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Gladiator II Review: Paul Mescal spearheaded historic-war-drama is a royal mix of ambitious storytelling and adrenaline pumping, gory action
Gladiator II directed by Ridley Scott and starring Paul Mescal, Pedro Pescal, Denzel Washington, Connie Nielsen and a host of other actors, plays in Indian theatres now. Read our review.
Name: Gladiator II
Director: Ridley Scott
Cast: Paul Mescal, Pedro Pescal, Denzel Washington, Connie Nielsen
Rating: 4/5
Plot:
Gladiator II is based 20 years after the events of Gladiator, that is 200 AD. Lucius Verus (Paul Mescal), the former heir of the Roman Empire, and the son of Maximus (Russell Crowe) and Lucilla (Connie Nielsen), lives with his wife Arishat (Yuval Gonen) in Numidia, North Africa. It is Lucilla who had sent him to Numidia after Maximus' death, to protect him from Rome corruption. Both Lucius and Lucilla have not had any communication for over 15 years.
General Marcus Acacius (Pedro Pascal), who trained under Maximus, invades Numidia with his troop, killing Lucius' wife and forcing him into slavery. Like his father Maximus, Lucius resolves to fight as a gladiator under the teaching of Macrinus (Denzel Washington), a former slave, in order to overthrow the young emperors Caracalla (Fred Hechinger) and Geta (Joseph Quinn).
Will Lucius avenge the death of his wife by overthrowing the young emperors Caracalla and Geta? Will he ever meet his mother again? Are there betrayals? Who survives and who dies?
Watch Gladiator II to find out.
What works for Gladiator II
Almost everything not just works but works excellently for Gladiator II; From story to screenplay, and from scale to cinematography, background score, visual effects, performances and more. The movie is breathtakingly shot and the canvas is massive. It is truly an immersive experience. What you witness is magic on celluloid. The cinematic brilliance of the movie reminds you of why you fell in love with movies in the first place.
Gladiator II is full of adrenaline pumping action sequences. The war scenes and the combat scenes are choreographed spectacularly. The strong emotional core makes everything you see, very convincing. On the whole, Gladiator II is an able successor to one of the greatest period-war-action-dramas of all time, Gladiator.
What doesn't work for Gladiator II
Gladiator II feels slightly slow, especially in the scenes following the climax. If those scenes were treated a little better, Gladiator II would have been an impeccable film from start to end.
Watch the Gladiator II trailer:
Performances in Gladiator II
Paul Mescal as Lucius, lives his character. He is beyond amazing. Pedro Pascal as Marcus Acacius delivers an understated performance and completely wins you over. Denzel Washington is brilliance personified. Connie Nielsen as Lucilla is beautifully expressive. Fred Hechinger and Joseph Quinn do well and so do all the other actors part of the movie.
Final Verdict of Gladiator II
Gladiator II is an experience. It is films like Gladiator II which make you feel why you fell in love with movies in the first place. It is a very fitting sequel to the cult that Gladiator is.
You can watch Gladiator II in theatres now.
ALSO READ: Ridley Scott And Paul Mescal To Reunite For One More Project Together After Gladiator II: Learn Here
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