Damon and Pythias (1962)

Pythias, a liberal Athenian who believes all men are brothers, is condemned to death by Dionysus, the tyrant of Syracuse, who finds this view dangerous. However, Dionysus allows Pythias to ... See full summary »

Director:

Curtis Bernhardt

Writers:

Samuel Marx (story), Samuel Marx (screenplay)

Stars:

Guy Williams, Don Burnett, Ilaria Occhini

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Guy Williams	...	Damon
Don Burnett	...	Pythias
Ilaria Occhini	...	Nerissa
Liana Orfei	...	Adriana
Marina Berti	...	Mereka - Nerissa's Friend
Arnoldo Foà	...	Dionysius the Tyrant
Carlo Giustini	...	Cariso
Aldo Silvani	...	Patriarch
Andrea Bosic	...	Arcanos
Maurizio Baldoni	...	Dionysius the Younger
Franco Fantasia	...	Rumius - the Fencing Master
Osvaldo Ruggieri	...	Demetrius - Nerissa's Brother
Lawrence Montaigne	...	Flute Player
Enrico Glori	...	Nikos
Gianni Bonagura	...	Phylemon

Storyline

Pythias, a liberal Athenian who believes all men are brothers, is condemned to death by Dionysus, the tyrant of Syracuse, who finds this view dangerous. However, Dionysus allows Pythias to return to Athens to visit his ailing wife with the understanding he will then come back to face his punishment. Damon, a friend of Pythias, volunteers to be a hostage to guarantee Pythias's return. Dionysius doesn't expect Pythias to keep his end of the bargain, thus exposing the falsity of his beliefs.

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Plot Keywords:

male male relationship | bare chested male | homosexual subtext | man tied up | chained to wall | 

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Taglines:

World-famed story of friendship and fury!

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Genres:

Adventure

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Did You Know?

Trivia

This was the last film ever shown at the Kenosha Theatre in Kenosha, Wisconsin, on Sunday, April 21, 1963.

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Connections

Follows Damon and Pythias (1908)

User Reviews

DAMON AND PYTHIAS (Curtis Berhardt, 1962) **

Although I had heard of the titular historical characters – probably from a Greek mythology class I sat for in Secondary School – I had never read or seen their tale until now, via this rather lifeless and turgid peplum that was, until some time ago, a staple of TCM UK's schedule. The leads are likable enough as played by Guy Williams (from Disney's "Zorro" TV-series in his penultimate theatrical feature) and Don Burnett (also in his next-to-last film, he was a dead ringer for Rock Hudson but much less charismatic), their inevitable love interests are, respectively, attractive (Liana Orfei) and histrionic (Ilaria Occhini), while the villainous Tyrant of Syracuse (the film's original Italian title) was portrayed by a favorite Italian character actor who made his fair share of these things – Arnoldo Foa' who also speaks his own lines in serviceable English! Actually, the latter's belated introduction breathes new life into the film making the second half far more compelling as Greek Burnett defies his Sicilian enemies to prove that his Pythagorian creed of "The Brotherhood of Man" (perpetrated by persecuted philosopher Andrea Bosic) by replacing Sicilian thief Williams who has, uncharacteristically, exchanged places with Burnett on the executioner's block because of the latter's impending fatherhood! Therefore, it is rather unfortunate that, despite some interesting international credentials in the direction (German Bernhardt, who would curiously himself retire after making just one more film!) and screen writing (British playwright Bridget Boland and Hollywood veteran Samuel Marx) departments, DAMON AND PYTHIAS does not emerge a better movie in the long run – even when compared to most of the less-than-inspired product along the same lines being churned out by contemporary Italian B-grade film-makers.

Details

Country:

Italy USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

June 1962 (USA)

Also Known As:

Damon and Pythias

Filming Locations:

Baths of Caracalla, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Company Credits

Production Co:

International Motion Picture Enterprises

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Sound Recording)

Color:

Color (Metrocolor) Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1