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Quo Vadis?

Play trailer Poster for Quo Vadis? 1951 2h 51m History Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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83% Tomatometer 63 Reviews 73% Popcornmeter 2,500+ Ratings
Returning from a military campaign abroad, General Marcus Vinicius (Robert Taylor) discovers that a new religion has taken hold in Rome: Christianity. When Vinicius encounters Lygia (Deborah Kerr), a follower of the strange religion, he quickly becomes smitten and tries to win her affections. Lygia is reluctant due to their differing beliefs. Complicating matters is the crazed Emperor Nero (Peter Ustinov), who blames the Christians for his own burning of Rome, beginning a wave of persecution.
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Quo Vadis?

Critics Reviews

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Kate Cameron New York Daily News 4h
3/4
A little restraint on the part of director LeRoy might have made this moving and inspiring story of faith into an exciting and impressive film. Go to Full Review
Edwin Schallert Los Angeles Times 4h
Its pictorial lavishness has never been equaled in any other production. One gets the feeling that he is seeing far greater crowds, vaster settings than have ever previously been visible. Go to Full Review
Mae Tinée Chicago Tribune 4h
Peter Ustinov can take the lion's share of credit for giving the film a droll twist with his performance as the petulant, plump peacock who simpered and sulked on his throne in imperial Rome until his delusions led him to destroy the city. Go to Full Review
Howard McClay Illustrated Daily News (Los Angeles) 4h
Ustinov dominates much of Quo Vadis, but no other actor could have done it so thoroughly and decisively. Go to Full Review
C.A. Lejeune Observer (UK) 4h
Good it is not, but colossal it undoubtedly is: colossally showy, colossally well-meaning, colossally crowded, conceived in what be described as colossally poor taste. Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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Jonathan I @Isajo Jan 3 Masterful performance from Ustinov as Nero! Like alot of epic movies from this era this movie had scale, beautiful colours and the amount of work that had to be made for this is insane. See more acsdoug D @acsdoug Dec 23 The negative reviewers are right about one thing: the dialogue is too verbose and weighs the movie down. However, the story is good, some of the scenes are truly spectacular, and Peter Ustinov is terrific. I just wish they would have chosen a better lead actor than Robert Taylor. See more Patricia W @RT52876138 04/20/2025 Awesome on every level. See more Anthony J @jenkinsdraws 02/22/2024 Dated cornball stuff with some hoards-of-extras spectacle thrown in. Robert Taylor plays a Roman general like a wooden American. A long-winded waste of time. except for Ustinov's Nero, who is perfectly played just short for funny. See more Alec B @Alec97 01/10/2024 Peter Ustinov is a great Nero, but like a lot of these epics it is mostly dull and overly melodramatic. See more Alan R @RT33746825 11/18/2023 A watchable movie typical for the blockbuster sword 'n' sandal movies made at the time (1951). I enjoyed especially the sets and costumes and the over-the-top scenes. If made today, Q. V. would be very different: more computer technology and digital scenery. Perhaps lower-key and less cheesy , syrupy emotional scenes. But who knows? One incorrect depiction was the Rome model shown to Nero (excellent performance by Peter Ustinov): the Colosseum and the Pantheon would be built after the reign of that monster "Adolf" Nero-tler. The Colosseum in the late 70s CE, and the Pantheon in its present form during the reign of Hadrian in the 2nd century CE. One more sobering thought: In the 200-300 years following Emperor Constantine's "legalization" of Christianity, more Christians were killed by each other due to internal theological disputes than were slaughtered during the first three centuries of their existence. See more Read all reviews
Quo Vadis?

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Movie Info

Synopsis Returning from a military campaign abroad, General Marcus Vinicius (Robert Taylor) discovers that a new religion has taken hold in Rome: Christianity. When Vinicius encounters Lygia (Deborah Kerr), a follower of the strange religion, he quickly becomes smitten and tries to win her affections. Lygia is reluctant due to their differing beliefs. Complicating matters is the crazed Emperor Nero (Peter Ustinov), who blames the Christians for his own burning of Rome, beginning a wave of persecution.
Director
Mervyn LeRoy
Producer
Sam Zimbalist
Screenwriter
S.N. Behrman, Sonya Levien, John Lee Mahin, Henryk Sienkiewicz
Distributor
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Production Co
Metro Goldwyn Mayer
Genre
History, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Feb 23, 1951, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Sep 11, 2015
Runtime
2h 51m
Sound Mix
Mono
Aspect Ratio
Academy (1.33:1)