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A cracked marble bust of a Roman emperor against a dusty ochre sky.

Gladiator II: Ridley Scott's Sequel Problem

Ridley Scott made Gladiator II twenty-four years after the original and repeated most of the first film's beats without any of its conviction. The problem is not age. The problem is a director who no longer believes the genre.

Marcus Vell·5 Jul·7 min

A dressing-room mirror ringed with bulbs, one reflected face smiling too wide in the glass.

Film

Smile 2 and the Sequel That Actually Sharpens

Parker Finn's follow-up to his 2022 hit arrived through Paramount in October. It takes the original's thin premise and pushes it into something stranger, harder, and more formally specific.

Marcus Vell·18 Apr·7 min