By 
The movie has been on the cards for almost two decades. At one point it featured Maximus fighting his way out of the afterlife, written by Nick Cave. Now, it is something a bit more… traditional. So what do the professional reviewers make of Gladiator II? Straight from the summary page of review aggregator websites, here are the quotes:
“An elaborate imitation of its predecessor. If little more than a cover song, however, it’s a majestic and malicious one that reaffirms its maker’s unparalleled gift for grandiosity.”
Nick Shager, Daily Beast
“Scott’s most disappointing “legacy sequel” since Prometheus. It’s a scattershot effort with half-formed characters (with one exception) and undernourished plotlines that seem to exist only in conversation with the Russell Crowe original.”
Kevin Maher, Times
“It’s a Saturday-night epic of escapism. But is it great? A movie to love the way that some of us love “Gladiator”? No and no. It’s ultimately a mere shadow of that movie. But it’s just diverting enough to justify its existence.”
Owen Gleiberman, Variety
“At times, Gladiator II is pure camp. To insist that it shouldn’t be is to hold on too tightly to the dour expectations of the 21st-century blockbuster. It has a modern outlook but provides a throwback, too, to the genre’s florid history.”
Clarisse Loughrey, Independent
“A series of bloody melees that culminate in a flat advocation for peace, without any deeper meaning.”
Liz Shannon Miller, Consequence
“Washington’s relaxed command of this juicy role translates into pure pleasure for the audience: every gesture radiates movie-star ease; every line comes with an unexpected flourish. Unfortunately he’s so good he rather eclipses the rest of the cast.”
Robbie Collin, Daily Telegraph
“Gladiator II might not have a protagonist with the scorching glower of Crowe’s Maximus, but it has plenty of the eye-popping spectacle and operatic violence audiences will want.”
David Rooney, THR
“The thrill of the action sequences just underscores the hollowness of the rest of the enterprise. Sure, not all of us spend a lot of time thinking about the Roman Empire, but those who do deserve better than this.”
Alison Willmore, Vulture
“Unfortunately, Scott has chosen not to fill every one of the 148 minutes with quotable moments or with a strapping Paul Mescal taking on soldiers, sharks, or mad monkeys, and when Gladiator II is being neither wild nor crazy, it’s all a little dull.”
Alonso Duralde, The Film Verdict
Pedro Pascal, Connie Nielsen, Joseph Quinn, Fred Hechinger, Djimon Hounsou, Matt Lucas, Lior Raz, Peter Mensah, May Calamawy, Tim McInnerny, and Derek Jacobi round out the cast.
With 70 reviews counted, Gladiator II sits at 79% (6.8/10) on Rotten Tomatoes.
Gladiator II opens in cinemas internationally on November 13th and in U.S. cinemas on November 22nd. Look, it’s either this or fucking Wicked, so you know where we are all gonna be.
The post GLADIATOR II Reviews Are Coming In appeared first on Last Movie Outpost.
