That being said, how is it at all possible that approximately 11,000 soldiers are able to hear him, especially if he’s barely shouting? It’s silly enough that it distracts from an important, emotional scene in the movie.

Conclusion

Gladiator II is a spectacle in every sense of the word. It tells a grand tale that will captivate and immerse audiences with its massive set pieces, riveting action, impressive performances, and hard-hitting political themes. It’s easily one of the best “legacy sequels” out there and demands to be seen on the big screen.

Rating: 9.5/10

Read Next: ‘The Boy and the Heron’ Review