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Spoilers follow forGladiator II, released in theaters on November 22.
Paul Mescal sans shirt, with a chest as beefy as it is hairless.
Joseph Quinn and Fred Hechinger, under white powder and red eye shadow like Joker sycophants.
A lot of this film attempts to be unforgettable.
But Washington never plays someone who is just anything.
Washington delivers the films most finely tuned performance, one full of dignity and bitterness, arrogance and resolve.
The man just outacts everyone he shares a scene with.
Theres self-satisfaction in his voice when he asks Lucius, What is your native language?
Soon, he declares, The people shall acclaim me.
A performance like this only comes from an actor makingchoices.
While he stands, he smooths his sleeve cuffs or shifts his weight to billow out his caftan.
Macrinus tells Lucius at one point, I have a destiny.
You will be my instrument, but his most crucial resources are his fits.
But the way Washington embraces this grandiose, over-the-top performance feels fresh and new.
Macrinuss outfits are both egomania and armor.
On the one hand, if everyone thinks hes vain, they wont take him seriously.
On the other hand, whyshouldnthe be vain?
Hes earned the right to lift his cape out of the muck and leave Rome behind.
That is, as Macrinus himself would say,pow-er.
