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This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at GCU chapter.

Like some of you, I spent some of my Thanksgiving break from college dragging my family with me to Gladiator II so that I wouldn’t have to go by myself. Since my best friends are currently my parents, it made sense for me to bring them along for the ride. I had already planned on going into it expecting nothing close to the level of masterpiece that the first Gladiator movie from 2000 was. If anyone was going to be levelheaded, it would be me, since that movie is in my top five movies of all time. I had made sure to avoid spoilers, but I was aware that critics were giving it good-leaning mediocre reviews and that it was the same way with viewers. 

You would think that someone who really enjoyed the first movie and rewatched it once or twice a year would be going into the sequel with the eye of a film critic, but you would be wrong. I went into this movie with logical expectations and excitement because I would get to see more gladiator fight sequences. In my opinion, this is the best mindset to going into a sequel that didn’t exactly need to be made (especially twenty-four years later). Here’s my defense of Gladiator II. 

Ridley Scott has made some movies that I find abysmal over the years, but I still enjoy parts of everything he’s made (for the most part). The first major criticism that I saw, besides a sequel being pointless, is the historical accuracy. To me, this is a valid point when you think of the sharks in the Colosseum during the naval battle, but the first movie took quite a few liberties as well. Should there have been sharks in the movie? No, probably not. Was it still entertaining? Yeah, I guess you could say I was entertained. 

I don’t dislike the portrayal of Emperors Geta and Caracalla, despite the real emperors not being twins, especially because I found this change to make the sad story of their characters’ personalities more worthy of my sympathy. Admit it, you would also feel upset if your twin had been ruining your life since the womb. 

I thought the casting of Paul Mescal was perfect, and the acting was phenomenal all around, even if I found Pedro Pascal’s deep voice to be a bit hilarious. As much as I do prefer when unknown actors are cast instead of a group of celebrities, I think the performances in this were great. Mescal does something different than Russell Crowe despite both having revenge plots and an affinity for their pessimistic view of Rome. I didn’t find Mescal to be playing a carbon copy of his predecessor at all.

Denzel Washington is a very confusing villain as it takes a while to figure out whether he’s good, bad, or a bit of a self-serving secret third thing. There are plenty of antagonists in this movie, whose actors were able to build something different than Joaquin Phoenix’s portrayal of Commodus. I was skeptical of Joseph Quinn’s casting as Geta, but the spit flying out of his mouth during the multiple fits of rage proved me wrong. I walked out of that theater thinking that Quinn and Fred Hechinger (Caracalla) should be in more movies together. If you enjoy watching characters with separate agendas that eventually overlap with frequent bloodshed and rage, I think this would appeal to you easily. 

The fight choreography was well done and the tricks that Mescal’s Lucius Verus had up his sleeve definitely had me rubbing my hands together with glee. While there are plot points that were surely rushed, if you go into the movie with optimism (without expecting a masterpiece, of course) you’ll be pleasantly surprised. The movie is a true spectacle with so much to look at and think about. Even if you don’t care much about what you’re watching, look at the set design and let yourself fall into it. As a lover of all things fantasy, action, and history, I found Gladiator II to be a great movie, and it left me thinking that the money I had spent was well worth watching. 

Another highlight for me was Dondus, the monkey who was a pet to Caracalla. Though there is no historical evidence of this, I felt it to be a great addition, especially seeing the shock on the senators’ faces. Emperor Caligula supposedly planned on naming his pet horse Consul, which was an enjoyable easter egg. You just have to see something unimaginable like this and relish it. 

Long story short, just enjoy the movie. Watch some men beat each other bloody and feel entertained, as it was intended. 

Rebecca enjoys talking about niche pop culture topics that make her laugh. She tends to think she's pretty funny. When she's not scouring the internet for a few laughs, she's reading a fantasy book, or writing stories. She loves drinking coffee and tea and is working on a Communications degree with an emphasis in Broadcasting.