‘Gladiator II’ review: It’s hard not to be moved

A qualified thumbs up for “Gladiator II,” now in theaters, where it’s hell-bent on duplicating the blockbuster success of the 2000 Oscar-winning best picture that spawned it, basically by copycatting everything that happened the first time. That’s just one reason I don’t see a bookend Oscar in the sequel’s future. But the roar of the crowd — that’s guaranteed.
You will be hugely entertained by “Gladiator II” as it shamelessly plays to the multiplex millions ready to rock as the sequel pumps out action and fun to the max. Tacky? Sometimes. I never expected to see a gladiator riding a rhino or sharks snapping their jaws in a flooded Roman Colosseum. Now my eyes will never be able to unsee it.
No matter. In these troubled times, escapist epics are just the ticket. And returning director Ridley Scott is eager to fill the void. Never mind that this originality-free sequel fails to resonate like its predecessor. In the moment, audiences will be too razzle-dazzled to care.
Paul Mescal, one of the best actors of his generation, stars as Lucius, the illegitimate son of Maximus, the role that won Russell Crowe an Academy award. These are big sandals to fill for Mescal, but the Irish actor from “Aftersun” and “Normal People” gives it a vigorous try without matching Crowe’s indelible grit and gravitas.
Since the brutal death of his father, Lucius has lived in exile in Numidia, a Roman province in North Africa where his mother, Lucilla (Connie Nielsen), had long ago sent him for safety. Fat chance. When Roman soldiers invade and kill Lucius’s wife, he is blinded by vengeance.
Plus, there’d be no movie without blood in the sand and in the water where Scott stages an opening naval battle that comes on like gangbusters.
The plot heats up when screenwriter David Scarpa maneuvers Lucius back to the Rome that denied him his birthright. First up, he takes on Marcus Acacius (an underutilized Pedro Pascal), a general serving two psycho sibling emperors, Geta (Joseph Quinn) and Caracalla (a brilliantly bonkers Fred Hechinger giving Joaquin Phoenix from the first “Gladiator” a run for his mad money).
Save a rousing cheer for Denzel Washington who is having the time of his life (and perhaps a run at a third Oscar) as Macrinus, the gladiator master and former slave who has his own plan for taking down the Beavis and Butt-Head of Roman emperors. Washington is a four-alarm fire blazing with mirth and malice. You can’t take your eyes off him. And you won’t want to.
“Gladiator II” is a monument to Scott, who is 86 and still without a directing Oscar after displaying mind-blowing mastery in everything from the first “Gladiator” to “Alien,” “Blade Runner,” “Black Hawk Down,” “Thelma and Louise” and “The Martian.” I could go on. The academy should be sent to the lions for that contemptible snub.
Scott is like a general himself, a gladiator of cinema who vigorously marshals his troops, including returning cinematographer John Mathieson and production designer Arthur Max. OK, some of the digital effects are shockingly shabby, but Scott’s spirit carries the day.
“Gladiator II” isn’t on par with Scott’s best work, but his blood is up for the dream of Rome that represents the fight against tyranny. It’s hard not to be moved when Lucius puts on his father’s battle armor and looks to the sky for paternal validation in this life or the next. It’s that emotion that carries “Gladiator II” over its rough spots and into its own kind of movie history.