The original Gladiator is in my top 5 of all time movies. At first, the idea of a sequel just didn’t sit right with me. Then, after Furiosa followed up Mad Max: Fury Road as a worthy companion movie, I was willing to give Gladiator II a chance, albeit, a cautious chance. Ridley Scott was back as was many of his writing and production team. Obviously no Russell Crowe but some returning characters. The addition of Denzel Washington was intriguing and hopeful.
Look, it’s not the original but it’s really pretty good. It didn’t embarrass itself and the action scenes and the story works. Some people don’t like the ending but I didn’t have any issues with it. Gladiator casts a long shadow but Gladiator II was entertaining, and isn’t that why you go?
Yes, it was weird to see the opening studio be Paramount instead of the sepia-toned Dreamworks and I missed Hans Zimmer’s score, even if Harry Gregson-Williams did an admirable job but I left the theater with a feeling of relief that they didn’t ruin a masterpiece of a movie.
The original Gladiator is in my top 5 of all time movies. At first, the idea of a sequel just didn’t sit right with me. Then, after Furiosa followed up Mad Max: Fury Road as a worthy companion movie, I was willing to give Gladiator II a chance, albeit, a cautious chance. Ridley Scott was back as was many of his writing and production team. Obviously no Russell Crowe but some returning characters. The addition of Denzel Washington was intriguing and hopeful.
Look, it’s not the original but it’s really pretty good. It didn’t embarrass itself and the action scenes and the story works. Some people don’t like the ending but I didn’t have any issues with it. Gladiator casts a long shadow but Gladiator II was entertaining, and isn’t that why you go?
Yes, it was weird to see the opening studio be Paramount instead of the sepia-toned Dreamworks and I missed Hans Zimmer’s score, even if Harry Gregson-Williams did an admirable job but I left the theater with a feeling of relief that they didn’t ruin a masterpiece of a movie.