25 Shocking CGI Movie Moments That Left You Speechless
16. Fighting Baboons - Gladiator II
Like most legacy sequels, Gladiator II released to much fanfare and ultimately fell short of expectations. The plot was far too similar to that of the original film, the familial tie between Lucius and Maximus (Paul Mescal and Russell Crowe) was too obvious and predictable, and the visual effects fell way below par.
For the initial film back in 2000, Ridley Scott used CGI sparingly, as there was no real need to lean on it heavily. That changed with the sequel, as Lucius was greeted in the arena by baboons, rhinos, and even sharks.
The CGI wasn't great for any of these moments, but particularly bad was when Lucius went hand-to-hand against a simian opponent. The scene itself was important, as fighting a baboon gave the chance to show just how tough and ruthless a fighter Maximus' son could be, but the visuals needed to be better.
No one watched that scene and thought about how it developed the character or furthered the story. Instead, the talking point was how unrealistic and plastic the monkeys looked. It's a shame that Gladiator II utilised CGI so much more than the original, and even more so that the effects used couldn't have been better.