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Editorial Review:
Product Description: A devoted early Christian in possession of Christ's robe has his faith tested by the seductive Messalina & the trials of the Roman arena. Genre: Feature Film-Action/Adventure Rating: NR Release Date: 22-FEB-2005 Media Type: DVD
Amazon.com: Amid a cast of all-stars in 1953's The Robe, Victor Mature made the strongest impression as the Greek slave, Demetrius. It was only natural, then, that Mature should star in this 1954 sequel, in which the newly liberated Demetrius forges an alliance with his Christian brethren to hide the sacred robe of Christ, coveted for its "magic" by the vile emperor Caligula (Jay Robinson, also reprising his role in The Robe). Captured and manipulated into believing his beloved Lucia (Debra Paget) has been killed, Demetrius rejects his pacifist faith, plots vengeance while becoming a rising star in the bloody arena, and falls prey to the scheming senator's wife Messalina (Susan Hayward), who craves his... affection. It all leads to a crisis of faith that will determine Demetrius's fate as a noble Christian or downfallen hedonist.
Inheriting The Robe's CinemaScope production values, Demetrius and the Gladiators has everything you'd want in a Biblical epic, riding the wave that would crest two years later with Cecil B. DeMille's The Ten Commandments. It's campy, of course--Robinson is outrageously over-the-top; Mature is too contemporary (preceding the absurdity of Richard Gere's King David by 30 years); and Hayward seems closer to Rodeo Drive than ancient Rome. Still, there are abundant pleasures here, from the lavish arena battles (a bit cheesy, but still impressive) to a straightforward morality tale that doesn't compromise its themes of religious loyalty. You don't watch movies like this for historical accuracy, but for the combination of thrills, passion, and glory that were Hollywood trademarks of 1950s epics, long before the more secular ambition of Gladiator. --Jeff Shannon
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Aspect Ratio: 2.55:1
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Binding: DVD
Brand: MATURE,VICTOR
EAN: 0002454301177
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, Widescreen, NTSC
Item Dimensions: 20
Label: 20th Century Fox
Languages: EnglishOriginal Language
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox
MPN: D2001177D
Number Of Items: 1
Publisher: 20th Century Fox
Region Code: 1
Release Date: February 27, 2001
Running Time: 101 minutes
Studio: 20th Century Fox
Theatrical Release Date: June 18, 1954
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Customer Reviews
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History is Bunk
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Call it "The Robe II". It's a pretty good story, actually, this sequel to "The Robe". As
entertainment, it has plenty to offer. As history, however, it falls flat on its face.
Caligula is played by the most outrageous ham I have ever seen. The only real accuracy of his story of Caligula is that he was assassinated by one of his own guards. Caligula also wasn't the slightest bit concerned with Christians or Jews, and in real life largely ignored them. There is no mention, of ... Read More
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