1 of 5 | Lucius (Paul Mescal) is all grown up in "Gladiator II." Photo courtesy of Paramount Pictures
LOS ANGELES, Nov. 11 (UPI) -- Gladiator II, in theaters Nov. 22, fulfills the promise that 24 years of filming technology can bring to ancient Rome. The film relishes in epic spectacle while building on the legacy of the first film.
It has only been 16 years since the events of Gladiator. Lucius (Paul Mescal) is an army leader in Numidia, though called by a different name.
Roman General Acacius (Pedro Pascal) kills Lucius' wife in battle and takes the Numidia survivors back to Rome to train as gladiators. Gladiator spectator and manager Macrinus (Denzel Washington) notices Lucius' potential and offers to give him a chance to kill Acacius if he'll be Macrinus' gladiator.
Paramount's released credits only call him Lucius, but it's clear he is the son of Queen Lucilla (Connie Nielsen). Even before the film reveals his real name, flashbacks show him escaping another attack in his childhood.
Like Russell Crowe's Maximus in the first film, Lucius fights his way through Colosseum victories to achieve his real goal. Maximus also was avenging his family's death.
No two gladiator battles are the same, and it's rarely just man on man, nor does the sequel repeat battles the first film already displayed. Director Ridley Scott and screenwriters David Scarpa and Peter Craig lean even further into the crowd-pleasing spectacle.
In 2000, computer-generated tigers were the cutting-edge technology. Now, entire movies have been made with computer-generated animal casts, so Lucius fights primitive monkeys, a rhinoceros and sharks.
The plot is further complicated by Acacius' story. Acacius would rather join the senate and practice diplomacy, but sibling emperors Geta (Joseph Quinn) and Caracalla (Fred Hechinger) force him to wage battles like the one that cost the life of Lucius' wife's.
Acacius is also married to Lucilla, who had to sit by her treacherous brother's side in the first Gladiator. It seems Lucilla is once again caught between evil emperors and gladiators who might be able to stop them.
Lucilla recognizes Lucius, but he's not exactly happy to see her. The film gives considerable attention to Lucilla's subplot, coping with the sacrifices she had to make to protect her son from people vying for the throne, and those sacrifices never work out exactly as parents hope.
Maximus' legacy is significant to the theme of the film. More than just providing a lineage for the sequel, his rebellion provides inspiration and practical lessons for Lucius.
The emperors provide a relevant take on toxic power grabbing leaders. Geta and Caracalla relish violence from the safety of their booth in the Colosseum.
They want the glory of winning, but make others do the work for them. The sniveling emperors never feel satisfied no matter how much violence they vicariously witness, and they keep blaming others for the inadequacies they can't face.
Macrimus is the most flamboyant character Washington has played since Training Day. He embodies Roman decadence, but with more class than the vulgar legends or movies like Caligula.
With an operatic plot and bombastic action, Gladiator II is a welcome return to Ancient Rome via the magic of modern technology and craftsmen. It also joins the good company of Best Picture winners that became franchises like The Godfather and Rocky.
Fred Topel, who attended film school at Ithaca College, is a UPI entertainment writer based in Los Angeles. He has been a professional film critic since 1999, a Rotten Tomatoes critic since 2001, and a member of the Television Critics Association since 2012 and the Critics Choice Association since 2023. Read more of his work in Entertainment.