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The Robe (1953)
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Director:
Henry Koster |
COUNTRY
USA |
GENRE
Historical/Biblical/Drama |
NORWEGIAN TITLE
Men
jeg så ham dø |
RUNNING
TIME
135 minutes |
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Producer:
Frank Ross |
Screenwriter (based on the play by Lloyd C. Douglas):
Gina Kaus
Albert Maltz
Philip Dunne |
Review
A
young and dashing Richard Burton displayed his talent and impeccable
line-delivery, but also his theatricality and often stiffness in
front of the camera in this historically interesting, but ultimately
awkwardly religious twaddle. The first half of the film is easily
the best, as the filmmakers present the emergence of Jesus Christ
as an insurgent in the eyes of the Romans. The film is at its best
depicting Roman culture, way-of-life and – above all – smugness, and
Jay Robinson's gaudy performance as Caligula is the epitome of all
this. Burton, on the other hand, is more laid-back. He delivers the
occasional clever snippets and sexy glances, but once his character
is required to have "seen the light", so to speak, his performance
becomes painfully technical. It's obvious he was anything but
convinced himself, and director Koster and producer Ross ultimately
run amok with their supposedly God-given ideas. It's not that the
film doesn't stay historically accurate enough, it's more that it
cannot help becoming overindulgent in its own relevance – which of
course, seen in retrospect – is completely off target.
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