The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964)

The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964) (Blu-Ray) (*)

$23.99

Screened, competed or awarded at:
Golden Globes
Oscar Academy Awards
Other Film Festival Awards

Language Selections:
Danish ( Subtitles )
English ( Dolby Digital 5.1 )
Finnish ( Subtitles )
Norwegian ( Subtitles )
Swedish ( Subtitles )

Product Origin/Format:
Sweden ( Blu-Ray/Region A/B/C )

Running Time:
173 min

Aspect Ratio:
Widescreen (1.78:1)

Special Features:
Interactive Menu

Movie filmed in 1964 and produced in:
United States ( USA, Canada )

Directed By:
Anthony Mann

Written By:
Ben Barzman
Basilio Franchina

Actors:
Sophia Loren ..... Lucilla
Stephen Boyd ..... Livius
Alec Guinness ..... Marcus Aurelius
James Mason ..... Timonides
Christopher Plummer ..... Commodus
Anthony Quayle ..... Verulus
John Ireland ..... Ballomar
Omar Sharif ..... Sohamus
Mel Ferrer ..... Cleander
Eric Porter ..... Julianus
Finlay Currie ..... Senator
Andrew Keir ..... Polybius
Douglas Wilmer ..... Niger
George Murcell ..... Victorinus
Norman Wooland ..... Virgilianus

Synopsis:

Marcus Aurelius Antonius, philosopher-emperor of Rome, summons his empire's governors and princes to German war headquarters for a Pax Romanus. He confides to his daughter, Lucilla, that his adopted son, Livius, will succeed him instead of his more unstable heir, Commodus. Overhearing this, Cleander, a blind prophet loyal to Commodus, presents Marcus with a poisoned apple. After the funeral, Livius, who does not share Lucilla's ambition for himself or Rome, allows Commodus to proclaim himself emperor. Lucilla marries Sohamus of Armenia. While pestilence ravages Rome, Commodus continues his vain, licentious behavior, neglecting all symptoms of unrest while banishing anyone reminding him of his responsibilities: Livius, Lucilla, Timonides the Greek.

Though Fall of the Roman Empire is now infamous as the epic which destroyed the cinematic "empire" of producer Samuel Bronston, the film is actually an above-average historical drama, attempting to make sense of the political intrigues which resulted in the dissolution of the Glory That Was Rome. The film begins with wise, diplomatic emperor Marcus Aurelius (Alec Guinness) calling together the various representatives of the many nations within the Empire as a means of securing peace and prosperity for all involved. When Marcus intimates that he intends to turn over his crown to adopted son Livius (Stephen Boyd) rather than the logical successor Commodus (Christopher Plummer), he is poisoned by one of Commodus' cronies. Marcus' daughter Lucilla (Sophia Loren) tries to get Livius to claim the throne, but he wants no part of it; thus, the fate of the empire is in the incompetent hands of the preening Commodus. Despite efforts by cooler heads to save Rome from ruin, Commodus vainly declares himself a god and kills anyone who poses a threat to him. When he learns that Lucilla actually has a stronger claim to the throne than he does, Commodus condemns her to be burned at the stake. Only then does Livius intervene, slaying Commodus and promising to try to pick up the pieces of the disintegrating empire. Attempting to find a common ground between history buffs and action fans, Fall of the Roman Empire has come to be regarded as a classic. Alas, audiences in 1964 had grown weary of epics (especially after the highly touted but disappointing Cleopatra), and failed to turn out in sufficient enough numbers to justify Fall's exorbitant cost. Virtually wiped out, Samuel Bronston would not be able to return to filmmaking until 1971, and then only on a much smaller and more pinchpenny scale.

At the death of the wise emperor Marcus Aurelius his son Commodus becomes his heir against his will, his inability to govern increases the decay of the Roman empire. His sister leads an uprising against him, and he is finally killed in a duel with Livius, his sister's lover. Livius refuses to be made emperor, and leaves Rome with Commodus's sister.

This product was added to our catalog on Saturday 15 February, 2020.

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