Twenty-four years after the first part, a public and critical success which resurrected the epic in a spectacular way, the sequel “Gladiator 2” to be seen since November 13, still signed Ridley Scott, looks like a pale copy stripped of all substance. A film on autopilot.
There are sequels that no one asked for. And if we must give the people bread and games, were we really obliged to inflict this “Gladiator 2” on them? Especially since the peplum, spectacularly resurrected in 2000 by Ridley Scott, has since fallen into the oblivion of cinema. But the times being nostalgic recycling, here is this second part, released in theaters almost a quarter of a century after its model, and which, after “The Son of Kong”, “The Son of Godzilla” and other “Sons of Dracula”, could just as easily have been called “The Son of Gladiator”.
Even though the story maintains a stale suspense for more than an hour concerning the identity of its hero, baptized Hanno, it is indeed the offspring of Maximus and Lucilla (Connie Nielsen) who takes up the torch here.
Exiled in Numidia, Lucius (Paul Mescal) leads a peaceful life with his wife. But when the Roman armies, led by General Marcus Acacius (Pedro Pascal), attack his country, the unfortunate man is reduced to slavery after witnessing the death of his wife. Determined to take revenge, Lucius agrees to fight as a gladiator and is soon bought by Macrinus (Denzel Washington), a deceitful merchant who uses him to gain power by overthrowing the emperors Caracalla and Geta, young tyrannical brothers.
>> Also see, the 7:30 p.m. topic on the film “Gladiator 2”:
A reheated film
We expected nothing from this sequel worthy of a direct-to-dvd. We saw it and we were not disappointed. Indeed, there is virtually nothing in this “Gladiator 2” whose pharaonic budget ensures at least the bare minimum of a spectacular blockbuster. For the rest, we witness with a mixture of embarrassment and boredom a film that looks like a pale ersatz taking up almost all the motifs and dramatic issues of its model.
Death of the hero’s wife, the latter’s desire for revenge which pushes him towards the Colosseum, plot hatched behind the scenes to overthrow the despotic emperors and restore a democratic Rome, hand caressing the wheat, cover of the original music sung by Lisa Gerrard . No matter how much we search, no ounce of originality, no hint of novelty runs through this reheated film that Ridley Scott packages like his recent “Napoleon”, with a professionalism devoid of any implication.
>> See the Vertigo cinema debate devoted to “Gladiator 2”:
Autonomous cinema
If only the nonchalance of a filmmaker, who clearly no longer cares about the films he puts together with disconcerting speed, could have produced an entertaining feature film. Instead, we are witnessing a demonstration of the principle of entropy, where everything is only degradation and weakening of the qualities of the first “Gladiator”, apart, perhaps, from the Machiavellian character played by Denzel Washington.
Tragic hero with fascinating human depth, Russell Crowe gives way to a Paul Mescal without rough edges. The bloodthirsty emperors Caracalla and Geta pitifully ape the formerly more demented expressions of Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix). The Shakespearean dimension of the first part flirts here with a telenovela episode. As for the Colosseum scenes, revealing ape-like monsters, sharks and a rhinoceros, they navigate visually between the grotesque and the heartbreaking.
We won’t even mention the possible political dimension of this “Gladiator 2”, where the heroes seeking to overthrow the dictatorship talk about their desire to restore the greatness of Rome (“Make Rome Great Again”, seriously?), as it can mean everything and its opposite. Like this useless sequel which, while waiting for autonomous taxis, advances a little further the idea of an autonomous cinema soon generated by an AI
Rafael Wolf/aq
“Gladiator 2” by Ridley Scott, with Paul Mescal, Pedro Pascal, Connie Nielsen, Denzel Washington. To be seen in French-speaking cinemas since November 13, 2024.
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