Quo Vadis (1913 film)

Quo vadis?
Film poster
Directed by	Enrico Guazzoni
Produced by	George Kleine for Cines
Written by	Enrico Guazzoni
Based on	Henryk Sienkiewicz (novel)
Starring	Amleto Novelli, Gustavo Serena, Lea Rushes, Bruno Castellani, Carlo Cattaneo, Lia Orlandini, Amelia Cattaneo, Augustus Mastripietri, Andrea Serena, Olga Brandini, Ignazio Lupi, Caesar Moltroni, John Gizzi, and Ida Carloni Talli
Release dates	March 1913 [1][2]
Running time	120 minutes
Country	Italy
Language	Silent

Scene from the film.

Quo Vadis? is a 1913 film directed by Enrico Guazzoni, based on the 1896 novel of the same name. It was arguably the first blockbuster in the history of cinema, with 5,000 extras, lavish sets, and a running time of two hours, setting the standard for "superspectacles" for decades to come.

A worldwide success, it was the first film to be projected in a first-class Broadway theater, where it was screened for nine months from April to December 1913. The film's first screening in London was for King George V, who complimented the performers. Another Italian director, Giovanni Pastrone, would direct Cabiria (1914) – which holds many similarities with Quo Vadis, but is longer, more thematically complex, and visually spectacular.

Plot

The story is set during the early years of rule by the emperor Nero. He is an ambitious man obsessed with gaining absolute power. His soldier falls in love with a young Christian slave named Lycia, but their love is hindered by Nero, who hates Christianity and unleashes his officers to burn Rome, pinning the blame on the Christians. In addition, the cruel Nero kidnaps the pair and sends them into an arena to fight lions.

Other versions

• 1901 film directed by Lucien Nonguet and Ferdinand Zecca
• 1912 film directed by Arturo Ambrosio
• 1925 film directed by Gabriellino D'Annunzio and Georg Jacoby
• 1951 film directed by Mervyn LeRoy
• 1985 TV mini-series directed by Franco Rossi
• 2001 film directed by Jerzy Kawalerowicz
• 2002 TV series (6 ep.) directed by Jerzy Kawalerowicz

See also

• Quo Vadis, the novel (1895) by Henryk Sienkiewicz

References

1. Patrick Lucanio. With fire and sword: Italian spectacles on American screens, 1958-1968. Scarecrow Press, 1994. ISBN 9780810828162.
2. Riccardo Redi. La Cines: storia di una casa di produzione italian. Persiani Editore, 2009. ISBN 9788896013045.

Notes

• The Peplum in the days of silent cinema, 1, ch. of "Cinema Peplum" Dominic Cammarota, "Future essays" n. 14, and. Fanucci, '87, p. 15th
• The Dictionary of film Mereghetti-2002-cards, ed. Baldini & Castoldi, 2001, p. 1711.

External links

• Quo Vadis at the Internet Movie Database