November Movies Part 4: Gladiator II, Wicked: Part I, Red One

Thanksgiving is nearly upon us, so bring on the blockbusters! I watched two movies that have been hotly anticipated all year long, and one Christmas movie that was probably only hotly anticipated by me. Did they all measure up to expectations? Sure!

Gladiator II: The original Gladiator is one of my all-time favorite movies, one of the rare films I have rewatched multiple times. 24 years later, director Ridley Scott is back with a sequel written by David Scarpa that essentially rehashes the original film but asks "what if we made it even more over-the-top and had a battle with literal SHARKS in the Colosseum?!" 

Paul Mescal stars as Hanno, a soldier in the city of Numidia, who is forced into slavery and becomes a gladiator after his city is captured by the Roman army, under the leadership of General Acacius (Pedro Pascal). Like Maximus in the original movie, Hanno moves up through the ranks, catching the eye of Macrinus (Denzel Washington, playing this character with an unparalleled squirrelly glee), a man who wants to use gladiators to impress the evil twin emperors who currently rule Rome with an iron fist (the emperors are played by Joseph Quinn and Fred Hechinger, who at this point is becoming one of the most typecast actors in Hollywood and I would like to see him not playing a crazy psychopath please). There are a lot of questions about who exactly Hanno is, and when he makes it to Rome and fights his first bout at the Colosseum, Lucilla (Connie Nielsen, reprising her role from the original movie) is startled to see him. You can watch the movie to unravel the rest about this man and how exactly he might be related to all your favorite characters from the first film. 

There are a lot of fights with great stunt choreography, plenty of CGI that can sometimes be laughable, and somewhat shaky cinematography by John Mathieson. But if you want all the grandeur and spectacle of Ancient Rome, you'll get that in spades, thanks to production designer, Arthur Max. This movie certainly doesn't pack the emotional heft of its predecessor, even though it valiantly tries, particularly in the final scene that features that iconic music that reliably makes me weep every time I watch the original. I did not shed a tear for this film, but it was still a satisfying nostalgia watch that guaranteed a Gladiator rewatch is very much in my not-too-distant future. 

Wicked: Part I: After the marketing blitz we have endured for several months, this movie is finally here! And it's great! Directed by Jon M. Chu, with a screenplay by Winnie Holzman and Dana Fox, this is the movie about Galinda (Ariana Grande) and Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo), two classmates at Shiz University who want to study sorcery and will ultimately go on to become the Good Witch and the Wicked Witch of the West that we all know from The Wizard of Oz. This is an adaptation of the Broadway musical, so do not expect it to be as dark and ponderous as the original novel by Richard Maguire. Instead, prepare yourself for a spellbinding tale about friendship, deceit, and how people can be oh-so-misunderstood when they are not the ones in power. Also, if you need a handsome man to look at, you've got Jonathan Bailey as Prince Fiyero, but really, all the focus is on Erivo and Grande who fully understood the brief and are perfectly cast as this iconic duo.

This is only Part I, so you will still have to endure the onslaught of more marketing for Part II next year. But this part is iconic and incredible all on its own. My ears perked up when I heard the opening strains of the few songs I knew, and oh man, when we get that final "Defying Gravity" number in the end, it is absolutely what you wanted and more. The production design by Nathan Crowley is unbelievable, and the lavish costumes by Paul Tazewell are sure to garner him an Oscar nomination. The actors are phenomenal, the music is perfect, and my eyes were glued to the screen from start to finish. It's exactly what fans expected from this movie, and even I, an extremely casual fan, cannot wait for the next installment.

Red One: Written by Chris Morgan and directed by Jake Kasdan, this is a supremely goofy and delightful holiday action movie about what happens when Santa Claus (played by a surprisingly ripped J.K. Simmons) gets kidnapped. The head of his security detail, Callum Drift (Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson), has to team up with the world's best hacker, Jack O'Malley (Chris "Captain America" Evans), who also happens to be a man who is on the "naughty list" and doesn't believe Santa is real. Well, he's in for a shock.

This movie is exactly what it says on the tin. It is silly and fun, there are lots of great action sequences where The Rock and Captain America are whaling on snowmen, North Pole security apparently has portals through toy stores worldwide, Lucy Liu is in charge of an organization called the Mythological Oversight and Restoration Authority, and there's an extended cameo from freakin' Krampus (Kristofer Hivju). What more could you want?! This movie is like a perfect little snow globe that shakes up Christmas lore, chase sequences, and spy thrillers into one thoroughly entertaining little diversion that is a perfect way to kick off your holiday movie watch. Merry Christmas everyone!