Gladiator II Review

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Ready to re-enter the Colosseum in ancient Rome? In 2000 Gladiator was released, the historical epic won five Academy awards including Best Picture and Best Actor for Russell Crowe. Twenty-four years later director Ridley Scott has given us a sequel - Gladiator II. Scott had a mammoth task at hand, how do you create a sequel to one of the greatest films of all time? Gladiator II is a four-star exhilarating historical epic. It fails to live up to its predecessor, but that doesn't not mean it is a bad film or even an unworthy sequel. I greatly enjoyed the cinematic experience that is Gladiator II, in all its historically epic style! Read on for my full review, there will be minor spoilers.  Set two decades after the events of Gladiator, you may expect to find a free Rome ruled by a senate that answers to the people, as was the dream of Emperor Marcus Aurelius. a Rome that Maximus fought and died to reform. However, Rome is now ruled by young and cruel twin Emperors Caracalla (Fred He...
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Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.3 Review

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The Guardians are ready for one last ride, but are you? Don’t worry if your not, after all Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.3 is more of a see you soon than a goodbye, but the marketing was very clever in its finality to have me a little worried. The MCU has had a turbulent few year's post Avengers: Endgame, often ambling along in what appears to be an aimless fashion. After Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania and Thor: Love and Thunder I was ready to give up on the MCU, prepared to stop consuming every little piece of content. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever gave me hope and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.3 has ignited that hope. So, what did I make of James Gunn’s final MCU project? Read on to find out - there will be minor spoilers. 


Rocket (Bradley Cooper) takes centre stage during the "conclusion" of The Guardians of The Galaxy trilogy, a trilogy that has on the whole done a wonderful job of telling the stories of its characters. Even though some characters have had more exploration, the final film brings every character's arc to a close. The events of the film surround one main mission - saving Rocket. The journey we take on this mission is full of heart-warming moments, emotion, laughs, twists, high stakes and great music. We delve into Rockets past, his harrowing origins as a test subject, from a young age subjected to mutilation at the hands of the High Evolutionary (Chukwudi Iwuji). The Guardians that now consist of Peter Quill (Chris Pratt), Drax (Dave Bautista), Nebula (Karen Gillan), Rocket, Mantis (Pom Klementieff) and Groot (Vin Diesel), rally to protect their friend. Gamora (Zoe Saldana) once again takes a central role throughout the narrative, yet at times it feels as if Gunn didn't really know how to include her after her 'resurrection' in Avengers: Endgame, it feels as if she is teetering between two paths, neither on one side or the other. The narrative cleverly wraps up an open storyline from Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.2 by including Ayesha (Elizabeth Debicki) the golden High Priestess and her son Adam Warlock (Will Poulter). Despite the high number of characters, the film keeps a swift pace, never faltering in action or emotion. The Guardians trilogy as a whole is consistent in tone, pace and character development. 


Style wise Vol.3 delivers the expected action, music and laughs. The interactions between characters beautifully chaotic, mimicking true human relationships. Yet unlike the effortless matching of music, soundtrack and visuals in the first Guardians film, the seamlessness is not easily replicated. The music is used to frequently, the soundtrack placed on the backburner, the tracks feeling less punchy. Despite this the final song was utterly perfect, after all the emotion, the endings, the Guardian's go out dancing to the Florence and the Machine hit: Dog Days Are Over. Even after two hours of tears and stakes we were asked to embrace the endings and beginnings created by the narrative, and we willingly accepted the celebration. Style wise there are a few moments that felt too much - I.E the Orgocorp planet. Yet these did not detract from my overall enjoyment.



The age rating: 12A, is pushed to the very limit. I would argue that a 15 would have been more appropriate. Not just because of the use of a certain "F" word - which was pointless, and left me wondering what type of statement Gunn intended to make? If you are pushing for that word to be used it should make a statement, not just be thrown in because you can, why was it so important? But now is not the time for me to rant. Nonetheless, a higher rating should have been considered for the aspects of animal cruelty and mass genocide that are spread throughout the film. I wouldn't change any of those scenes, all necessary to the narrative and emotional connection created. But a warning is needed. 


Overall, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.3 is a fitting end for one of the MCU's strongest trilogy. I still marvel at the success and fame of characters that were underappreciated in the comics, if you cast your mind back to the pre-release of Guardians of the Galaxy, you'll remember the scepticism it met, only to be an instant hit. This is not a goodbye, but a see you later, A goodbye to Gunn but not to the characters he helped bring to life. I have no doubt that there is more to come from every one of these characters. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.3 is not the end but a beginning. 


What do you think will happen to these characters next? Let me know in the comments!


Thank you for reading xx 

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