To mark the opening of the Colosseum in 80 C.E., the Roman emperor Titus staged a staggering spectacle, flooding the arena with water and bringing in “horses and bulls and some other domesticated animals that had been taught to behave in the liquid element just as on land,

Sharks? Maybe not. But sea battles, semi-aquatic creatures and plenty of other eye-popping spectacles were part of the real-life games at the ancient Roman Colosseum.

Gladiator II is a historical fiction, and for some viewers, the emphasis is on “fiction.” The movie does not have any fantastical elements and is pretty good about avoiding anachronisms, but it doesn’t depict real history either.