The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964)
The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964)
1080p BluRay Rip | MKV | 1920 x 816 | x264 @ 10378 Kbps | 02:59:57 | 14,43 Gb
Audio: English DTS-HD MA 5.1 @ 755 Kbps | Subtitles (srt): Greek, Chinese
Genre: Drama, War
1080p BluRay Rip | MKV | 1920 x 816 | x264 @ 10378 Kbps | 02:59:57 | 14,43 Gb
Audio: English DTS-HD MA 5.1 @ 755 Kbps | Subtitles (srt): Greek, Chinese
Genre: Drama, War
Anthony Mann directs this giant-size, three-hour, sweepingly pictorial entertainment (Daily Variety) that chronicles the peace-loving Caeser, Marcus Aurelius (Guinness) and his corrupt son, Commodus, (Plummer) who covets his throne. Featuring epic battles, breathtaking sets and locations, and a chariot race that easily rivals Ben Hur, Fall of the Roman Empire charts the greedy miscalculations that led to this civilization s collapse at the bloody hands of the Barbarians.
The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964)
At long last the epic FALL OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE is becoming available in the aftermath of the release of EL CID. This was the movie that destroyed Samuel Bronston's studio. Much of the story would later be the basis of GLADIATOR. A terrific cast: Stephen Boyd as Livius, Sophia Loren (was there ever a more beautiful star?) as Lucilla, Christopher Plummer (in a wonderful over the top performance) as Comodus and Sir Alec Guinness as Marcus Arilias. To this add John Ireland, Omar Sharif, Anthony Quayle, James Mason and Mel Ferrer. Colossal sets and set piece battles with thousands of extras that today could only be done by CGI, this is an epic in every sense. A failure at the box office in it's time. The author, John Logan, of the GLADITOR screenplay says he was unaware of this movie when he was hired by Ridley Scott. Perhaps, the stories both use the same chapter in history and real persons. Both have Comodus die in hand to hand combat with the protagonist. Neither is true but never let a little thing like the truth ruin an entertaining film. This appears to be the old roadshow edition with intro and exit music. Films like this, so prevalent in the 1950's until the early 1960's are now a thing of the past. A pity, in their day they really were spectacles in the best sense. Highly enjoyable fare!Customer Review, amazon.com
The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964)
In an era when "Spartacus", "Cleopatra" or "Ben-Hur" were blossoming on the big screen, Anthony Mann's swan song epic "The Fall of the Roman Empire" seems sadly forgotten. With dynamic Ultra Panavision 70 cinematography and production on a grand scale (At 1312 by 754 ft., the Roman Forum still holds the record as the largest outdoor set ever built for a film!) it remains a quiet giant. Modern day audiences should immediately notice the similarities to Ridley Scott's "Gladiator" with the same historical references, time-frame and characters (Lucilla, Marcus Aurelius, Timonides and Commodus) - the forest battle with the barbarians is particularly reminiscent and it's easily noticed that the dubious 2000 Oscar winner exists only after standing on the shoulders of this better acted but less effects-stacked drama. For its anonymity "The Fall of the Roman Empire" remains a wonderful surprise filling the screen with visions of pure Hollywood over-production where its slight lack of narrative bonding is highlighted by its grandiose style and noble charisma. Any fans keen on the consistent climb of Anthony Mann from "Strange Impersonation" will beam at this Romanesque-genre completion to his often unrecognized career. The master of many a genre took on two Samuel Bronston epics as his finale (this and El Cid). I miss his cinema and long for more of his subtle and gracious films in which imitators are conspicuously absent in today's theatres.Gary W. Tooze
The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964)
The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964)
The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964)
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