Denzel Washington steals ‘Gladiator II,’ a violent sequel offering more of the same

“The noblest art is that of making others happy,” the great showman P.T. Barnum once said, and it’s the kind of sentiment Ridley Scott lately seems to have taken to heart.
Soon to turn 87, he’s still steadily turning out blockbusters, but more than ever they’re about spectacle rather than storytelling, as the farcical “Napoleon” demonstrated last year and the equally dumb “House of Gucci” did the year before.
He’s perfectly capable of spinning a great yarn — see “Alien,” “Blade Runner” and “The Martian”— but why waste time carefully sculpting a thoughtful screenplay when people are content to see violent and silly nonsense tossed up on the screen?
Which brings us to “Gladiator II,” Scott’s long-awaited sequel to his 2000 Ancient Rome saga, which won five Oscars, including best picture and best actor (Russell Crowe).
Set 16 years after the events of the first film, it really should be called “Gladiator Again.” Scott and his “Napoleon” screenwriter David Scarpa have recycled most of the plot points from the first film as well as a couple of the characters (Connie Nielsen’s royal daughter Lucilla and Derek Jacobi’s Senator Gracchus).
Paul Mescal’s “barbarian hero” Lucius, whose backstory was revealed in a trailer but won’t be here, replaces Crowe’s Maximus as the enslaved gladiator fighting for his freedom and for revenge.
Instead of a sadistic, petulant man-child as the Roman emperor, now there are two: siblings Geta (Joseph Quinn) and Caracalla (Fred Hechinger), who seem determined to drive Rome to ruin. The city does appear to be going to hell in a chariot, if all the yowling mobs and bonfires outside the Colosseum mean anything.
Cinematographer John Mathieson is back behind the camera, once again bathing Rome in gorgeous gold and black hues, and so is production designer Arthur Max and costume designer Janty Yates.
Everyone’s hoping you won’t notice the sameness of it all because “Gladiator II” also has sharks — swimming inside the Colosseum! And rhinos! And murderous monkeys!
Who cares if it’s historically accurate? (It’s not.) See “making others happy” quote above.
Admittedly, it works some of the time, whenever the tireless Lucius is inside the Colosseum fighting impossible animals and human combatants, spilling more blood and severing more heads than in the first “Gladiator.” As before, ambition, grief and vengeance are the driving emotions.
Mescal lacks the brawniness of Crowe’s character but he’s every bit as spirited. He’s even willing to bite a killer monkey. He’s out to avenge a family tragedy, initially aiming his rage at Roman General Marcus Acacius (Pedro Pascal), who is no great fan of the city’s leadership either.
“Torture me if you want,” he tells one of the idiot brothers, “but do not lecture me.” 
For the rest of the film, though, whenever Lucius, Lucilla, Gracchus and others are huddling and scheming about taking the back the city from the infidels and restoring “the dream of Rome,” it’s about as exciting to watch as a tax audit.
Except for whenever Denzel Washington enters the frame as Macrinus, a former slave who’s now master of the gladiators. Then Scott and Scarpa strike storytelling gold, and Washington beckons best supporting actor Oscar gold, with yet another character based on a “Gladiator” template (Oliver Reed’s wily Proximo) who somehow comes across as fresh.
A fully engaged Washington digs deep into the role, relishing the conniving ways of Macrinus as he plots to fatten his purse while advancing his rank.
Attired in colourful robes and fistfuls of rings, he’s a cynic’s dream as he rattles off one dark dictum after another, my favourite being “Violence is the universal language.”
He’s willing to make a deal with Lucius: “Earn your keep and you can have anyone’s head.” But can he be trusted?
Enjoying the evil wit of Macrinus and figuring out what motivates him gives “Gladiator II” whatever scant novelty it possesses.
The film otherwise is mostly violent déjà vu, selling moviegoers the same story it peddled nearly a quarter-century ago.
And reminding them there’s an even more famous saying about managing public expectations often attributed to P.T. Barnum: “There’s a sucker born every minute.”