Gladiator 2 review: Paul Mescal is no Russell Crowe in Ridley Scott’s disappointing sequel

Rhinoceroses, sharks and baboons, oh my! Through the mighty gates of the Colosseum Gladiator II rushes through a menagerie of digital attractions, attacking and grinding unnaturally like the fugitives from Jumanji. Are you not entertained? For those less obsessed with zoology, there are other applause options: catapults raining fire from Jupiter’s stratosphere; massive, groaning ships drifting across the open sea and flooded arena; and that familiar clash of armed bodies on an ashen battlefield is the surest proof yet that Ridley Scott, the war buff who had the budget to pull off his greatest flights of historical inaccuracy, has once again stepped behind the camera to throw more dirt and guts at it . lens.

A quarter of a century has passed since his Gladiator re-popularized swords and sandals and won several Oscars for his work. Having finally returned to Ancient Rome, Scott does the same as the Romans did, doubling the excess of bread and circuses. Gladiator II operates according to the imperial logic of eternal escalation, where more always means more. But one thing this belated, clunky sequel can’t bring with renewed vigor – or at all – is leading star power Russell Crowe, whose vengeful Maximus hit the dirt hard in the original’s climax. You can’t imagine how much his steely magnetism was a real draw Gladiatorand maybe the entire show until you see Paul Mescal trying to make up for his absence.

Normal people The star is Lucius, another “husband of a murdered wife,” another soldier conscripted into slavery and forced to brandish his blade before the people to achieve freedom. If this name sounds familiar to you, it’s because Lucius was a boy in Gladiatorthe son of Lucilla (Connie Nielsen, the only actress from the old film to reprise her role in the new one) and maybe – just maybe – another character we’ve met. Sent to Africa for his own safety, he returned to Rome adult and in chains, the valuable new protector of Macrinus (Denzel Washington), a former slave turned slave trader and schemer.

“Rage pours out of you like milk,” Washington exclaims—a strange turn of phrase, and even stranger when applied to the specific character he’s addressing. Fury pours out this guy? Mescal, who has played the lost souls of Generation Z floundering on the brink of despair in films such as After-tan And We are all strangersnever comes close to capturing the fiery fury that Qrow radiated from his eyes, taut tendons, and every pore. Lucius, our stand-in for Maximus, appears most often irritated. Even with pounds of extra muscle, he looks like a strong wind could knock him off his feet. He’s too… modern. Half the time you expect him to ask someone if he can spend a few days on the couch.

Screenplay by David Scarpa, who wrote Scott’s previous film. Drunk History lesson, Napoleonintroduces one new wrinkle. This time, the target of a gladiatorial campaign of revenge is a half-noble fellow: Lucilla’s loving husband and controversial Roman commander Marcus Acacius (Pedro Pascal, appropriately Game of Thrones fame), who is secretly plotting to overthrow the vain and cruel emperors (Joseph Quinn and Fred Hechinger). Sharing our devotion, Fugitive-style, intriguing… or it would be if Gladiator II had a Don King feel to melodramatically segue into Mezcal vs. Pascal. But their inevitable confrontation disappears into a pointlessly confusing tangle of subplots.

And Pascal doesn’t deliver the goods. His strangely professorial Marcus comes across as another poor replacement for Maximus, as unconvincing as Mescal as he delivers rousing locker room speeches to his loyally assembled troops. It’s as if Gladiator II distributed the powerful presence of Maximus equally between the two actors; combine them on the same scale and they might approach Crow’s authority. The same franchise arithmetic goes against Quinn and Hechinger, who commit a double-fake act of contrasting despotic worminess, because two pathetic tyrants are better than one, right? The sum of these regressive feminine caricatures does not equal the delicious villainy that Joaquin Phoenix brought to his life. Gladiator.

The only actor in Gladiator II Who seems determined to upstage the bombastic CGI combat is, naturally, Washington. As a beefed-up Oliver Reed (before the film changes his position on the antagonism spectrum), Denzel fights his Machiavellian influencer with the wry levity of a bored monarch doing self-amusing stunts to pass the hours. He accentuates the accents without ever dwelling too much on them. He uses the severed head as a comic book prop. He flashes his famous pearly white tiger smile, just as menacing as the ones Christians face in the arena. Washington is so laid-back that it takes a while to realize that he’s playing a character whose motivations never crystallize.

Scarpa’s narrative lacks inspiring simplicity Gladiatora pompous crowd pleaser whose veneer of Oscar-friendly prestige couldn’t disguise what was essentially a glorified sports drama tracking the almanac legend’s rise from gladiator rookie of the year to throat-slashing heavyweight champion. Gladiator II spoils this trajectory with too much convoluted palace intrigue, too many unconvincing speeches about the importance of the republic, and a climactic one-on-one showdown without any of the personal stakes of the original.

All that remains is the clash of the titans of the Colosseum. Say it Gladiator II stays true to the chaotic spirit of its predecessor in this department, which isn’t really a compliment. The dirty secret is that Scott’s Y2K scoop was almost spectacular. anger his actions were a choreographed barrage of spectator sports violence, torn to ribbons for the sake of perceived urgency. Two-plus decades of almost incomprehensible Hollywood fencing can be attributed to these spectacles of blood and sand. WITH Gladiator IIScott returns to the scene of the crime, armed with a big special effects budget and a mandate to outdo his latest attempt at bloodthirsty cheap locations. He has created a blockbuster that is as bloated and decadent as the city it depicts.

To reach corn heights Gladiator, it will require What Crowe brought to the table was that quicksilver fusion of sadness and anger that turned him from great actor to movie star overnight, even if it blurred the lines between those differences. In true legacy-sequel style, Gladiator II knows too well what he lacks; Just as Qrow casts a long shadow over the cast, Lucius strives to live up to Maximus’ legacy. Scott wouldn’t mind simply cutting down footage from the first film – and finally reworking the iconic musical cue. Without a star to summon a little more of this Krowan team, this is a fool’s errand. Unfortunately, no one raised hell at Mescal’s signal.

Gladiator II now playing in theaters everywhere. To learn more about A. A. Daud’s work, visit him Author’s page.