La rivolta degli schiavi (1960)

During the later years of the Roman Empire, the daughter of a wealthy patrician falls in love with a Christian slave.

Director:

Nunzio Malasomma

Writers:

Daniel Mainwaring (English dialogue), Stefano Strucchi

Stars:

Rhonda Fleming, Lang Jeffries, Darío Moreno

Cast

Credited cast:
Rhonda Fleming	...	Fabiola
Lang Jeffries	...	Vibio
Darío Moreno	...	Massimiano
Ettore Manni	...	San Sebastiano
Wandisa Guida	...	Agnese
Gino Cervi	...	Fabio
Fernando Rey	...	Valerio
Serge Gainsbourg	...	Corvino
José Nieto	...	Sesto
Benno Hoffmann	...	Pretoriano
Rainer Penkert	...	Massimo
Antonio Casas	...	Tertulio
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Vanoye Aikens	...	Iface (as Van Aikens)
Dolores Francine	...	Liubaia
Burt Nelson	...	Catulo

Storyline

During the later years of the Roman Empire, the daughter of a wealthy patrician falls in love with a Christian slave.

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Plot Keywords:

roman empire | redheaded woman | hairy chest | whipping a slave | male whipping | 

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Taglines:

The revels... the ravages - the revolt of the ages!

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Genres:

Adventure

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Certificate:

TV-PG

Did You Know?

Goofs

When the Christians are sent across the arena to run for their lives and freedom if they reach the line on the other side, the gladiators kill them all from behind and from a distance with a javelin in the back, and they all fall forward on their faces and die. The next time we see them, they are lying in different positions.

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Quotes

Vibio: [to Claudia who's come to watch his flogging] Ah, mistress, why don't you come closer? It's hard to see blood drawn from that distance.

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Connections

Version of Fabiola (1949)

User Reviews

Halfway between "Ben-Hur" and "Hercules"

Those Biblical "epics" of the 1950's and early 1960's usually fell into two categories. There were the lavish, big-studio productions such as "Quo Vadis" and "The Robe" and then there were the lesser, sword-and-sandal productions exemplified by the "Hercules" movies.

"Revolt of the Slaves" is one of the few productions to fall in between these two categories. It has the big-budget look of a Hollywood spectacle -- sharp wide-screen photography, handsome sets and costumes, etc. -- coupled with the kind of script and direction more closely identified with those made-in-Italy mini-epics.

Even the star of the show, Rhonda Fleming, is something of an "in-betweener." She's not quite up in the Deborah Kerr or Jean Simmons league but she's clearly a notch above, say, Sylva Koscina. Unfortunately, she's about ten years too old to be playing this part, especially since she's matched with an obviously-younger Lang Jeffries. (Though about to be married in real life, there's not much on-screen chemistry between these two.)

As is often the case with these pious-Christians-vs-pagan-Romans affairs, the plot works best when it's content to be an adventure or a romance but turns stilted and even a bit cloying when the religious angle is stressed.

One item of note: the scene early in the movie when slave-boy Lang Jeffries is whipped across his bare chest is unusually well-staged, especially in terms of the physical relationship between the whipper, the whippee, and the camera. Seeing this scene on TV without the benefit of letter-boxing will not do it justice. (It ranks 2nd in the book "Lash! The Hundred Great Scenes of Men Being Whipped in the Movies.") Jeffries also feels the sting of a whip in "Alone Against Rome" but this time on his bare back, thus making him one of the few actors in screen history to be flogged on both sides of his torso.

Details

Country:

Italy Spain West Germany

Language:

Italian German

Release Date:

June 1961 (USA)

Also Known As:

Revolt of the Slaves

Filming Locations:

Spain

Company Credits

Production Co:

Ambrosiana Cinematografica, C.B. Films S.A., Ultra Film

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1