*** GLADIATOR 2 ***

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TCTTS
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MASAXET said:

Damn, opinions are funny. I was only slightly interested in this . . . until I saw the trailer. Now I'm pretty amped.

And I loved the song choice for the trailer. No, there won't be a bunch of Jay Z / Kanye in the actual movie. But I loved how No Church in the Wild worked for the trailer.

Exactly. It's just a trailer. And only the first trailer at that. There will no doubt be at least one (if not two) more, and I'm betting the next one features a more traditional score. This one is the big, introductory trailer, set to play with the big, summer movies, and they simply chose to appeal to modern audiences with a thematically relevant hip hop track that I'm honestly surprised is seeing this much pushback (though, I'm really only seeing it here and not broadly online). But everyone who wants it will eventually get their traditionally scored trailer/TV spots, and it shouldn't need repeating, but it's not like any hip hop is going to be used in the movie itself.
powerbelly
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I'm surprised that you are surprised.
PatAg
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TCTTS said:

Only on TexAgs would "No Church in the Wild" - one of the most popular hip hop tracks of the 21st century, by Jay-Z and Kanye West at the peak of their powers - be considered "terrible" rap/"freakin' Spotify music." Not only is the track from the infamous "Watch the Throne" album (a title that is obviously thematically relevant here), the song itself is about nihilism and the idea that often you have to fight for yourself when there is one else to save you (also thematically relevant). The lyrics specifically mention "tears on the mausoleum floor, blood stains the Coliseum doors" (heard in the trailer) while the chorus is spot-on as well…

Human beings in a mob
What's a mob to a king?
What's a king to a God?
What's a God to a non-believer
Who don't believe in anything?
Will he make it out alive?
Alright, alright
No church in the wild

In other words, this wasn't some flippant song choice, but rather a thematically rich play for a more modern audience, and personally I think it kicks ass.

Also, you guys realize there was a trailer for the first movie scored to Kid Rock, right?
I cant speak for anyone saying its terrible, but I think its out of place for a trailer for Gladiator 2.
and Im not sure saying the first trailer had a Kid Rock song makes it any better, lol.

Either way, trailers are designed to get people interested who were maybe not interested before at the end of the day.
And we were all already interested before and still are.
The Porkchop Express
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But the trailer's purpose is to get people excited, and it's done the complete opposite to a lot of us so far. It's OK if a lot of people think it looks like *****
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fav13andac1)c said:

The music makes this whole thing look like an inauthentic cash grab.

And they showed the entire movie. Big fight at the end, I wonder who wins? Plot twist! They both die, and one of them sees his family again in the afterlife.

This feels very Force Awakens-esque.
I bet 5 Texags Points there is actually not a big fight at the end, or at the very least its not the scene you see in the trailer
TCTTS
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I guess part of my surprise comes from the fact that I posted numerous trailer reactions back in April, when footage first debuted at Cinema-Con, and multiple reactions mentioned "No Church in the Wild" being used in that footage as well (which basically sounded like an expanded version of this trailer). Granted, I'm sure most people simply didn't remember/care, but it's not like this was new info or unexpected.
TCTTS
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The Porkchop Express said:

But the trailer's purpose is to get people excited, and it's done the complete opposite to a lot of us so far. It's OK if a lot of people think it looks like *****

This is one of the few times I'm seeing a stark difference in reactions here vs social media/online in general, and it's just fascinating to try and figure out why. Most people seem super amped for this movie now, are way more interested than they were, etc. There's a ton of buzz out there, and it's fun to see. Then you come here and it basically just sounds like a bunch of middle-aged dudes complaining about rap music. I absolutely get the potential story concerns, and agree to an extent, but I simply think the whole rap thing is being overblown and could potentially be clouding people's judgment of the movie itself, that's all.
PatAg
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Interestingly enough, part of the parts people are being "turned off by" are things that actually occurred in the Colosseum.
I really like the idea of going with 2 rulers for this part of the story. I would have loved for them to not retread the "gladiator that doesnt know his past" story arc, but probably was inevitable.

Song aside...Im a little worried that Denzel may be too Denzel in this movie, but most of his performances fit very well when actually watching the movie it is in.
Its only when you see a montage of highlight clips from various movies that you feel pulled out of the moment its in.
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TCTTS said:

The Porkchop Express said:

But the trailer's purpose is to get people excited, and it's done the complete opposite to a lot of us so far. It's OK if a lot of people think it looks like *****

This is one of the few times I'm seeing a stark difference in reactions here vs social media/online in general, and it's just fascinating to try and figure out why. Most people seem super amped for this movie now, are way more interested than they were, etc. There's a ton of buzz out there, and it's fun to see. Then you come here and it basically just sounds like a bunch of middle-aged dudes complaining about rap music. I absolutely get the potential story concerns, and agree to an extent, but I simply think the whole rap thing is being overblown and could potentially be clouding people's judgment, that's all.
I will say I've seen quite a lot of discussion/reaction similar to here...which is a mix of being excited and concerned/underwhelmed.

I wonder if its mostly people who already knew about it are not as excited, and for the people who are just now finding out its being made and this is the first they have seen are more excited?
TCTTS
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powerbelly
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Most online buzz seems purely manufactured. All the accounts post the same bull****, and if it's not coordinated it seems like it.
Bunk Moreland
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the better comment I saw online was "My Nero"
TCTTS
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That could definitely be part of it.
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Falcon74
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I'm going to choose to be polite, I didn't like the trailer and it had nothing to do with the stinking music.
wangus12
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FWIW, I am excited for the movie. I just thought the song didn't fit the setting (whether or not the lyrics do). Felt like it needed music like the fan edited one or like Man of Steel.
TCTTS
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That's simply not true, but I'm well aware that's the talking point some of you have convinced yourselves of, and no one 's gong to change your minds about it.
TCTTS
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Falcon74 said:

I'm going to choose to be polite, I didn't like the trailer and it had nothing to do with the stinking music.

Great. I didn't say everyone who didn't like the music is having their judgment clouded by it. It just feels like that's the thing everyone's reacting to, as opposed to the potential contents of the movie itself.
Carlo4
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I like the fighting over music.

They should have used Master of Puppets. That Emperor looked like the kind of guy that would jam on that in the upside down....
TCTTS
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A quick aside, but definitely this...

Cliff.Booth
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Last Duel was really good, Napoleon was garbage, and I've got a bad feeling after that trailer this is going to be a miss.
hoosierAG
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Falcon74 said:

I'm going to choose to be polite, I didn't like the trailer and it had nothing to do with the stinking music.
Agree, forget the music altogether...the trailer was just a jumbled mess and not good imo. It also has the unfortunate task of being the first look from a sequel to a movie from 25 years ago that is an all time great and flawless movie.

And we have all seen amazing trailers for movies that bomb and vice versa, so no one will care if this movie rocks.

But, it's clear for quite a few, this first trailer missed the mark and was a dissappointment.
AGinHI
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The music doesn't fit. At all. Yeah, opinions are funny, but it seems thousands of people feel similarly.

Everything seems overdone. How do you top the original? Make it more spectacular. Naval warfare with sharks. A gladiator standing atop a rhinoceros then charging and sending Lucius pinwheeling through the air.

While there were many unbelievably spectacular events in Roman history, putting them in a movie, overloaded with CGI, is something else entirely. And, as I've grown older, it seems spectacle is more important than story.

Even the maniacal laugh in the beginning just gives me a sense of trying overly hard to outdo a beloved classic.

TCTTS
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Ridley Scott's past decade, IMO...

2014 - Exodus: Gods and Kings - MISS
2015 - The Martian - HIT
2017 - Alien: Covenant - HIT (though I'm sure some will disagree)
2021 - The Last Duel - HIT
2021 - House of Gucci - MISS
2023 - Napoleon - MISS

In other words, I would say he's roughly 50/50 over that period of time, so this one could obviously go either way...
The Porkchop Express
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I know that my opinion is largely based on the fact that I don't think they should have made a sequel that in any way involves or mentions Maximus. It's scared ground and you're pissing on it.

THe fact that we haven't had power since 8 AM Monday morning isn't doing my mind space much good either.
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veryfuller
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You missed All the Money in the World, which was 2017. I didn't see it because I heard its a miss.

Means Gladiator II HAS TO BE A HIT NOW
TCTTS
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While I agree that there's a lot of CGI, personally, I'm legit shocked at how good the CGI is. There's not a singe shot - not even the rhino - that looks bad, IMO. It's all totally believable to me, and that's rarely the case with a lot of modern blockbusters.
TCTTS
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Damn it, you're right. I actually liked that movie, though. It wasn't amazing or anything, but it was solid/serviceable, and considering what Scott pulled off in having to replace Spacey last minute, a minor miracle at that.
AGinHI
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TCTTS said:

While I agree that there's a lot of CGI, personally, I'm legit shocked at how good the CGI is. There's not a singe shot - not even the rhino - that looks bad, IMO. It's all totally believable to me, and that's rarely the case with a lot of modern blockbusters.
You're correct. But it's not just CGI. It's what you do with it.

Like, standing on the rhino. In and of itself that is no big deal. But my overall impression of the trailer was having to go above and beyond the original in ways that, for me, lose the immersion.

Like simple Jedi lightsaber fights that morphed into martial art showmanship. I get it though. Just can't do what has already been done.

Really what I need to do is compare my old man opinion with that of my 19- and 17-year-old sons. Then I'll find out I'm just an old man romanticizing the past like every other old fogey.

That being said, the trailer music choice is terrible and does not inspire confidence regardless of what young people might say

TCTTS
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AGinHI said:

TCTTS said:

While I agree that there's a lot of CGI, personally, I'm legit shocked at how good the CGI is. There's not a singe shot - not even the rhino - that looks bad, IMO. It's all totally believable to me, and that's rarely the case with a lot of modern blockbusters.
You're correct. But it's not just CGI. It's what you do with it.

Like, standing on the rhino. In and of itself that is no big deal. But my overall impression of the trailer was having to go above and beyond the original in ways that, for me, lose the immersion.

Like simple Jedi lightsaber fights that morphed into martial art showmanship. I get it though. Just can't do what has already been done.

Really what I need to do is compare my old man opinion with that of my 19- and 17-year-old sons. Then I'll find out I'm just an old man romanticizing the past like every other old fogey.

That being said, the trailer music choice is terrible and does not inspire confidence regardless of what young people might say



I hear you on the spectacle, and the Jedi comparison is a good call. I need to see how it's all utilized in-movie first before I agree with you, though.

As for the trailer music, we're simply going to have agree to disagree. I just watched the trailer twice more and could not find that track more exciting or fitting. To the point where I'm so glad they didn't do the exact thing everyone expected, and went with the solemn score/Lisa Gerrard vocals as someone ran their hand through a wheat field or whatever.

And I'm in my 40s.

It's an incredible score, no doubt, but there will be a time and a place for it in the marketing eventually.
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FightinTexasAg15 said:

With better music


This. This is how you get it done - nostalgia on top of nostalgia. That version of the trailer almost got me excited. Almost.
"DON'T TURN YOUR BACK ON THE WOLFPACK...OR YOU MIGHT WIND UP IN A BODY BAG!!!"
Thomas Little
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I'm excited for this movie! Can't believe people are down on it after watching that. A movie full of Ridley Scott level gladiator action? Yes please! No Hans Zimmer? I don't care! I'm not watching an action movie for the music!

This looks better and more exciting than most of the junk Hollywood's put out this year. Im just going to watch the gladiators fight and enjoy!
Thomas Little
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I was at the Colloseum today. Our tour guide talked about the animal fights, about the naval fights, etc. I'm so ready to see this! Cool day to be at the Colloseum when the trailer came out.
PatAg
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AGinHI said:

TCTTS said:

While I agree that there's a lot of CGI, personally, I'm legit shocked at how good the CGI is. There's not a singe shot - not even the rhino - that looks bad, IMO. It's all totally believable to me, and that's rarely the case with a lot of modern blockbusters.
You're correct. But it's not just CGI. It's what you do with it.

Like, standing on the rhino. In and of itself that is no big deal. But my overall impression of the trailer was having to go above and beyond the original in ways that, for me, lose the immersion.

Like simple Jedi lightsaber fights that morphed into martial art showmanship. I get it though. Just can't do what has already been done.

Really what I need to do is compare my old man opinion with that of my 19- and 17-year-old sons. Then I'll find out I'm just an old man romanticizing the past like every other old fogey.

That being said, the trailer music choice is terrible and does not inspire confidence regardless of what young people might say


The Colosseum itself had to keep going above and beyond.
TCTTS
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That's badass.
 
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