The Fall of the Roman Empire (film)

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The Fall of the Roman Empire is a 1964 film starring Sophia Loren (Lucilla), Stephen Boyd (Livius), Alec Guinness (Marcus Aurelius), James Mason (Timonides), and Christopher Plummer (Commodus). It was directed by Anthony Mann. The film was a financial failure at the box-office. However, it is considered unusually intelligent and thoughtful for a film of the contemportary sword and sandals genre.

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

The film loosely portrays historic events of the Roman Empire in the late 2nd century, particularly the career of Roman Emperor Commodus, his succession to his father Marcus Aurelius, and his clash with childhood friend Livius. Following historical records, Commodus is at first depicted as a promising young emperor but soon descends into instability and corruption. The film culminates in a symbolic battle of good versus evil. It also depicts the debate the Romans were confronted with concerning the Barbarians, whether to fight and maintain cultural superiority but possibly lose everything, or give in to their demands in the face of overwhelming numbers, but still maintain independence.

It was one of the superproductions of Samuel Bronston in Spain, with some shoots in the Guadarrama sierra, northern Madrid. Its reconstruction of the Roman Forum (1312 by 754 feet) holds the record for the largest outdoor film set.

1 Influence
2 Awards
3 See also
4 External link

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Influence

The 2000 film Gladiator was based on this film to some extent, also starting with a battle in the snows of Germania. However, Gladiator downplays the political themes with a focus on personal revenge and gladiatorial combat. Guinness' characterization of the character of Marcus Aurelius could be said to be roughly similar to his interpretation of the role of Obi-Wan Kenobi in Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope.

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