Washington deliciously steals every scene in this rousing heir to the Oscar-winning classic, with director Ridley Scott doing some of the best work of his storied career.

Ridley Scott obviously wanted to do Gladiator II; the reason why is less clear, but Denzel Washington's hammy performance almost justifies it.

Rome teeters on the brink in Ridley Scott’s “Gladiator II.” Its fall is said to be imminent. The dream it once symbolized is dead. The once high-minded ideals of the Roman Empire have deteriorated across a venal land now ruled by a pale-faced emperor.