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\nThis episode we return to the \u2018Golden Age of Hollywood\u2019 with a classic sword and sandal epic, Quo Vadis (1951). This film is available through many streaming platforms and we highly recommend revisiting it.
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\nIn Part One of two episodes on Quo Vadis, we examine the context for the film and the plot.
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\nQuo Vadis (1951) helped to ignite Hollywood\u2019s passion for ancient epics in this decade. It was a smash hit with some of the legendary stars of the era, including Robert Taylor, Deborah Kerr and Peter Ustinov. This film is not only epic in terms of length, but in terms of all the aspects that you could discuss in connection with it.
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\nSpecial Episode - Quo Vadis (1951) - Part One
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\nResistance
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\nThe tale itself has a lengthy backstory which takes us all the way back to 19th century Poland. Henryk Sienkiewicz wrote the book in a serialised format between 1894-1896. Poland had been going a through a tough time over the course of the preceding century, in the sense that it did not exist independently between 1795 and 1918. During this period, the Catholic Church was crucial in preserving Polish culture. Sienkiewicz often wrote historical novels that would lift the spirits of his fellow poles, and Quo Vadis was no exception. For Sienkiewicz, the triumph of Christian characters such as Lygia and Ursus (meant to be from Lugii, i.e. Poland) represent the ultimate triumph of Poland over its cruel oppressors, with Nero representing nations such as Russia, Austro-Hungary and Prussia.  
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\nSienkiewicz\u2019s novel was well-received, and was therefore adapted into toga plays, operas, and several films. The earlier film versions were made in Europe, including the notable 1912 silent classic.
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\nJoin us for the fascinating background of the 1951 film and stay tuned for Part Two!
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\nQuo Vadis - Roll Call!
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\nThere are a LOT of characters to keep track of in a film of this length, so if you need a handy reference, check out the cast list on IMDB.
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\nThe main people that you need to know for our episode include:
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\nLygia
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\nFictional main lady love interest. Christian, hostage-turned-adoptive daughter of Roman general Aulus Plautus, and his wife, Pomponia Graecina.
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\nMarcus Vinicius
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\nFictional main manly love interest. Roman, not Christian (yet). Militaristic, aggressive to start, turns all moral as the film progresses.
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\nLygia (Deborah Kerr) and Marcus Vinicius (Robert Taylor) in the courtyard of her adoptive parents' home in Rome.Source: FilmAffinity.
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\nEmperor Nero
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\nHistorical figure. Really was Roman emperor from 54-68 CE. Known as the last emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty. Really was terrible, although maybe not quite as unrelentingly awful as many suggest \u2013 including this film. Probably not as amusing as Peter Ustinov!
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\nA gold coin showing the obverse portrait of Nero.
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\nBust of the historical Nero
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\nPeter Ustinov as Nero in Quo Vadis (1951)
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\nPoppaea Sabina
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\nHistorical figure. Elite Roman lady. Complicated love life. Winds up as Nero\u2019s second wife. Called beautiful but awful in the surviving sources. We say \u2013 the jury is out on that one. Typical fun, adulteress type character used to contrast to the \u2018good girl\u2019, Lygia. Historically,