This movie was so great it was nominated for Best Picture! It follows a Roman solider who receives Jesus's robe in a gamble as Jesus was dying. The rest of the movie witnesses him becoming a Christian. I simply liked it the first time I saw it but liked it more the 2nd time. It's not one of my favorite Christian movies but it's still very good. Fun Fact: The actor who played the soldier was an atheist-and he actually complained about the Christian message(see IMDB's trivia page.) Enjoy this movie-it is worth seeing. Note: TCM plays this on Easter!

This movie has appeared from time to time on YouTube. It certainly hasn't stood the test of time as MGM's "Ben Hur" (1959) and Bronston's "El Cid" both have. Watching it again after many years I found it a total bore with its crowning glory being one of the corniest endings ever. No wonder Richard Burton preferred to forget he ever took part. The only good thing about this film is Fox's CinemaScope image and some of the interior sets. Even the studio's "The Story of Ruth",now virtually forgotten and which is a long way from perfect, is far superior as it at least keeps the viewer engaged and has a wonderful score by Franz Waxman.

The Robe is a film based on the best-selling novel of Lloyd C. Douglas.It tells the story of Marcellus Gallio,a Roman tribune that was tasked by Pontius Pilate to supervise the crucifixion of Christ.It stars Richard Burton,Jean Simmons and Victor Mature.After the Seven Last Words,Marcellus Gallio wins Christ's robe during a dice game.Gradually,the mystical influence of the said garment allows him to become a changed man from being a cynic and a ladies man into becoming a true believer of Christ.This prompted him to give up his position and decides to become disciple of Christ and preach the Good News which led to his death.Despite of being far from a great film,the movie presents a great theme that would allow to viewer to think of what they would do if they lived during those times.It will definitely provide one some serious thought and probably examine one's relationship with Jesus especially if they happen to Christian.As for the performances,most were alright except for Mature,who provided a credible performance as a Marcellus's converted slave.

The historical epics which were so popular in the fifties and early sixties frequently had a religious theme. Some were based, not always faithfully, on stories from the Bible ("The Ten Commandments", "Solomon and Sheba", "Esther and the King"), while others tried to convey a Christian message indirectly. Thus the central character of "Spartacus" is treated as a metaphorical Christ-figure, and "The Egyptian" draws parallels between Christianity and the monotheistic religion of Atenism which briefly flourished under the heretical Pharaoh Akhnaten. "The Robe" is one of a number of films which deal with the early days of the Christian Church and its persecution by the Roman Emperors. The most famous film of this type is "Ben Hur", but others include "Quo Vadis?" "The Silver Chalice" and "The Fall of the Roman Empire". The stories told by such films were normally fictitious- they were often based upon once-famous novels- but were set against a background of historical fact.The plot of "The Robe" is essentially similar to that of "The Silver Chalice" which was made the following year. Both concern a sacred relic of Christ; in "The Silver Chalice" this is the cup which He used at the Last Supper, whereas in "The Robe" it is the robe which He wore at His crucifixion. Lloyd Douglas, who wrote the novel "The Robe", said that he did so to answer the question: what happened to the Roman soldier who won Jesus' robe through a dice game? In the story, this soldier is Marcellus Gallio, the military tribune who commands the unit that crucifies Jesus. He is in some respects an unlikely hero for an epic. The heroes of such films were normally strong, confident men of action like Ben-Hur or Spartacus, but Marcellus is not really a career soldier. He is an upper-class playboy, a gambler, drinker and womaniser who owes his exalted military rank to the influence of his father, an important senator. He enjoys little respect among the men he commands, although he gets the better of a centurion who dares to challenge his authority in a memorable swordfight, one of the film's few action sequences. He is only sent to Judaea because he has offended Caligula, heir to the Emperor Tiberius.After the Crucifixion Marcellus is overcome by feelings of guilt and, haunted by memories of the man he has crucified, loses his reason, believing that Christ's robe has bewitched him. To help him overcome his mental problems, Tiberius sends him back to Judaea, where he meets an idealistic group of early Christians and finds himself drawn to their religion. As one might expect in a fifties epic, Marcellus eventually becomes a Christian himself as do his sweetheart Diana and his servant Demetrius. (Demetrius was to become the hero of his own film, "Demetrius and the Gladiators", a sequel to "The Robe". This sequel was, unusually, based on an original screenplay rather than a novel, although it used some of Douglas's characters. Douglas had in fact written his own sequel, "The Big Fisherman", but the studio did not own the film rights).The film contains a number of historical inaccuracies. The Roman province of Judaea is referred to anachronistically as "Palestine". The historical Tiberius was a cruel and dissolute tyrant, but is portrayed here as a benevolent elder statesman. His wife appears here as the "Empress Julia", although in fact Tiberius divorced Julia for adultery long before he became Emperor, and by the time the film is set she had been dead for many years. The Jews never believed that the Messiah would be the Son of God; that is a purely Christian concept. Most importantly, the Emperor Caligula, although undoubtedly tyrannical, never persecuted the Christians as he is shown doing here; during his reign, only a few years after the death of Christ, the new religion was far too insignificant to pose any threat to the Roman state. (The first organised persecution of Christians took place under Nero).The leading role is played by Richard Burton in the first of his three epic films. (The others were "Alexander the Great" and "Cleopatra"). It is scarcely Burton's finest hour, and he did not really deserve his Oscar nomination, but he acquits himself reasonably well as the complex hero Marcellus. There are also decent performances from the lovely Jean Simmons as Diana, Ernest Thesiger as Tiberius, Michael Rennie as St Peter (although it is difficult to imagine this ascetic philosopher-saint ever having worked as a fisherman), and Jay Robinson, playing Caligula as a ranting, carpet-chewing and slightly camp megalomaniac. Victor Mature as Demetrius is impassive but impressive, like a gigantic statue. (Rennie, Robinson and Mature would all get to repeat their roles in "Demetrius and the Gladiators")."Demetrius and the Gladiators" is, in fact, one of those sequels which is rather better than the film that inspired it. It offers more in the way of spectacle than does "The Robe" and has a more interesting storyline, raising some important moral issues about pacifism, non-violence and Christian forgiveness. With a less stolid actor than Mature in the leading role it could have been a classic. The message of "The Robe", by contrast, never gets much further than "Christians Good, Pagans Bad", and although the conflicted central character of Marcellus does offer some complexity, any attempt at moral depth goes out of the window with the simplistic, sentimental ending to the story. "The Robe" is certainly better than "The Silver Chalice" (I cannot think of an epic which is actually worse than that ridiculous film) but it falls a long way short of the likes of "Ben-Hur" or "Spartacus". 6/10