During the latter years of the reign of the tyrannical Roman emperor Nero, Marcus Vinicius, one of Nero's officers, falls in love with a young Christian named Lygia, attempting to enslave her. Lygia's protector, the noble and burly Ursus, works to save her from Vinicius' clutches. Pursuing Lygia, Vinicius finds himself at a catacomb prayer meeting led by the apostle Peter and finds his conscience stirring-- just as Nero orders Rome burned. A landmark in epic film, Enrico Guazzoni’s grand-scale masterpiece laid the foundations for what colossal Italian spectacles would become. The film had tremendous influence on Giovanni Pastrone’s Cabiria (1914) and D.W. Griffith’s Intolerance (1916).
Amleto Novelli
as Vinicius
Gustavo Serena
as Petronius
Bruto Castellani
as Ursus
Amelia Cattaneo
as Eunice
Carlo Cattaneo
as Nero
Lea Giunchi
as Lygia
Augusto Mastripietri
as Chino
Cesare Moltini
as Tigellinus
Olga Brandini
as Poppaea
Ignazio Lupi
as Aulus
Giovanni Gizzi
as Saint Peter
Lia Orlandini
as
