USCCB - (Film and Broadcasting) - Fall of the Roman Empire, The

Fall of the Roman Empire, The

Alphabetical Listing of Movie Reviews

A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z

Fall of the Roman Empire, The -- In this lavish historical re-creation, Rome's wise old emperor Marcus Aurelius (Alec Guinness) is poisoned by his corrupt son (Christopher Plummer) whose savage policies against the barbarians brings the teetering empire to its ruin. Directed by Anthony Mann, the three-hour dramatization has an autumnal splendor that one can admire, yet find the spectacle unmoving on a human level. Stylized battle scenes and other assorted violence may frighten young children. (A-I) (br) ( 1964 )

These movies have been evaluated for artistic merit and moral suitability by the media reviewing division of Catholic News Service. The reviews include the CNS rating, the Motion Picture Association of America rating, and a brief synopsis of the movie.

The classifications are as follows:

A-I -- general patronage;
A-II -- adults and adolescents;
A-III -- adults;
L -- limited adult audience, films whose problematic content many adults would find troubling. L replaces the previous classification, A-IV.
O -- morally offensive.

Note: Some movies previously were designated A-IV. Older films with this classification should be regarded as classified L.