Overview
During the latter years of the reign of the tyrannical Roman emperor Nero, Marcus Vinicius, one of Nero's officers, falls in love with a young Christian named Lygia, attempting to enslave her. Lygia's protector, the noble and burly Ursus, works to save her from Vinicius' clutches. Pursuing Lygia, Vinicius finds himself at a catacomb prayer meeting led by the apostle Peter and finds his conscience stirring-- just as Nero orders Rome burned. A landmark in epic film, Enrico Guazzoni’s grand-scale masterpiece laid the foundations for what colossal Italian spectacles would become. The film had tremendous influence on Giovanni Pastrone’s Cabiria (1914) and D.W. Griffith’s Intolerance (1916).
Cast
- Amleto Novelli as Vinicius
- Gustavo Serena as Petronius
- Bruto Castellani as Ursus
- Amelia Cattaneo as Eunice
- Carlo Cattaneo as Nero
- Lea Giunchi as Lygia
- Augusto Mastripietri as Chino
- Cesare Moltini as Tigellinus
- Olga Brandini as Poppaea
- Ignazio Lupi as Aulus