Denzel Washington brought something toGladiator 2that I never expected to see in the swords-and-sandals sequel: a hefty dose of comedy.Ridley Scott’s follow-up toGladiatordoesn’t quite live up to its predecessor. In its first half, it’s a pretty straightforward remake of the original film, and in its second half, while it does evolve into its own story, it gets so complicated that it undermines the mythic simplicity that made the original such a masterpiece. Paul Mescal isn’t quite the action hero that Russell Crowe is and there’s a little too long in between fight sequences.
But there are plenty of ways thatGladiator 2succeeds. It has some of the most impressive set-pieces of Scott’s career, with wildly inventive setups like a pack of monkeys ripping the gladiators to shreds and a swarm of sharks being unleashed into the arena.Gladiator 2gives Lucilla a more dignified endingthan real life and Pedro Pascal’s Acacius is a much more sympathetic villain than Joaquin Phoenix’s Commodus.Washington steals the show in the role of Macrinus, and brings much more humor to the proceedingsthan the first film.
Denzel Washington’s Macrinus Brings Humor To Gladiator 2
Washington Is Hilarious In Almost Every Scene He’s In
Washington’s turn as Macrinusbrings a surprising amount of humor toGladiator 2. There weren’t many laughs in the firstGladiator, aside from the inherent absurdity of a man fighting a tiger, butat times, the sequel feels like a full-blown comedy. Part of what makes the character so amusing is that he finds himself so amusing. He’s constantly cracking jokes and laughing at his own jokes. He follows up every new piece of information with a wry quip. When Senator Thraex slyly suggests that Lucius’ father didn’t prefer women, Macrinus quips that neither does he most of the time.
Gladiator 2: Macrinus’ Plan Fully Explained
Macrinus is one of the most interesting characters in Gladiator 2, and his plan to become Emperor is the driving force behind most of the film’s plot.
Macrinus isn’t just used for comic relief; when it’s appropriate, the movie takes the character seriously. When he seizes control of Rome and plans to rule as a merciless tyrant, or when he faces Lucius in the climactic showdown, there are no laughs — and Washington nails the seriousness of those moments just as well. But pretty much every other time he’s on-screen, there’s some kind of gag or one-liner tickling the audience’s funny bone. It’s not at all what I expected from aGladiatorsequel, but I can’t say I was disappointed.
Gladiator 2 Is A Lot Funnier Than I Imagined
There Are A Lot Of Monkey Jokes In Gladiator 2
It’s not just Macrinus who brings the humor toGladiator 2;there are a lot of funny characters in this movie who bring their own comedic moments to the proceedings. Geta and Caracalla’s dynamic as bratty, bickering brothers feels like it could’ve been ripped straight from a sitcom.Caracalla’s pet monkey Dondasis one of his most trusted political advisors; when he usurps the throne from his brother, he gives Dondas a key position in his cabinet. That absurdist political satirewouldn’t have been out of place inMonty Python’s Life of Brian.
Gladiator 2was written by David Scarpa, who previously wroteNapoleonandAll the Money in the Worldfor Scott.
EvenMaximus’ illegitimate son Lucius, the enslaved hero seeking vengeance for the death of his wife and the destruction of his grandfather’s utopia, has a few humorous moments in this movie. After Lucius takes a bite out of a monkey to survive a fight with one in the arena, his fellow gladiators mock him by making monkey noises at the dinner table.Gladiator 2has humor, levity, and even a bit of absurdity.It’s rarely as serious or grandiose as the first movie, and it’s not at all what I predicted the tone of the sequel would be.
Is Gladiator 2’s Humor A Good Thing?
It Certainly Adds To The Sequel’s Entertainment Value
I can see how some audiences might be disappointed by the use of humor inGladiator 2— it undermines the grandiosity established in the first movie — butI really enjoyed it, and I thought it elevated the sequel. Along with inventive action scenes like the shark-infested set-piece, the comedy added to the sequel’s entertainment value. It’s one of the reasons whyGladiator 2is such a crowd-pleaser. Laughing along with an audience at all the humor (particularly with Washington’s performance) ispart of why you need to see it in a theater.
The humor arguably works best as comic relief in the subplots. It’s less effective when it bleeds into the main storyline.
The humor arguably works best as comic relief in the subplots. It’s less effective when it bleeds into the main storyline. When it comes to the gravitas of Mescal’s performance as Lucius and his quest for revenge,the lightness undercuts it a bit. The comedy works beautifully with Washington’s turn as Macrinus (and anything involving Dondas), but it doesn’t necessarily work outside of those elements. But on the whole, I think it servesGladiator 2well to break up the Shakespearean politics with a bit of laughter.
Gladiator II
Cast
Gladiator 2 is the follow-up to Ridley Scott’s award-winning film Gladiator from 2000. Scott returns to direct the sequel, with Paul Mescal staring as Lucius, alongside Denzel Washington and Joseph Quinn as the villain Emperor Geta. Gladiator 2 had been stuck in development hell for years before a script written by David Scarpa finally moved forward.
