The Fall of the Roman Empire: Anthony Mann

The historical reasons behind the fall of the Roman Empire are so vast, so numerous, and so intricate that the idea of making a feature film about them seems absurd.  How could you condense hundreds of years of history, of battles, of political maneuvering, and decay into a film that audiences could be expected to sit through?  Anthony Mann had a clever idea: focus the film on a group of individuals who's actions REPRESENT the forces the tore the empire asunder.  The film focuses on the late life and death of Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius and the subsequent power vacuum.  His bastard son Commodus steals the throne away from Livius, the man Marcus Aurelius appointed as his successor, and begins to undo everything that his father accomplished.  His rash, selfish actions send the empire into rebellion.  The film ends with a fight between Livius and Commodus after which the throne of Rome is literally auctioned off to the highest bidder.  Much like his Westerns, Mann's film adaptation of these historical events are highly symbolic and metaphorical.  Rome wouldn't fall for a few more hundred years...but the actions undertaken by the elites effectively doomed it to a slow death.  A fine film, Mann's massive epic would become a worthy template for future films such as Gladiator.

7/10