Evengyny Thanks for the memories!

Steineded How sad is this?

Joanna Mccarty Amazing worth wacthing. So good. Biased but well made with many good points.

Bob This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

Jeffrey Young If you're a purist Roman historian, you'll likely find yourself somewhat disappointed. The director deliberately took some historical liberties to flesh out an intense historical human drama. But it's not all that bad. It is interesting. The movie follows historical events of 180 A.D., sort of. There is no historical record that Marcus Aurelius intended a pan-Roman peace as the movie indicated. In fact, Marcus far-reaching ambition was to create two, new Roman provinces after defeating the Marcomanni, Quadi, and Sarmatians. The concept of pan-Roman citizenship became reality in 211-212 A.D. when emperor Caracalla extended Roman citizenship throughout the empire. In 180 A.D., Marcus was preoccupied with the survival of the Roman empire itself. After 22 years of almost total peace and prosperity throughout the Roman empire under the sage emperor Antoninus Pius, his successors, the co-emperors Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus found themselves almost immediately beset by attacks on the empire from Parthia in the east and the warlike Germanic Chauci and Chatti tribes. With difficulty both threats were met and neutralized but that was only the beginning. Historians think that westward migratory movements by Gothic tribes in eastern Europe started a chain reaction of Germanic tribes moving west and south west into Roman empire territory. The Marcomanni had always been known to Rome since the time of emperor Trajan. This powerful, large Germanic tribe had, with few exceptions, usually stable relations with Rome. But over 60 years later, population growth affected not only the Marcommani but almost every major Germanic tribe. New lands were needed by everyone. But Europe was now thoroughly settled. Nations could not expand without coming into conflict with another. After one punitive expedition to repel a Germanic invading tribe, Verus died, leaving Marcus to deal with the most serious threat that Rome had faced from foreign invaders in centuries. The Marcommani, Quadi, and Sarmatian tribes poured into the Roman empire and the Romans suffered serious military setbacks and at one time Marcus and his army were surrounded by the Quadi and defeat was near. The fighting was desperate and often hopeless but against all odds, Marcus and his legions prevailed, barely at the price of immense casualties. All three tribes were thoroughly defeated and had to sue for peace. It was at this point the exhausted Marcus, never a robust man, is thought by historians to have died of stomach cancer. There is no historical record that Marcus intended to replace his son Commodus nor is there any record of Marcus' thoughts and conversations to that effect. Historians still thought it odd because Marcus' four emperor predecessors selected their successor and it was not a son or relative. Marcus broke the chain of emperors selecting a qualified man as successor and this bore serious consequences for the empire. Nonetheless, history records that Commodus tried to rule justly and competently in his first six years of rule. Commodus must have listened to Marcus' advisors because he abandoned the plan to create two new Roman provinces from the lands of the defeated Germanic tribes. The realism Commodus faced was that the Roman army was depleted. Two new provinces would require at least three Roman legions apiece for minimum military occupation, manpower that Rome didn't have. Nor did Rome have the financial resources after a dozen years of continual warfare. Rome was financially spent. Given the realities of the situation, Commodus abandoned his father's plans for two, new provinces. Another poster was puzzled that the Roman legionaries carried their swords on their right side as this would make for awkward withdrawal with the right hand. But this is true. Roman legionaries carried their gladius swords on the right side, according to orders. Only the centurions and higher officers could wear their swords on the more convenient left side, which they did. Historians are still not certain as to the reason but it was military regulation for the typical legionnaire to carry his gladius on the right side.

Dalbert Pringle In my opinion, if what went on in this epic, $19 million, fiasco production was really supposed to be the way that the Romans carried on, then it's certainly no wonder, to me, why their precious, little empire fell.With all of the horrendously treacherous back-stabbing, betrayal and hypocrisy that prevailed, I'm actually very surprised that Rome didn't fall long before this.Set in the year 180 A.D., this film (with all of its grandiose, large-scale pomp & pageantry) shamelessly promised major historical events to unfold before the viewer's very eyes - But, unfortunately, it got seriously side-tracked and became "Hollywoodized" into a frickin' weepy, clinging, sappy "love story". (Ho-Hum!) This film's running time was a staggeringly unbearable 188 minutes! Featuring some truly amazing sets (plus 100s of extras, horses, chariots, and plenty of parading around saying "Hail, Caesar!"), it took this film's story 45 minutes of senseless gabbing (amongst its envious characters) to finally get to its very first battle scene. And by that time my interest in all of this utter nonsense had seriously waned to the point of numbed indifference.I found that I couldn't give a sweet damn about any of the characters here, including Alec Guinness's Marcus Aurelius who came across to me as being just a much younger version of his Obi-Wan-Kenobi character from Star Wars.In this story, the ego-driven actors either over-acted their parts, or else they under-acted - But, never once did any of them come across, to me, as being "real people". Whoever they were portraying in the story may have been considered big & great in their day, but their gutless performances rendered each and every one of them as small & petty to the max.Needless to say, this "Sword & Sandal" epic was a box-office failure. It only managed to make back but one-tenth of its $19 million costs upon its initial release back in 1964.This film's once-wealthy producer, Samuel Bronston (known for backing such expensive films as 1961's King Of Kings and El Cid), went bankrupt as a result of this film and was pretty much never heard from (in the movie business) ever again.Personally, I would never recommend this dreary picture to anyone. If it was skillfully edited down by a least an hour, then, perhaps, its entertainment value could be much more tolerated and appreciated.*Trivia note* Actress Sophia Loren, who played Lucilla, was the highest paid cast member, receiving an undeserved $1 million for her part.

Hoagy27 Great sets! Particularly "Fort Apache, the Rhine" in the first hour. The Barbarian village toward the end is good too. By far the best work by the team that brought you "El Cid" and "55 Days at Peking".But with Anthony Mann at the helm & Yakima Canute leading the second unit, it seems more like a western with chariots soon beginning to look like buckboards and the Roman Legions morphing into the US Cavalry. By the time the Romans take on the Persians one almost expects the Magnificent Seven to come riding through.Findlay Curry gets a single scene where he uses his stentorian voice to deliver the "author's message". There's also a nice scene in which Sofia Lauren is followed through the streets of a partying Rome by Zardoz. All else, cinematography, casting, costumes, stunts, writing etc. are mundane to the point of tedium. Tiomkin's music, despite being Oscar nominated, is loud and annoying and includes such inappropriate instruments as an electric harpsichord (enjoying a pop vogue in the 60s) and a bugle call during a cavalry charge.About the only thing historically accurate here aside from some of the sets is that, like the fall of Rome, this movie goes on and on. I never realized that every barbarian had long red hair.

info-16951 The tutti orchestra blares Elgar. The leather-clad actors declaim with hand outstretched. The cameras pan across the Roman Empire. I yawn. Why, you ask? The beginning is all exposition. Actors usually are hired to show, not tell. Possibly it gets better later on, but as a member of the Baby Boomers, I haven't the nanoseconds to waste on British-accented, slowly developing pseudo-history. Varus, give me back my legions. Then give me back the time I spent watching this. The tutti orchestra blares Elgar. The leather-clad actors declaim with hand outstretched. The cameras pan across the Roman Empire. I yawn. Why, you ask? The beginning is all exposition. Actors usually are hired to show, not tell. Possibly it gets better later on, but as a member of the Baby Boomers, I haven't the nanoseconds to waste on British-accented, slowly developing pseudo-history. Varus, give me back my legions. Then give me back the time I spent watching this.