Gladiator 2 - review

[iamwhatiseem]

It might have been a better movie if Scott wasn't trying to produce an epic.
Probably 45 minutes longer than it should have been. Instead of exciting scenes lasting longer, the movie is filled with drawn out boring scenes.
A meandering story line, downright comically unrealistic at times.
The main character is the wrong actor by a long shot. He is supposed to be a champion gladiator - but they chose a small framed 5'11" actor. Yes that is only 1 inch shorter than Crowe, but Crowe is a large built, barrel chested fellow. Mescal only weighs 175lbs (approximately). He did gain 20 lbs. for the role, but it was mostly body fat as you can see in the film.
A better choice would have been someone like Miles Teller, inch taller and 20 lbs heavier and is a larger build.
The fight scenes looked a bit absurd as he looked like a mouse surrounded by rats.

Numerous scenes borrowed from Gladiator 1 in attempts to tie the two films together, but in reality it just reminded you how much better it was than this failed attempt.

 

[1srelluc]

Meh, I was entertained.

 

[iamwhatiseem]

Meh, I was entertained.

And so was I, it was a decent movie.
I am harsh on it because Scott is capable of so much better, several poor choices in casting and throwbacks that failed.
It is similar to Alien Romulus in that way. Hailed as a great movie, you see it expecting at least a really good movie and in the end underwhelmed.
IMO - if you are going to make a sequel to a damn good movie, you better do it well, not half assed.

 

[Natural Citizen]

^^^ Siskel and Ebert up there ^^^

lol. No, I'm just kidding.

Trailer didn't look interesting to me. I did notice he was kind of a runt, though.

 

[JoeB131]

I haven't seen it yet.

My problem was I really hated Gladiator 1 for all the historical inaccuracies.

Commodus wasn't killed in a gladiatorial fight, he was strangled in his bathtub after his mistress poisoned him.

His sister was not around to plot against him at the end of his reign, he had her executed in the first year in office.

His nephew died before he ever took the throne.

But the one that really burns me up was at the end of the movie, they all said, 'Wow, let's restore the Republic".

That's not what happened at all

Instead, the Senate appointed a new Emperor named Pertinax.
He was promptly killed by the Praetorian Guard, who auctioned off the office to a guy named Didius Julianus.

At that point, three generals all declared themselves Emperor, there was a civil war, and the general who came out on top after it all was a guy named Septimus Severus (the father of Caracalla and Geta, who are the Emperors in this movie.)

Oh, and the ultimate capper. Septimus had Commodus deified as a God to curry favor with his family.

 

[Moonglow]

It might have been a better movie if Scott wasn't trying to produce an epic.
Probably 45 minutes longer than it should have been. Instead of exciting scenes lasting longer, the movie is filled with drawn out boring scenes.
A meandering story line, downright comically unrealistic at times.
The main character is the wrong actor by a long shot. He is supposed to be a champion gladiator - but they chose a small framed 5'11" actor. Yes that is only 1 inch shorter than Crowe, but Crowe is a large built, barrel chested fellow. Mescal only weighs 175lbs (approximately). He did gain 20 lbs. for the role, but it was mostly body fat as you can see in the film.
A better choice would have been someone like Miles Teller, inch taller and 20 lbs heavier and is a larger build.
The fight scenes looked a bit absurd as he looked like a mouse surrounded by rats.

Numerous scenes borrowed from Gladiator 1 in attempts to tie the two films together, but in reality it just reminded you how much better it was than this failed attempt.

Italians were short on old Rome.

 

[JoeB131]

Oh, just looking at the trailer. There's a scene where they are having a naval battle in the Coliseum.

While Naval battles were staged there after it was first commissioned during the Flavian Dynasty in 78 AD, by the time of the Severan Dynasty, they had dug out the floor of the coliseum to put in a series of tunnels and trap doors for the wild animals. So filling it up with water was no longer an option.

 

[iamwhatiseem]

I haven't seen it yet.

My problem was I really hated Gladiator 1 for all the historical inaccuracies.

Commodus wasn't killed in a gladiatorial fight, he was strangled in his bathtub after his mistress poisoned him.

His sister was not around to plot against him at the end of his reign, he had her executed in the first year in office.

His nephew died before he ever took the throne.

But the one that really burns me up was at the end of the movie, they all said, 'Wow, let's restore the Republic".

That's not what happened at all

Instead, the Senate appointed a new Emperor named Pertinax.
He was promptly killed by the Praetorian Guard, who auctioned off the office to a guy named Didius Julianus.

At that point, three generals all declared themselves Emperor, there was a civil war, and the general who came out on top after it all was a guy named Septimus Severus (the father of Caracalla and Geta, who are the Emperors in this movie.)

Oh, and the ultimate capper. Septimus had Commodus deified as a God to curry favor with his family.

I laugh every time I hear people complain that Gladiator was historically innacurate.
It wasn't supposed to be, and stated so. It was a story written for the time period, not reflecting anything that was or wasn't suppose to happen. It was intended to be fictional.

 

[the watcher]

My problem was I really hated Gladiator 1 for all the historical inaccuracies.

It's a movie, supposed to be entertaining. The baboons were neat, you could have just enjoyed the special effects. You'd suck the fun out of a dildo.

 

[g5000]

Sequels almost always suck, with only a few exceptions like The Godfather II.

 

[BackAgain]

Meh, I was entertained.

I see what you did there.

 

[odanny]

I laugh every time I hear people complain that Gladiator was historically innacurate.
It wasn't supposed to be, and stated so. It was a story written for the time period, not reflecting anything that was or wasn't suppose to happen. It was intended to be fictional.

Gladiator was an outstanding film, I loved it. It was loosely based, perhaps, on Commodus, but like you say, it was not intended to portray his reign as being accurate to anything.

I have not seen the sequel, but in the same way as the original was not intended to be an acurate portrayal of Commodus, I don't think this sequel should even be compared to the original. They look like two entirely different movies.

It seems they only share the same movie name based in the same time period, but one did not have the ridiculous special effects.

 

[odanny]

At that point, three generals all declared themselves Emperor, there was a civil war, and the general who came out on top after it all was a guy named Septimus Severus (the father of Caracalla and Geta, who are the Emperors in this movie.)

The Severen dynasty, Caracalla had his own brother Geta murdered in front of their mother in her living room upon their father's death rather than share power. He would meet a violent end himself five years later, but a grandson would later emerge to continue the dynasty.

 

[JoeB131]

I laugh every time I hear people complain that Gladiator was historically innacurate.
It wasn't supposed to be, and stated so. It was a story written for the time period, not reflecting anything that was or wasn't suppose to happen. It was intended to be fictional.

Then why build the story around historical figures who were real people and use SOME elements of their lives?

Commodus was a real person. So are many other characters in the film.

Why not just write the story about Emperor Genericus?

 

[JoeB131]

The Severen dynasty, Caracalla had his own brother Geta murdered in front of their mother in her living room upon their father's death rather than share power. He would meet a violent end himself five years later, but a grandson would later emerge to continue the dynasty.

Actually, that guy (Elagalubus) was a nephew of Septimus Severus, not a grandson.

They were also the first transgender Emperor (and probably only one, as far as I know.)

They are actually considered the worst Emperor Rome ever had.

(Yes, I'm using gender-fluid pronouns just to annoy wingnuts.)

 

[JoeB131]

It's a movie, supposed to be entertaining. The baboons were neat, you could have just enjoyed the special effects. You'd suck the fun out of a dildo.

What you do with your sex toys is your own business.

I don't think Gladiator 1 was a fun enough movie to ignore the historical inaccuracies.

Judging by the reviews, G-2 is even worse.

Again, I get that when telling a historical story over two hours, you are going to have to make some changes for clarity.

But, um, this was kind of, ugh!

 

[hondo 50]

Almost every sequel is crap. People never learn.

 

[JoeB131]

Almost every sequel is crap. People never learn.

I wouldn't say that. Some sequels are improvements on the original.

Star Trek II was far better than Star Trek: The Motion Picture.

The Empire Strikes Back was a step up from Star Wars.

 

[hondo 50]

I wouldn't say that. Some sequels are improvements on the original.

Star Trek II was far better than Star Trek: The Motion Picture.

The Empire Strikes Back was a step up from Star Wars.

That's like saying Vienna Sausages are a step up from spam.

 

[JoeB131]

That's like saying Vienna Sausages are a step up from spam.

Not really.

The first Star Wars movie was great, to the point where it's become a part of our national culture. You can describe a boss as being "Lord Vader", and everyone knows what you mean.