Constantine the Great (film)
The feature film Constantine the Great is an Italian production from 1961. It is based on the Roman Emperor Constantine the Great .
action
Rome, 4th century AD. The rule of the Roman Empire is divided between Emperor Diocletian in the east and Emperor Maximian in the west. Subordinate Caesar in the west is Constantius Chlorus , who has to fight against various barbarian tribes. His generals are led by Constantine .
During the fighting Constantine is recalled to Rome by Emperor Diocletian and appointed tribune. In Rome he is expected by his lover Fausta . On the way to Rome, Constantine is ambushed. His friend Hadrian is injured; the Christian Livia and her father look after him. Emperor Diocletian sends Maxentius , leader of the Praetorian Guard and Fausta's brother, to punish those responsible. Maxentius sees Constantine as a rival and instructs Apuleius to let the investigation into those responsible for the attack come to nothing.
In the meantime, Hadrian is impressed by Livia's firm belief in her Christian faith and falls in love with her. He declares her and her companions innocent in the attack on Constantine. Since he had contact with Christians, Maximian had him monitored. During an interrogation of delinquents, Constantine also questions some of the interrogated Christians. When a group of Christians are thrown to the lions to eat, Constantine saves the young son of a Christian woman. Fausta asks that the boy be allowed to live.
Livia and her companions are tracked down by the Praetorians ; Hadrian tries in vain to save Livia. Hadrian asks Constantine for help; Maxentius sees his chance for a trap. Constantine frees Livia from prison and flees because he is suspected of having killed the centurion.
On his flight, Constantine intervenes when his father Constantius is attacked by enemy troops. The latter wins the battle but is fatally injured and reveals to Constantine that his mother Helena was a Christian. Constantine succeeds his father as Caesar and announces a Christian-friendly policy. In order not to arouse suspicion, Maxentius announces that he wants to support Constantine.
Livia is now hiding in the mountains; a woman named Helena, who has made it her business to take care of persecuted Christians, helps her. Meanwhile, Konstantin and Fausta are getting married in Treviri.
Constantine is upset about Maxentius, who strengthens the troops despite times of peace. Maxentius' father Maximian is worried because Constantine is becoming more and more of a Christian. When Maximian's assassination attempt on Constantine fails, Maximian throws himself with the sword. Maxentius accuses Constantine of wrongly accusing and murdering his father. The Senate allies itself with Maxentius against Constantine and the Christians; the laws passed by Constantine are withdrawn. Despite the loyalty to her father Maximian and her brother Maxentius, Fausta sticks to Konstantin.
The first battles between Maxentius and Constantine are victorious for Constantine. Then Maxentius learns that Constantine's mother Helena has reappeared and is a Christian. Livia and Hadrian are imprisoned, but refuse to reveal where Helena is. The weakened Livia dies in the dungeon. Helena ensures that Hadrian can escape from the dungeon and sends him to Constantine.
When things turn against Constantine, Fausta sneaks up to Maxentius and asks him to give up. He reveals that the revenge of Maximian's death was only an excuse to take action against Constantine and takes Fausta hostage. Maxentius reveals to the desperate Constantine that he has Helena and Fausta under his control and announces that he will defeat him in battle the next day. Constantine learns from Hadrian that while interrogating the Christians he also spoke to his mother and saw her in the circus arena. While Constantine struggles with how he should decide, he sees a cross in the sky and hears a voice that says that he will be victorious under this sign .
The next day the battle of the Milvian Bridge was victorious for Constantine.
synchronization
The German version of the film has the following voice actors :
| role | actor | Voice actor |
|---|---|---|
| Constantine | Cornel Wilde | Holger Hagen |
| Amodius | Gino Marturano | Horst Naumann |
| Apuleius | Vittorio Sanipoli | Wolfgang Eichberger |
| Constantius Chlores | Carlo Ninchi | Erik Jelde |
| Emperor Diocletian | Annibale Ninchi | Werner Lieven |
| Helena | Elisa Cegani | Maria Landrock |
| Fausta | Belinda Lee | Marianne Wischmann |
| Hadrian | Fausto Tozzi | Klaus Kindler |
| Licinius | Nando Gazzolo | Christian Marshal |
| Livia's father | Enrico Glori | Anton Reimer |
| Maxentius | Massimo Serato | Helmo Kindermann |
| Emperor Maximian | Tino Carraro | Robert Klupp |
| Judge | Loris Gizzi | Willy Friedrichs |
| roman officer | Franco Fantasia | Hans von Borsody |
Reviews
"The story and conversion (312) of Constantine as the first Christian emperor as an operatic pompous monumental film."
Web links
- Constantine the Great in the Internet Movie Database (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Constantine the Great in the German synchronkartei.de, accessed on April 22, 2020.
- ↑ Constantine the Great in the Lexicon of International Films