REVIEW: ‘Gladiator II’ retreads familiar ground, but has great action

Once again, I am entertained by a “Gladiator,” Maybe not as moved, though.

“Gladiator II” is set 16 years after the original film from 2000 concluded. Rome is now ruled by a corrupt pair of twins who have let the city state fall into a mess as they enjoy luxuries made possible by ongoing expansion of their empire.

Meanwhile, a warrior, Hanno (Paul Mescal) is captured while fighting for his city in North Africa from a successful Roman invasion. After losing his wife in the battle, he sets his sights on revenge against a Roman general, and gets an opportunity to do so by fighting his way through the Gladiator system.

There’s a moment in “Back to the Future Part II” where Marty is being chased around downtown Hill Valley, and an older Biff says, “there’s something very familiar about all this.” That line was often playing over and over in the head of yours truly during “Gladiator II,” because this thing felt really familiar.

Yes, Ridley Scott tries to differentiate this sequel by having a new protagonist, new emperors and new battles. Yet the movie often feels like a retread of the Best Picture-winning film from 2000. Now, it’s a really entertaining retread, but it goes over the same ground nonetheless.

A warrior with a link to nobility loses his loved one and is forced as a slave to fight in gladiator matches and eventually gains favor with a specific owner who buys him. That owner, impressed with the warrior’s skills then gets him involved in Coliseum battles where the protagonist leads other gladiators and challenges the power of a flamboyant, eccentric emperor.

Pretty similar to that other movie, huh? Well, this time, there are two emperors. OK, that’s not the only difference, obviously. There’s more going on here with political power plays in the background as Hanno fights his battles in the ring.

For example, the general who led the invasion on Hanno’s home (Pedro Pascal) wants an end to the expansion of the empire through bloodshed and desires a change in leadership. There’s also Hanno’s owner (Denzel Washington), who wants to get into the Roman Senate by gaining favor with the emperors.

There is enough present to differentiate itself from its predecessor, but never really enough to fully stand on its own. The ties that bind it to the 2000 flick are noticeable and strong. However, as previously stated, it offers a lot of entertainment value.

A lot of this movie’s action, from the larger set-pieces to smaller duels have such a grandiose stature thanks to Scott’s direction. There’s an especially notable sequence involving war boats in a flooded Colosseum. It’s an elaborate, well-made moment of battle and the intensity of the combat is certainly felt by a viewer.

Acting-wise, “Gladiator II” is fine. To be fair to Mescal, he’s proven himself to be a good actor in recent films like “All of Us Strangers” and “Aftersun,” and he’s more than capable here. He’s convincing in the role and nicely portrays the character dramatic moments with convincing heroic qualities.

But with that said, he’s not Russell Crowe. Maximus was an immensely memorable protagonist, due in large part to Crowe’s towering performance, and unfortunately, Mescal’s work in the new picture isn’t on that level.

Denzel Washington, meanwhile, is a bit too much in the film. He’s of course a legend in cinema with a great career, but he feels out of place and miscast here. Most of his performance involves chewing a ton of the scenery around him to a degree that doesn’t feel right.

He needed the performance to be dialed back, more in line with how he was in “The Tragedy of Macbeth.” Pascal, on the other hand, could have dialed up his part a bit, as his general character is a bit too stoic, to the point where the figure comes off as a somewhat bland.

As a result, the characters are somewhat hit or miss, and the cockamamie political maneuvering doesn’t help a film going through the same motions of its predecessor. However, there’s quality in the film technically, the cast is talented enough to where one can overlook some flaws, and most importantly, it offers engrossing, well-made action. 3.5 out of 5.