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Caius Fabius · 09-24-2002, 07:09 PM

Okay lets get SERIOUS and list your seven favorite video film, TV show, series, etc. set in a time period up to 1100AD. 
 
More than seven is fine! 
 
The person who lists the most interesting films that I haven't yet seen will get an actual prize! AN ACTUAL SILVER DENARIUS! No It doesn't have to be a film in English! 
Extra points if it a military themed show! 
Even more extra points if you can tell me how to get a DVD or VHS copy of the film! 
Of course, even more points if you send me a copy I can view! 
 
"Just before class started, I looked in the big book where all the world's history is written, and it said...." Neil J. Hackett, PhD ancient history, professor OSU, 1987Edited by: <A HREF=http://pub45.ezboard.com/ucaiusfabius.showPublicProfile?language=EN>Caius Fabius</A> <IMG HEIGHT=10 WIDTH=10 SRC="http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ROMANISROMANORVM/files/C%20Fabius%201988b.jpg" BORDER=0> at: 9/27/02 11:54:05 pm

Caius Fabius · 09-25-2002, 01:04 PM

Seven videos I value in my library in no special order! 
 
 
1. "I, Claudius" mini series produced by BBC (1975) 
2. "300 Spartans" (aka The Lion of Sparta) (1962) 
3. Masada miniseries (1981) 
4. "Spartacus" (1960) 
5. "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum" (1966) 
6. "The Fall of the Roman Empire" (1964) 
later but still before 1100AD 
7. "The War Lord" 
 
also interesting 
www.roman-empire.net/articles/Roman_Filmography.htm 
 
Has anyone got a copy of "The Column" ? I want to see that!

09-29-2002, 04:59 PM

1. I, Claudius 
2. Barabbas (still the best arena sequences) 
3. The Warlord 
4. Alfred the Great 
5 The Vikings 
6. Spartacus 
7. Charlemagne (tv series) 
Honorable mention: Gladiator, for reviving the genre 
Sign of the Cross (The wine! The music! The delicious debauchery!) 
Fellini's Satyricon, surreal but fun. 
The Robe/ Demetrius and the Gladiators for Jay Robinson's Caligula. 
And, by far the guiltiest pleasure: Guccione's CALIGULA. Who else would dare to make big-budget, big-name historical hardcore porn? Probably closest to the real Roman sensibility. Hey, they weren't soldiering all the time!

Caius Fabius · 09-29-2002, 06:29 PM

Even more fun is a "low budget" film shot on the same set as Guccione's Caligula, (when the sets were not being used...) called "Messalina, Messalina" aka Caligula II? which is filled with Roman bawdy humor and stars one of the Penthouse™ starletts from Caligula. The bawdy exploits and jokes are very much in the style of ancient Roman comedy. 
 
I have a difficult time with "Fellini's Satyricon", I think you can't view it sober. I have to admit the book (Satyricon by Petronius) was a little easier to understand! Now I will need to get a viewable copy of "Alfred the Great" as well. "Just before class started, I looked in the big book where all the world's history is written, and it said...." Neil J. Hackett, PhD ancient history, professor OSU, 1987

Muzzaguchi · 09-30-2002, 02:08 AM

Hi, 
 
Indeed Fellini's Satyricon was a bit of a trip - I watched it totally sober (kind of felt the same way with Mulholland Drive). Anyway, here is my list - not quite 7 but I will just add to it in my brazen attempt to grab a denarius! . 
 
I saw Hero which was filmed in Gaelic, Old English, Old French, and Latin (1980?) that was great all about the Hound of Ulster whose Gaelic spelling I won't embarrass myself attempting. It had surtitles but was a fascinating way to promote the Gaelic language (which I think it was mainly for) 
 
I actually enjoyed The Egyptian with Victor Mature but I really want to see The Tartars with VM and Orson Welles - I came across some publicity stills really cheap and they looked unhistorically fun. 
 
Barabas with Anthony Quinn and Ernest Borgnine and Demetrius and the Gladiators I think are underrated - especially the Tigers in Demetrius. (Mature making amends for that Lion skin in Samson). 
 
I would also like to see Scipio Africanus - a film made in 1936 for Mussolini's propaganda. The interesting thing is that until that point most Italian films were the Spartacus/Quo Vadis type and they obviously were not the kind of thing you wanted to promote as Mussolini. 
 
Speaking of Quo Vadis - has anyone seen either the 1913 or 1924 versions? They sound great or the 1934 Sign of the Cross? 
 
There were also Operas at the time dedicated to the spectacle of Rome (Boito's Nero (1924), Mascagni's Nero (1936 - he obviously changed his history because this was a panegyric for Mussolini) and others earlier Quo Vadis (1909) the list goes on. Actually looking at the production photos a great deal of effort was put into stage and costume. Would make an interesting comparison with film costume (you already had Norma, Attila, etc from the 19th century and L'incoronatizone di Poppea from the 16th not to mention all those Handel and Mozart operas. But I digress. 
 
I will add more as I remember them in my brazen attempt. 
 
 
Cheers 
 
Muzzaguchi

09-30-2002, 03:23 PM

I've seen the 1934 SOTC many times, always cut. It was cut originally for excessive sadism and recut for re-release during WWII with a prologue added to give it propaganda value. Even in its edited form, it's amazing to see how much sex and violence they could get away with in those pre-code days, just by giving the film a religious gloss to satisfy the censors. Intriguingly, a few years ago I heard that there was a DeMille "director's cut" available - the version DeMille screened at home for his guests, with all the good stuff put back in. I've never been able to locate it. Anyone out there know where it's to be found? In any case, Laughton's Nero is one of the all-time great character performances, and everyone should have a chance to see Claudette Colbert in that bath of ass's milk.

09-30-2002, 05:15 PM

1 Life of Brian 
2 Monty Python and the Search for the Holy Grail 
3 Up Pompeii (does that count?) 
4 History of the World Part One 
5 Druids, AKA, Vercingetorix (coz it's so rubbish, I laughed a lot anyway) 
6 Carry on Cleo (just for some of the one-liners) 
 
3 not funny films, but liked 'em 
 
7 I Claudius 
8 Gladiator 
9 Attila the Hun 
 
and tieing for 10th place 
 
10 Jason and the Argonauts/Clash of the Titans/The Odyssey Veni Vidi Bibi

09-30-2002, 06:17 PM

Ok...my somewhat small list: 
 
1. Gladiator (loved it, good action flick) 
 
2. Excalibur (the Boorman version) 
 
3. 13th Warrior (Good funny action adventure) 
 
4. Jason and the Argonauts 
 
5. Ben Hur 
 
6. Spartacus 
 
Magnus/Matt 
Optio 
Legio XXX "Ulpia Victrix"

10-01-2002, 11:34 AM

Best roman flick ever: Satyricon. But it is something you have to watch several times to fully understand. As close as you can get to the feeling of those times. But it is so agressively pagan that I understand it may shock some people. 
 
Best gladiatorial scenes: a movie with Jack Palance as the mean essedarius (chariot fighter) and pretty accurate gladiatorial equipment, as well as a beautiful reconstruction (for the times) of the arena. Can't remember the title. 
 
Best Dark ages movie:Alfred the Great. For some reason I have a very good memory of that movie. Although a movie with Charlton Heston as a Norman knight defending his motte and baley castle against the still pagan saxons living around him come close second. Can't remember the title of that one either. 
 
Best medieval movie: "The Teutonic knights", a polish movie of the communist era intended to counter Hollywood superproductions: wide screen, technicolor, the works. They succeeded beyond expectations. It's about the great battle lost by the Teutonic Knights against the Poles at Grunwald in 1410. The quality of the filming is beyond reproach, costumes were impressive and in period, including the armour. 
There was no dumb romance to ruin the whole thing. 
The extras were polish army soldiers (litteraly thousands of people on the battefield) and the charge of the Teutonic knights singing german religious songs, their bascinets crested with peacocks feathers was absolutely awesome. I wish I could find this un-findable movie.. 
 
Most amusing "cloak and sandal" movie: There are so many. But I've seen recently an interesting "Justinian and Theodora" a franco-italian production. Brave attempts to reconstruct byzantine costuming from the famous mosaÃƒÆ’Ã‚Â¯cs at Ravenna. Only they didn't quite have the money.. 
Brave attempts to reconstruct military costumes of the city guards too. Nice, but for some reason they were turquoise green. 
And the bravest attempt of them all: trying to explain to the captivated audience why exactly the two heroes (Justinian and Theodora) end up killing a good part of their rebellious subjects in the circus. Not very hero-like.. Well, according to the script writers, it was a horrible mistake... 
I giggled a lot... 
 
And... er... I also liked Caligula with Malcolm McDowell but I'm not too proud about it.. DE EM 
 
 
 
Edited by: <A HREF=http://pub45.ezboard.com/bromanarmytalk.showLocalUserPublicProfile?login=antoninuslucretius>Antoninus Lucretius</A> at: 10/1/02 1:37:57 pm

Caius Fabius · 10-01-2002, 12:09 PM

Jack Palance's 1961 "Barrabas" has him in the arena. 
Did you know Jack Palance (real name Vladimir Palanuik) was a bomber pilot in WW2 and was badly burned in a crash? That's why his face is so "tough". 
The Charleton Heston film is "the War Lord". 
The strange part about "Justinian and Theodora" is that I haven't seen much better Byzantine costuming in any other films. "Attila" (2001 miniseries) has a little bit of Byzantine pseudo costuming, but... I am thinking of getting the 1991 Verdi opera version, when I win the lottery. 
I might add "Knights of the Teutonic Order" (by Krzyzacy) is available at Amazon.com, but it is not in my current focus of interest, again, after I win the lottery..... 
"Just before class started, I looked in the big book where all the world's history is written, and it said...." Neil J. Hackett, PhD ancient history, professor OSU, 1987

Dan Diffendale · 10-01-2002, 07:30 PM

It's set too late to meet your criteria by about three hundred years, but "The Seventh Seal" is a super movie.

10-02-2002, 09:43 AM

Thanks a lot Caius for reminding me the titles of those movies and for reminding me that Amazon existed... I just ordered the Teutonic Knights, and you're right about the lottery... 49 dollars.. Ouch. 
I didn't know about old Jack Palance being wounded in WWII. He definitely had the roughest face in the industry although Lee Marvin came close second. 
They don't have faces like that any more. They're all sort of smooth now. 
Absolutely right about Justinian and Theodora. That's why I wrote "brave attempts". Those city guards costumes were pretty accurate, with the padded armour and the funny hat-like helmets, but why turquoise green??E EM 
BTW: I am still trying to find the orginal source for the varangian guards' helmets. I've seen pictures of those somewhere else but it was never the original source. Help would be very welcome. They're impressive helmets. 
And yes, Bergman's Seventh Seal is magnificent but I don't put it in the "war movie" or "cloak and sandal" department. 
It's a movie about a game of chess pitting a man against Death, the all times winner.. It's also a movie about the plague, what it does to people and how it screws their minds. Edited by: <A HREF=http://pub45.ezboard.com/bromanarmytalk.showLocalUserPublicProfile?login=antoninuslucretius>Antoninus Lucretius</A> at: 10/2/02 11:48:11 am

Muzzaguchi · 10-04-2002, 03:09 AM

Hi Caius, 
 
I have a vide copy of Verdi's Attila somewhere - he loved his basses (a pity there is no singing emoticon ) . Anyway - it is in PAL and so probably of no use to you. I have got several recordings though. Opera producers can be as capricious as movie producers and go for a look rather than historical accuracy. That said some productions have been fantastic although with Attila there always seems to be a lot of fur. 
 
You should be able to get a copy of Norma on video much cheaper and some productions of Handels's Julius Caesar and Mozart's Scipio and Mitridate have sumptuous costuming. And Boito's Nerone look awesome - recreated the golden house on stage and the Circus as far as i can discover. 
 
Any way 
 
Cheers 
 
Muzzaguchi

rekirts · 10-07-2002, 03:45 PM

I think of movies like Ben Hur and Spartacus and other historical movies made at that time as being too melodramatic. Maybe if they took away the sappy music, the acting would seem less over-the-top. 
 
We rented the video of the Attila mini-series and I quite liked it. I bought tapes of the Masada mini-series, so obviously I like that one, too. 
 
I also have the video, Cleopatra, which I think was also a mini-series. Timothy Dalton plays Julius Caesar...hmmm. Anyway, it's not too bad. Based on the book 'The Memoirs of Cleopatra' by Margaret George. I also have the book, but it's very long and I quit reading it after Julius Caesar died. I quite enjoyed it up to that point, but then lost interest. 
 
Although there are a few things about Gladiator that really annoy me, I still find it a very entertaining movie, and yes, I have it on DVD. 
 
Also have The Thirteenth Warrior on DVD. I enjoyed it at the theatre, but now when we watch it, I always fall asleep. M 
 
Liked the musical, Camelot, with (I think) Richard Harris and Lynne Redgrave when I saw it years ago. A few months ago it was on TV, and I still like it. 
 
That's all I can think of now. 
 
Wendy

10-27-2002, 04:54 PM

So who wins the Denarius? And, Antoninus, they don't all have smooth faces these days. Tommy Lee Jones, Scott Glenn and Edward James Olmos Would all look great with those seamed faces framed by a Roman helmet.

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