The Last Days of Pompeii (1950 film)

The Last Days of Pompeii (1950) (French: Les Derniers Jours de Pompéi) (Italian: Gli ultimi giorni di Pompei) was a black and white French-Italian historical drama. It was directed by Marcel L'Herbier "in collaboration with" Paolo Moffa, who was also the director of production. The movie was adapted from a novel called The Last Days of Pompeii by Edward Bulwer-Lytton, and it has sometimes been known as Sins of Pompeii. The film tells a dramatic story set in ancient times, drawing from real events in history.

Plot

In the year 79 AD in Pompeii, a rich young Greek man named Lysias takes a beautiful girl named Hélène, who is a student of Arbax, the High Priest of Isis. Arbax, wanting revenge, tricks Lysias into drinking a special drink that makes him fall for his friend Julie, but Lysias goes mad from the drink. Nidia, a young slave girl saved by Lysias, knows about the plan and tells everyone that Arbax tried to harm her master. Arbax kills Nidia and blames Lysias for a murder. Lysias is about to be punished in the arena but is saved when Mount Vesuvius starts to erupt, causing chaos in the town. He helps Hélène stay safe during the eruption.

Cast

The film stars many talented actors. Micheline Presle plays the character Elena / Hélène, while Georges Marchal takes on the role of Lysia / Lysias. Other notable actors include Marcel Herrand as Arbace / Arbax, Jaque Catelain as Clodio / Claudius, and Adriana Benetti as Nidia. Additional cast members are Laure Alex as Julie, Camillo Pilotto as Diomede / Diomède, Antonio Pierfederici as Olinto / Olinte, Guglielmo Barnabò as Panza, and Alain Quercy as Lepido / Lépide.

Production

Principal filming took place in the summer of 1948 at the Cinecittà studios in Rome. The amphitheatre scenes were filmed at the Arena di Verona. The production was interrupted for nearly a year and was completed at the GTC studios at Joinville/Saint-Maurice in 1949. The film was released in France and Italy in 1950.

The film simplified the plot of Edward Bulwer-Lytton's novel and changed some character names: Glaucus became Lysias, and Ione became Hélène. The film featured set designs and costumes by Aldo Tommasini and Veniero Colasanti, with special effects by B. de Kerblay. Lucio Fulci worked as the second unit director on the film.