Fall of the Roman Empire, The (1964)

Fall of the Roman Empire, The (1964)

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“The fall of Rome — like her rise — had not one cause, but many.”

Synopsis:
Near the end of his life, ailing Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius (Alec Guinness) shares his wish that General Livius (Stephen Boyd) should become the new leader of a more egalitarian Rome rather than his son Commodus (Christopher Plummer), and asks his daughter (Sophia Loren) — who is in love with Livius — to marry an Armenian leader (Omar Sharif) to build alliances with the East.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

  • Alec Guinness Films
  • Ancient Greece and Rome
  • Anthony Quayle Films
  • Christopher Plummer Films
  • Historical Drama
  • James Mason Films
  • John Ireland Films
  • Mel Ferrer Films
  • Omar Sharif Films
  • Royalty and Nobility
  • Sophia Loren Films
  • Stephen Boyd Films

Review:
Following the success of El Cid (1961), Anthony Mann helmed and Samuel Bronston once again produced this similarly big-budgeted historical epic inspired by English historian Edward Gibbons’ six-volume series The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, with a prologue written by Will Durant. It focuses on a specific moment during the Roman Empire — 106 AD — when imperial succession from Marcus Aurelius to Commodus led to the start of more overt corruption and decadence. Much like Judah Ben-Hur (Charlton Heston) and Messala (Stephen Boyd) in Ben-Hur (1959), Plummer and Boyd play lifelong friends-turned-rivals:

… who even engage in a chariot race at one point (the parallels between the two films are stark). In addition to featuring Sophia Loren as gorgeous Lucilla:

… there are plenty of big-name actors in the cast, beginning with Alec Guinness during the first hour:

… and including other, somewhat poorly defined characters, such as Mel Ferrer’s blind seer Cleander:

… James Mason’s virtuous Greek Timonides:

… John Ireland as Northern tribal leader Ballomar:

… and Omar Sharif (showing up just a few brief times) as Loren’s Armenian spouse Sohamus. Plummer’s role as Commodus is by far the juiciest, and he’s compelling throughout, playing a man convinced that he truly is beloved by the gods.

Plummer’s performance — as well as the gorgeous cinematography and sets — make this worth a one-time look, though it’s not must-see viewing.

Notable Performances, Qualities, and Moments:

  • Christopher Plummer as Commodus
  • Fine cinematography and sets
  • Dimitry Tiomkin’s score

Must See?
No, though it’s worth a one-time look for its historical relevance and Plummer’s performance.

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2 thoughts on “Fall of the Roman Empire, The (1964)”

  2. Rewatch. In general agreement with the assessment; not must-see – though it’s likely to be of interest to fans of epics. No doubt it was intended as such, in cookie-cutter fashion, but it does fairly plod along in ‘general historical’ form.

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