Reviews for Sir Ridley Scott’s Gladiator 2 have landed almost 25 years after the release of the Russell Crowe original.
Paul Mescal stars as the boy Lucius all-grown up, as he too ends up enslaved and in the arena like Maximus.
At time of writing the Roman epic sequel has 83 per cent positive reviews, which is 4 per cent higher than the Best Picture Oscar-winning Gladiator.
Check out the critics’ reactions below which range from 4 star fun to 2 star disappointment.
Daily Express
Gladiator II is a thoroughly entertaining, bloody and blingy Roman epic, even if what is done in Russell Crowe’s original is echoed pretty much entirely across this sequel.
Empire
What could have been a ponderous, predictable sequel to a much-loved Oscar-winner instead turns out to be a fun romp.
Daily Telegraph
Washington’s relaxed command of this juicy role translates into pure pleasure for the audience: every gesture radiates movie-star ease; every line comes with an unexpected flourish. Unfortunately he’s so good he rather eclipses the rest of the cast.
The Guardian
This sequel is watchable and spectacular, with the Colosseum created not digitally but as a gobsmacking 1-to-1 scale physical reconstruction with real crowds. Yet this film is weirdly almost a next-gen remake.
Independent
At times, Gladiator II is pure camp. To insist that it shouldn’t be is to hold on too tightly to the dour expectations of the 21st-century blockbuster. It has a modern outlook but provides a throwback, too, to the genre’s florid history.
Screen Rant
Gladiator II is one of 2024’s best blockbusters, but at times, it falters under the pressure of the standards set by its predecessor.
Digital Spy
If you can get past the lack of emotional punch and connection with its characters, Gladiator 2 is a terrifically fun watch.
The Hollywood Reporter
Gladiator II might not have a protagonist with the scorching glower of Crowe’s Maximus, but it has plenty of the eye-popping spectacle and operatic violence audiences will want.
Financial Times
Scott just keeps on trucking either way. The best of the film is its sheer bloody-minded heft, a blockbuster fuelled by an insistence on bigger, sillier, movie-r.
The Times
Scott’s most disappointing “legacy sequel” since Prometheus. It’s a scattershot effort with half-formed characters (with one exception) and undernourished plotlines that seem to exist only in conversation with the Russell Crowe original.
Gladiator II hits UK cinemas on November 15, 2024.
