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Gladiator II review: Thumbs up! Muscular Mescal slays it as the son of Maximus, writes BRIAN VINER

For some, the original Gladiator 24 years ago was Sir Ridley Scott's masterpiece. It now stars Paul Mescalas Lucius, the young nephew of dastardly Emperor Commodus in the first film.

But the job is now done and, even though this sequel rarely scales the soaring heights of the first film, and takes some right Roman liberties with historical truths, it is still worthy of a firm-ish thumbs-up. A shady arms dealer called Macrinus (Denzel Washington, camping up his lines with barely concealed glee) makes him his champion, observing that ‘rage pours out of you like milk’. Meanwhile, Rome has become a cesspit of depravity and corruption under the rotten rule of slimy emperors Geta (Joseph Quinn) and his twin Caracalla (Fred Hechinger).

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