‘Gladiator II’ review: Sequel is big, entertaining and messy

On the one hand, “Gladiator II” feels unnecessary.

Of course, pricey sequels — and big-budget films in general — rarely feel necessary. That’s an extremely high bar, and we all know such movies exist almost entirely to make money.

Even keeping that in mind, if there’s a movie that has not cried out for a follow-up, it is 2000’s “Gladiator,” filmmaker Ridley Scott’s Academy Award-winning historical epic that solidified actor Russell Crowe as a major star. That Maximus, Crowe’s Roman general-turned-slave gladiator ...