''Quo Vadis'' (or ''Quo Vadis?'') is a 1924 Italian silent

historical drama film A historical drama (also period drama, period piece or just period) is a dramatic work set in the past, usually used in the context of film and television, which presents historical events and characters with varying degrees of fiction such as c ...

directed by Gabriellino D'Annunzio and

Georg Jacoby Georg Jacoby (23 July 1882 – 21 February 1964) was a German film director and screenwriter.Profile
, bfi.org.uk; accessed 1 ...

and starring Emil Jannings, Elena Sangro, and

Lillian Hall-Davis Lillian Hall-Davis (23 June 1898 – 25 October 1933) was an English actress during the silent film era, featured in major roles in English film and a number of German, French and Italian films. Born Lilian Hall Davis, the daughter of a London ...

. It is based on the 1896 novel ''

Quo Vadis ''Quo vadis?'' (, ) is a Latin phrase meaning "Where are you going?". It is commonly translated, quoting the KJV translation of John 13:36, as "Whither goest thou?" The phrase originates from the Christian tradition regarding Saint Peter's fi ...

'' by

Henryk Sienkiewicz Henryk Adam Aleksander Pius Sienkiewicz ( , ; 5 May 1846 – 15 November 1916), also known by the pseudonym Litwos (), was a Polish epic writer. He is remembered for his historical novels, such as The Trilogy, the Trilogy series and especially ...

which was notably later adapted into a 1951 film.

Plot

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, ...

, during the reign of

Nero Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus ( ; born Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus; 15 December AD 37 – 9 June AD 68) was a Roman emperor and the final emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, reigning from AD 54 until his ...

, a young pagan general named Marcus Vinicius falls in love with a beautiful Christian hostage named Licia. Their love appears to be impossible, because of the conflict of their religions. Nero burns the city of Rome and blames the

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

, already hated by the pagan Romans.

Cast

Production

Unione Cinematografica Italiana The Unione Cinematografica Italiana (UCI) was an Italian film production and distribution consortium of the silent era. Following the end of the First World War, a group of eleven leading Italian companies joined forces in a single conglomer ...

announced the film in 1921, and began production in 1924. D'Annunzio, the son of the poet Gabriele D'Annunzio, was considered a rising director and also wrote the film's screenplay. It was one of several attempts in early

Fascist Italy Fascist Italy () is a term which is used in historiography to describe the Kingdom of Italy between 1922 and 1943, when Benito Mussolini and the National Fascist Party controlled the country, transforming it into a totalitarian dictatorship. Th ...

to recapture the success of the historical

epics 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) ...

of the previous decade.

Rudolph Valentino Rodolfo Pietro Filiberto Raffaello Guglielmi di Valentina d'Antonguella (May 6, 1895 – August 23, 1926), known professionally as Rudolph Valentino and nicknamed The Latin Lover, was an Italian actor who starred in several well-known sile ...

was invited to star in the film, but was forced to turn the offer down due to contractual reasons. Production quickly became troubled – the film ran seriously over-budget, and additional financing had to be raised from Germany. The new backers insisted that a German director, Jacoby, be appointed to co-direct. The film was co-directed by

Arturo Ambrosio Arturo Ambrosio (1870–1960) was an Italian film producer who was a pioneering and influential figure in the early years of Italian cinema. Biography Ambrosio was a photographer who owned a shop in Turin. In 1904, after returning from a visit ...

Georg Jacoby Georg Jacoby (23 July 1882 – 21 February 1964) was a German film director and screenwriter.Profile
, bfi.org.uk; accessed 1 ...

, and Gabriellino D'Annunzio.

Bruno Kastner Richard Otto Bruno Kastner (January 1890Different sources cite 1 January, 3 January, 20 January, and 30 January as Kastner's date of birth. – 30 June 1932) was a German people, German stage and film acting, actor, screenwriter, and film produce ...

was initially cast for the film, but withdrew due to an illness causing all of his scenes to be reshot.

Release

The film was distributed by

First National Pictures First National Pictures was an American motion picture production and distribution company. It was founded in 1917 as First National Exhibitors' Circuit, Inc., an association of independent theatre owners in the United States, and became the count ...

in the United States.

Reception

The film was a critical and commercial failure on its release, effectively ending the career of its producer

, who had been one of the major figures of early Italian cinema. In its review ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' described it as "excellent as spectacle, but is too tedious in many sequences to be a good entertainment". D'Annunzio never directed or wrote another film. Jacoby's reputation also suffered heavily, and he switched to working on

musicals Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movement ...

and

comedies Comedy is a genre of dramatic works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. Origins Comedy originated in ancient Gr ...

. Emil Jannings's performance, on the other hand, received moderate praise. ''

The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. It was founded on February 21, 1925, by Harold Ross and his wife Jane Grant, a reporter for ''The New York T ...

'' noted that Jannings was the "one item beside boredom" the movie had, but despite his "able performance" they "still prefer him in Germanic studio surroundings". The French film star

Max Linder Gabriel-Maximilien Leuvielle (16 December 18831 November 1925), known professionally as Max Linder (), was a French actor, director, screenwriter, producer, and comedian of the silent film era. His onscreen persona "Max" was one of the first r ...

and his wife Hélène watched the film in October 1925. Later, both were found with narcotics overdoses and slit wrists, resulting in their deaths of either a

suicide pact A suicide pact is an agreed plan between two or more individuals to die by suicide. The plan may be to die together, or separately and closely timed. In England and Wales, a suicide pact is a partial defense, under section 4 of the Homicide Act ...

or a murder-suicide. The suicide of Petronius and Eunice in the film has been proposed as an inspiration adding to Linder's previous depression.

References

Works cited

External links

*
''Quo Vadis'' at AllMovie
* (Wayback Machine) (note: ''the film survives'')

at silenthollywood.com * nglish subtitles {{Authority control 1924 films Italian silent feature films Italian epic films Films directed by Georg Jacoby Films directed by Gabriellino D'Annunzio Films set in Rome Films based on Quo Vadis Films set in ancient Rome Films set in the Roman Empire Films set in the 1st century Depictions of Nero on film Cultural depictions of Poppaea Sabina 1920s historical drama films Italian black-and-white films 1924 drama films 1925 drama films 1925 films Silent Italian historical drama films Silent Italian adventure films 1920s Italian films 1920s Italian-language films