Paul looks good in his toga but otherwise is absolutely dreadful in his screen bow. It shows the advantage of the studio contract system that this wasn't the end of his career. His two follow-ups studio assignments, Somebody Up There Likes Me and The Rack, did a great deal to restore his reputation and put him on the superstar track.
Not that anyone else in the picture gives that much better of a performance. Virginia Mayo buried under a mountain of eyeliner is lost in a character that makes no sense. As the younger version of her character Natalie Wood makes a brief appearance and makes it abundantly clear that it was a good thing she never decided to become a blonde. Pier Angeli is quiet and subdued as Deborra and therefore manages to be the standout person in the cast because she doesn't declaim to the heavens. Speaking of which Jack Palance chews enough scenery for a raft of movies and while it's amusing at first it becomes tiresome in the long run.
As awful as the general film is the production design is a gaudy mini masterpiece of astoundingly bright colors and geometric shapes. It's the highlight of an otherwise mediocre bordering on horrible movie.
Not that anyone else in the picture gives that much better of a performance. Virginia Mayo buried under a mountain of eyeliner is lost in a character that makes no sense. As the younger version of her character Natalie Wood makes a brief appearance and makes it abundantly clear that it was a good thing she never decided to become a blonde. Pier Angeli is quiet and subdued as Deborra and therefore manages to be the standout person in the cast because she doesn't declaim to the heavens. Speaking of which Jack Palance chews enough scenery for a raft of movies and while it's amusing at first it becomes tiresome in the long run.
As awful as the general film is the production design is a gaudy mini masterpiece of astoundingly bright colors and geometric shapes. It's the highlight of an otherwise mediocre bordering on horrible movie.