Legendary director Christopher Nolan has announced his favorite movie of 2024, sharing his love for fellow British director Ridley Scott in the process.
Nolan picked Gladiator II as his movie of the year, as part of Variety’s list of directors' top movies of 2024. "Like the best long-awaited sequels, Gladiator II must be a remake and sequel in one, and it’s testament to Scott’s brilliance that he manages to balance the individual pathos of the original with the expansionist demands of the sequel’s central theme, bringing a lifetime of experience in controlling tone," wrote Nolan.
Starring Paul Mescal as long-lost Prince Lucius, Gladiator II picks up over two decades after the first movie where a new force rules over Rome in the shape of two young but brutal emperors (Joseph Quinn and Fred Hechinger). Mourning the loss of loved ones, Lucius must enter the colosseum just as Maximus did and return the glory of Rome to its people.
However, soon after Gladiator II hit screens this November, moviegoers were quick to point out its historical inaccuracies, such as Denzel Washington’s character saying "hose him down" during an era when hoses were not invented yet. This let the movie down for many viewers, but not Nolan, as the Oppenheimer helmer writes, "Scott knows we’re not there for insights into Roman culture; we’re there to see our own dark desires at a comfortable remove."
As for the addition of sharks in one of the arena scenes (which I personally love), Nolan seems to be a big fan too. "Why are there sharks in the Colloseum? Because we demand them, and Scott masterfully gives them to us," says Nolan, praising Scott’s imagination when it came to upping the ante of the gladiator games from the first movie.
Nolan finished his rave review by paying respects to Scott. "Despite all his success, Scott’s contribution to the evolution of cinematic storytelling has never been properly acknowledged," said the Interstellar director. "This has never been as clear as in the masterful opening shot of “Gladiator II,” where Paul Mescal’s hand gently cradles the grain harvested from the original movie’s swaying wheat."
Gladiator II is still available to watch in theatres now. For more, check out our Gladiator II review, or see our list of our top 25 movies of 2024.
