Customize Consent Preferences

We use cookies to help you navigate efficiently and perform certain functions. You will find detailed information about all cookies under each consent category below.

The cookies that are categorized as "Necessary" are stored on your browser as they are essential for enabling the basic functionalities of the site. ... 

Always Active

Necessary cookies are required to enable the basic features of this site, such as providing secure log-in or adjusting your consent preferences. These cookies do not store any personally identifiable data.

No cookies to display.

Functional cookies help perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collecting feedback, and other third-party features.

No cookies to display.

Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics such as the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.

No cookies to display.

Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.

No cookies to display.

Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with customized advertisements based on the pages you visited previously and to analyze the effectiveness of the ad campaigns.

No cookies to display.

Banner Left
Banner Right

‘Gladiator II’ is a familiar but solid sequel

ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED … The ‘Gladiator II’ installation at Ster-Kinekor, Maerua Mall in Windhoek. Photo: Martha Mukaiwa

Director Ridley Scott takes us back to the triumphs and treachery of ancient Rome in ‘Gladiator II’ (2024).

Picking up 24 years after the release of ‘Gladiator’ (2000) and 16 years after the death of legendary gladiator Maximus Decimus Meridius, the Romans are doing their colonial thing in the North African kingdom of Numidia where Hanno, a fierce soldier, survives their bloody campaign.

Starring Paul Mescal, Denzel Washington, Pedro Pascal, Joseph Quinn and Fred Hechinger with Connie Nielsen and Derek Jacobi returning, ‘Gladiator II’ hits many of the same notes as its predecessor. As in the original, freedom can be obtained through the path of a gladiator, that is if one can survive the brutal battles at the Colosseum.

As a political plot to overthrow twin emperors Geta (Quinn) and Caracalla (Hechinger) gains steam in Rome, the captured Hanno (Mescal) becomes a star gladiator. Eager to exact revenge on General Acacius (Pascal), the man who invaded his home and killed his wife, Hanno battles all manner of vicious men and beasts while the truth of his shrouded origins come to light.

If you’re keen on impressive action sequences, ‘Gladiator II’ has plenty. Hanno fights on land, on water, above sharks, bests a gladiator on a rhino and takes a bite out of a vicious beast.

Thrillingly filmed but perhaps a tad more gruesome than some may prefer, ‘Gladiator II’ presents a historical epic that treads well-worn ground but is bolstered by its performances.

Washington as the subtly scheming and ambitious Macrinus is marvellous. Mescal as Hanno strikes the right note of strength and sensitivity and Pascal shines as a soldier who still holds the dream of a just and glorious Rome, free from the emperor twins’ bloodlust and thirst for conquest.

A solid sequel that pays homage to its predecessor, ‘Gladiator II’ is a big, bloody picture best seen on the big screen.

– martha@namibian.com.na; Martha Mukaiwa on Twitter and Instagram; marthamukaiwa.com

Stay informed with The Namibian – your source for credible journalism. Get in-depth reporting and opinions for only N$85 a month. Invest in journalism, invest in democracy –
Subscribe Now!

Latest News