Sins of Rome
| Sins of Rome | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Riccardo Freda |
| Screenplay by |
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| Story by | Maria Bory[1] |
| Produced by | Carlo Caiano[2] |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | |
| Edited by | Mario Serandrei[1] |
| Music by | Renzo Rossellini[1] |
Production companies |
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| Distributed by | A.P.I. (Italy) |
Release date |
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Running time | 105 minutes[1] |
| Countries |
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| Language | Italian |
| Box office | 450 million lire |
Sins of Rome (Italian: Spartaco) is a 1953 historical drama film directed by Riccardo Freda and loosely based on the life story of Spartacus.[3][4] The rights of film's negatives and copies were bought by the producers of Stanley Kubrick's 1960 film Spartacus, as to prevent eventual new releases of the film that could have damaged the commercial outcome of Kubrick’s film; this resulted in Sins of Rome's withdrawal from market for about thirty years.[5]
Plot summary
[edit]In 74 B.C., Spartacus, a Roman soldier of Thracian origins, is enslaved by Crassus after coming to the rescue of the beautiful slave Amytis. Enlisted into Lentulus's gladiators, he attempts repeatedly to escape. When the gladiators begin a revolt, Spartacus becomes their leader and leaves Rome with them. Wounded by Rufus's soldiers during a patrol, he takes refuge with Crassus's young daughter Sabina, who has fallen in love with him. After recovering, Spartacus returns to his men and leads them in a victorious assault on Rufus's fortified camp. The unexpected defeat alarms the senate; Crassus summons Spartacus and promises freedom for him and his followers. Meanwhile, the rebels, unsettled in the absence of their leader, decide to attack the Roman troops. Spartacus joins them and dies in battle, which turns into carnage for the slaves.
Cast
[edit]- Massimo Girotti as Spartacus
- Ludmilla Tchérina as Amitys
- Gianna Maria Canale as Sabina
- Yves Vincent as Ocnomas
- Carlo Ninchi as Marcus Licinius Crassus
- Carlo Giustini as Artorige
- Teresa Franchini as Spartacus's mother
- Vittorio Sanipoli as Marcus Virilius Rufus
- Umberto Silvestri as Lentulus
- Renato Baldini as Gladiator
- Nerio Bernardi
- Cesare Bettarini
Release
[edit]Sins of Rome was distributed in Italy as Spartaco by A.P.I. on January 28, 1953.[1][2] The film grossed a total of 450 million Italian lire in Italy.[2] The film was released in the United States as Sins of Rome and in the United Kingdom as Spartacus the Gladiator.[2]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d e f g h Curti 2017, p. 310.
- ^ a b c d e Curti 2017, p. 311.
- ^ Roberto Chiti; Roberto Poppi; Enrico Lancia (1991). Dizionario del cinema italiano: I film. Gremese, 1991. ISBN 8876055487.
- ^ Maria Wyke (1997). Projecting the Past: Ancient Rome, Cinema and History. Routledge, 2013. ISBN 1317796071.
- ^ Silke Knippschild, Marta Garcia Morcillo (15 August 2013). Seduction and Power: Antiquity in the Visual and Performing Arts. A&C Black, 2013. ISBN 978-1441190659.
Source
[edit]- Curti, Roberto (2017). Riccardo Freda: The Life and Works of a Born Filmmaker. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland.
External links
[edit]- Sins of Rome at IMDb
- Sins of Rome at AllMovie
- Sins of Rome at the TCM Movie Database
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- 1953 films
- 1950s historical drama films
- Films directed by Riccardo Freda
- Films about gladiatorial combat
- Films about rebels
- Films set in the 1st century BC
- Films set in ancient Rome
- Films set in Capua
- Films set in Rome
- Third Servile War films
- Cultural depictions of Spartacus
- Sword-and-sandal films
- Films scored by Renzo Rossellini
- French black-and-white films
- Italian black-and-white films
- Italian historical drama films
- French historical drama films
- 1950s Italian films
- 1950s French films
- Cultural depictions of Marcus Licinius Crassus
- 1950s Italian film stubs
- Adventure film stubs