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Constantine and the Cross | |
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Directed by | Lionello De Felice |
Screenplay by | |
Story by | Fulvio Palmieri [1] |
Produced by | |
Starring | |
Cinematography | Massimo Dallamano [1] |
Edited by | |
Music by | Mario Nascimbene [1] |
Production companies |
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Distributed by | Variety Distribution |
Release date |
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Running time | 120 minutes |
Countries |
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Constantine and the Cross (Italian: Costantino il grande) is a 1961 historical drama film about the early career of the emperor Constantine, who first legalized and then adopted Christianity in the early 4th century. The fictionalised film only stretches as far into his life as the Battle of the Milvian Bridge in AD 312.
It was also known as Constantine the Great or Constantino il Grande - In Hoc Signo Vinces. [2]
Constantine wins a battle and is sent to Rome. On the way he and his friend Hadrian are attacked by bandits. Hadrian is nursed back to health by some Christians, including Livia. The bandits were sent by Maxentius, Constantine's rival for power.
Constantine watches some Christians be eaten by the lions. He jumps into the arena to defend a surviving child, and asks for the other Christians to be set free.
Livia is arrested. Hadrian, who has fallen in love with her, arranges for her to escape from prison. Constantine is blamed, Maxentius persecutes Christians and attacks Constantine in Gaul.
Filming took place in August 1960, with locations in Yugoslavia and studio work in Rome. [3] While filming a scene in Rome Cornel Wilde was scratched by a lion. [4] Filming was completed by November. [5]
Constantine and the Cross was released in Italy in January 1961. [1] It was released in the United States in December 1962. [1]
The New York Times called it "one of those ponderous costumed tabloids that's trampled history to death and turned what's left of its fragments into boring banalities." [6]
The Monthly Film Bulletin said "the familiar ingredients of this tired spectacle - lions, fair haired Christian girls, torture chambers, battles, assassination attempts, intrigue - fail to arouse any noticeable excitement in the director or the cast." [2]
The movie was one of Belinda Lee's more widely seen European films. [7]
The 310s decade ran from January 1, 310, to December 31, 319.
Year 312 (CCCXII) was a leap year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar. In the Roman Empire, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Constantinus and Licinianus. The denomination 312 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.
The Battle of the Milvian Bridge took place between the Roman Emperors Constantine I and Maxentius on 28 October 312. It takes its name from the Milvian Bridge, an important route over the Tiber. Constantine won the battle and started on the path that led him to end the Tetrarchy and become the sole ruler of the Roman Empire. Maxentius drowned in the Tiber during the battle; his body was later taken from the river and decapitated, and his head was paraded through the streets of Rome on the day following the battle before being taken to Africa.
The Chi Rho is one of the earliest forms of Christogram, formed by superimposing the first two (capital) letters—chi and rho (ΧΡ)—of the Greek word ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ (Christos) in such a way that the vertical stroke of the rho intersects the center of the chi.
The Arch of Constantine is a triumphal arch in Rome dedicated to the emperor Constantine the Great. The arch was commissioned by the Roman Senate to commemorate Constantine's victory over Maxentius at the Battle of Milvian Bridge in AD 312. Situated between the Colosseum and the Palatine Hill, the arch spans the Via Triumphalis, the route taken by victorious military leaders when they entered the city in a triumphal procession. Dedicated in 315, it is the largest Roman triumphal arch, with overall dimensions of 21 m (69 ft) high, 25.9 m (85 ft) wide and 7.4 m (24 ft) deep. It has three bays, the central one being 11.5 m (38 ft) high and 6.5 m (21 ft) wide and the laterals 7.4 m (24 ft) by 3.4 m (11 ft) each. The arch is constructed of brick-faced concrete covered in marble.
The four Raphael Rooms form a suite of reception rooms in the Apostolic Palace, now part of the Vatican Museums, in Vatican City. They are famous for their frescoes, painted by Raphael and his workshop. Together with Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel ceiling frescoes, they are the grand fresco sequences that mark the High Renaissance in Rome.
The globus cruciger, also known as "the orb and cross", is an orb surmounted by a cross. It has been a Christian symbol of authority since the Middle Ages, used on coins, in iconography, and with a sceptre as royal regalia.
"In hoc signo vinces" is a Latin phrase conventionally translated into English as "In this sign thou shalt conquer".
Scala Regia is a flight of steps in the Vatican City and is part of the formal entrance to the Vatican. It was designed by Gian Lorenzo Bernini.
Fire Over Rome is a 1965 Italian peplum film directed by Guido Malatesta.
Umberto Lenzi was an Italian film director whose filmography encompassed a ranges of genres across a prolific career. Born in Massa Marittima, Tuscany, Lenzi studied law before enrolling at the Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia in Rome. As part of his studies, he wrote and directed the short film Ragazzi di Trastevere, based on Pier Paolo Pasolini's novel Ragazzi di vita. During this time, he worked as a film critic for the Centro's journal Bianco e Nero, and was an avid follower of both European and American films, favouring the work of directors John Ford, Raoul Walsh, and Michael Curtiz.
The Vision of Constantine is an equestrian sculpture by the Italian artist Gian Lorenzo Bernini, located in the Scala Regia by St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City. Originally commissioned as a free standing work of art within St. Peter's itself, the sculpture was finally unveiled in 1670 as an integral part of the Scala Regia - Bernini's redesigned stairway between St. Peter's Basilica and the Vatican Palace. Unlike other large works by Bernini, art historians have suggested that this work was almost entirely undertaken by him - no other sculptors have been recorded as receiving payment. Bernini's overall fee was 7,000 Roman scudi.
The Arch of Malborghetto is an Ancient Roman quadrifrons arch located nineteen kilometres north of Rome on the via Flaminia. Today, because of reuse over the centuries, it is part of a mass of construction which appears to be a Medieval structure at first sight. Nevertheless, the core of the structure is datable to the first half of the fourth century. The original marble coating has been completely lost.
The Fall of Rome is a 1963 Italian peplum film written and directed by Anthony Dawson.
Ferdinando "Nando" Gazzolo was an Italian actor and voice actor.
The Terror of Rome Against the Son of Hercules is a 1964 peplum film directed by Mario Caiano and starring Mark Forest and Marilù Tolo.
Nando Tamberlani (1896–1967) was an Italian film actor. A character actor in Italian cinema of the postwar era, he was the brother of actor Carlo Tamberlani. Another brother Ermete Tamberlani was also an actor. He appeared in a number of peplum epics during the late 1950s and 1960s.
Julius Caesar Against the Pirates is a 1962 Italian adventure film written and directed by Sergio Grieco and starring Gustavo Rojo, Abbe Lane and Gordon Mitchell. It is loosely based on actual events from the early life of Julius Caesar.
Gladiators Seven is a 1964 Italian peplum film directed by Alberto De Martino and starring Tony Russel.
Veriano Ginesi was an Italian actor.