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 second and last of Anthony Mann's historical epics is a smart, handsome spectacle of the decadence, corruption, and intrigue that tears apart the greatest empire the world has seen. The sprawling story spreads itself thin over a number of characters and stories. At the center are handsome but stiff Stephen Boyd as Livius, the loyal soldier and symbolic son of the aging emperor (Alec Guinness), and Christopher Plummer as Commodus, the corrupt heir to the throne--boyhood friends turned enemies when the latter accedes to the throne and sells out the values of his father for greed and hedonistic pleasures. The three-hour running time is filled out with the tales of Sophia Loren (as the beautiful Lucilla in love with Livius but coveted by greedy Commodus) and a gallery of heroes and villains that includes James Mason, Mel Ferrer, Anthony Quayle, John Ireland, Omar Sharif, and Eric Porter. The film is highlighted with spectacular scenes (a grandiose funeral fit for an emperor, brutal battles in the provinces as the barbarians threaten the empire, and a climactic duel to decide the destiny of Rome), which Mann weaves into the shadowy intrigue of the halls of power. Like his previous epic El Cid, The Fall of the Roman Empire remains one of the best of the 1960s epics: well written (and largely historically accurate) with strong performances and a consistently elegant style, but it lacks a central core and the magnetic hero of its superior predecessor. --Sean Axmaker
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.0 / 5.0
A Great Epic Brings History to Life:
At times when the epic was often "mere spectacle," this is an attempt of taking history seriously, dissecting the real causes of the decline of the greatest empire in the ancient world. Thouh only semi-historical, with fictional elements and characters, it makes a point, that the fall of a great empire is a result of many causes, but essentially it is a decay from within that brings it about. Rome had five great emperors in succession, from Hadrian to Marcus Aurelius, in a span of two centiries, but... more info
Solid historical epic on 2nd century Rome.:
A very enjoyable movie with good period detail and enough history to be well above the typical sword and sandal movie.
A must have dvd when you enjoyed Gladiator:
A high recommended movie because of the superior quality of actors, the greatness of outdoor scenes and some great lines. For example : in his relatively short appearance in the beginning of the movie Alec Guinness (in his role as Ceasar) speeks at sunrise the almost poëtly line:
"..Timodeus...it is said more people die at this moment when night is about to give way to day then at any other time.....seems to me night whispers...COME WITH ME TO THE WEST...SLEEP FOREVER....WHÃT HAS ANOTHER... more info
Tricky title.:
The best of this DVD are the extras. I hoped, by the title, the last moments of the roman empire in the fifth century A.D., but is an interpretation of one of many causes of the collapse of the empire, the begining of fool emperors at the end of the second century A.D., with Comodous. This film has the same historical fiction than "Gladiator".
