''79 A.D.'' (, , also known as ''The Destruction of Herculaneum'') is a 1962 Italian-French

epic Epic commonly refers to: * Epic poetry, a long narrative poem celebrating heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation * Epic film, a genre of film defined by the spectacular presentation of human drama on a grandiose scale Epic(s) ...

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...

written and directed by

Gianfranco Parolini Gianfranco Parolini (20 February 1925 in Rome, Italy – 26 April 2018 in Rome, Italy) was an Italian people, Italian film director. He is often credited as Frank Kramer. Among his films are ''The Sabata Trilogy'', several sword and sandal films, m ...

and starring Brad Harris.Michele Giordano. ''Giganti buoni''. Gremese Editore, 1998. .

Summary

General Marcus Tiberius, Emperor Titus Flavius's nephew, triumphantly returns to

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

only to discover the city in chaos. Street murders are escalating, and some corrupt members of the

Roman Senate The Roman Senate () was the highest and constituting assembly of ancient Rome and its aristocracy. With different powers throughout its existence it lasted from the first days of the city of Rome (traditionally founded in 753 BC) as the Sena ...

are falsely accusing the

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

community. When ordered to act against the Christians, Marcus defies the command, leading his uncle to strip him of titles and exile him. Undeterred, Marcus resolves to investigate independently. Amidst the romance and political intrigue of the emperor's court in A.D. 79, a looming disaster unfolds. Beneath the shadow of

Mount Vesuvius Mount Vesuvius ( ) is a Somma volcano, somma–stratovolcano located on the Gulf of Naples in Campania, Italy, about east of Naples and a short distance from the shore. It is one of several volcanoes forming the Campanian volcanic arc. Vesuv ...

, the city faces imminent destruction alongside

Herculaneum Herculaneum is an ancient Rome, ancient Roman town located in the modern-day ''comune'' of Ercolano, Campania, Italy. Herculaneum was buried under a massive pyroclastic flow in the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD. Like the nearby city of ...

Cast

* Brad Harris as Marcus Tiberius * Mara Lane as Diomira * Susan Paget as Livia *

Jany Clair Jany Clair (born 2 September 1938) is a retired French actress. Early life Clair was born Jany Guillaume in Lille, France. Career Clair starred in a number of B-grade films in the 1950s and 1960s, in particular in a number of sword and san ...

as Myrta * Jacques Berthier as Tercius *

Philippe Hersent Philippe Hersent (26 July 1912 – 30 December 1982) was a French actor. He appeared in more than eighty films from 1930 to 1978. Filmography References External links * 1912 births 1982 deaths French male film actors {{France ...

as Tito Flavio *

Carlo Tamberlani Carlo Tamberlani (11 March 1899 – 5 August 1980) was an Italian film actor. He appeared in 127 films between 1931 and 1976. His brother Nando Tamberlani was also an actor. Life and career Born in Salice Salentino, Tamberlani was born ...

as Furio * as Claudia * Isarco Ravaioli as Licinio * Đorđe Nenadović as Samson * Niksa Stefanini as Valerio * Vladimir Leib as Lepido * Ignazio Dolce

References

External links

* French disaster films Italian disaster films 1962 adventure films Films directed by Gianfranco Parolini Films about the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD 1960s disaster films Sword-and-sandal films French adventure films Italian adventure films 1960s Italian films 1960s French films {{1960s-adventure-film-stub