After fierce Roman commander Marcus Vinicius becomes infatuated with beautiful Christian hostage Lygia, he begins to question the tyrannical leadership of the despotic emperor Nero.
| Tagline | THIS IS THE BIG ONE! The splendor and savagery of the world's wickedest empire! Three hours of spectacle you'll remember for a lifetime! |
| Release Date: | Nov 08, 1951 |
| Genres: | Drama, History, Romance |
| Production Company: | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer |
| Production Countries: | United States of America |
| Casts: | Robert Taylor, Deborah Kerr, Leo Genn, Peter Ustinov, Patricia Laffan, Finlay Currie, Abraham Sofaer, Marina Berti, Buddy Baer, Felix Aylmer, Nora Swinburne |
| Status: | Released |
| Budget: | $7623000 |
| Revenue: | 21037000 |
Oscar-nominated Peter Ustinov is superb as the Emperor Nero in this depiction of the end of the reign of this flawed megalomanic. His behaviour is only tempered by the clever Leo Genn ("Petronius"), his arbiter of arts who manages by deft use of language and his wits, to keep the lunatic emperor from his worst excesses. Robert Taylor turns in a pretty standard performance as the film's hero "Vinicius" and Deborah Kerr looks stunning, though acts woodenly, as the rather simpering "Lygia". A wonderfully colourful spectacle of a film showing off the costumier and set designers arts to best effect. Miklós Rósza's score is suitably grand as our story gives the rise of Christianity the Hollywood treatment. It does run on a bit long, and I'm sure I spotted Sophia Loren driving a chariot...
