About half-way into watching Gladiator II, Mary Ann said, “This is problematic. I don’t know who to root for.” This sometimes happens in real life but not usually in the movies.
We knew who the good guy was in 2000’s Gladiator, also directed by Ridley Scott, which went on to win the Best Picture Oscar and another Oscar for Russell Crowe as Best Actor. We were cheering from the start of that one for Crowe as Maximus, and we also knew who the villains were and who would be best for Rome.
This time out we have two charismatic leaders played by break-out stars. One is Hanno (Paul Mescal) of the North African kingdom of Numidia. The kingdom is being attacked by the Roman army. Hanno’s wife is killed, and he is taken prisoner. His grief over his wife is palpable, and we realize he will seek revenge against the Romans. Since it’s likely that we’ve at one time or another experienced that kind of primal emotion, perhaps we should cheer him.
His target is General Acacius (Pedro Pascal), who returns to Rome to great acclaim as a war hero. But meeting with the twin emperors Geta (Joseph Qinn) and Caracalla (Fred Hechinger), he learns that they fully intend to continue their wars, even extending to Persia and India. Acacius tells his wife Lucilla that he will not do this. Instead he has assembled an army loyal to him and they will overthrow the emperors. He wants to restore rule to the Roman Senate and create a Republic for the people. This plan pleases Lucilla since she is the daughter of Marcus Aurelius. We applaud his idealism; perhaps we should root for him.
A third possibility for a viewer’s allegiance is Macrinus (Denzel Washington), who has assembled a stable of gladiators for the games in Rome. He picks out Hanno and promises him that if he wins enough fights, he will be able to kill Acacius. Macrinus is also scheming behind the scenes to increase his power, proving he’s no friend of the emperors.
A lot of behind-the-scenes plotting goes on among these characters, especially after some real identities are realized. There are also plenty of scenes of gladiator games in the Colosseum. One involves a group of gladiators fighting off a Roman champion riding a rhinoceros. In another two ships battle while sharks swim about below waiting to devour fallen fighters. But hand-to-hand combat dominates.
Ridley Scott is a master of the action movie, but here he also demonstrates skill in directing emotional scenes. There is also a spectacular scene involving two huge armies. And by that time, we know who to root for.