Spartacus, Troy, Ben-Hur and Xena: The most memorable swords and sandals epics

Christopher Nolan’s adaption of Homer’s Odyssey lands today, and it has the feel of a proper cinematic event.

Firstly, Nolan’s name as a filmmaker is now a selling point in a way that almost no single actor is anymore. He can get more bums in seats than Brad Pitt or Meryl Streep.

And the other thing is that The Odyssey is an adaptation of literally an epic. Not something that’s been called as a hyperbole, but a piece of work that has been designated as much for thousands of years.

That’s rare now but there was a time in the history of Hollywood when epics were far more fashionable. From the 1950s onwards, TV was starting become a popular force and Hollywood felt as if to keep audiences in cinemas, they had to go bigger.

These grand tales of power and privilege, often drawn from former civilisations that ruled the Earth, were irresistible. They were a declaration from an industry that said, “you can’t get this at home”.

If The Odyssey whets your appetite, here are some more swords-and-sandals epics, both classic and more recent, to fill you up.

BEN-HUR (1959)

Directed by William Wyler and featuring one of Charlton Heston’s most defining performances, Ben-Hur was an epic of biblical proportions, literally. The story of a prince betrayed into slavery fighting to reclaim his freedom was a noble narrative.

It was the largest budgeted movie at the time and used 2500 horses in the production. The chariot race is one of the most recognisable sequences in cinematic history, and his featured in every montage about Hollywood since.

Watch: HBO Max, Prime Video

SPARTACUS (1960)

It just stirs the soul to see all these chained men rising to their feet one by one, and shouting, “I’m Spartacus”. We are all Spartacus. And what a cast – Kirk Douglas, Laurence Olivier, Peter Ustinov and Tony Curtis.

Stanley Kubrick’s film was written by blacklisted author Dalton Trumbo and it’s not hard to see the parallels between the story of a slave rebellion against a terrible Roman Empire, and the US government’s brutal clampdown against so-called un-American activities.

Watch: Prime Video, Binge

CLEOPATRA (1963)

At the time, Cleopatra was better known for its many production troubles including the scandal of an affair between stars Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, as well as delays and budget blow-outs that led it to become the most expensive movie ever up to that point.

But now it’s better remembered for its ambitious production including absolutely enormous sets it built to stand in for Cleopatra’s grand domain as the young queen of Egypt tried to fend off Rome.

Watch: Disney+

ULYSSES (1954)

Up until now, this 1954 film was the best known big screen adaptation of Homer’s Odyssey – yes, it’s taken that long for another full-hearted attempt.

Directed by Italian filmmaker Mario Camerini and starring Kirk Douglas as Ulysses, the movie covers the key points of the sprawling story including the cyclops Polyphemus, Circe, Penelope’s suitors and, very importantly, his dog Argos.

Watch: DVDs available online

GLADIATOR (2000)

Ridley Scott’s Gladiator is every dad’s favourite movie. You’ll find them often quoting, “And I will have my vengeance, in this life or the next” when they’ve missed a golf shot.

In all seriousness, this was a commanding performance from Russell Crowe as the general who is betrayed and sold into slavery, taking his power back from a corrupt emperor, and some of those arena action sequences are still thrilling. And Gladiator 2 is a movie that exists.

Watch: Prime Video, Paramount+

QUO VADIS (1951)

This is actually the fourth adaptation of Henryk Sienkiewicz’s novel about the final years of Emperor Nero’s reign, and it is the most enduring.

Directed by Mervyn LeRoy and starring Robert Taylor, Deborah Kerr and Peter Ustinov, it examines tyrannical power after a Roman commander falls in love with a hostage.

Watch: Digital rental

JASON AND THE ARGONAUTS (1963)

Based on a 3rd century BCE epic poem by Apollonius Rhodius, and features another grand story of a prophesised hero’s perilous journey dotted by challenges from mythical beings. But instead of trying to get home, Jason is on a quest for the legendary golden fleece.

The film is remembered for how it rendered Talos, a giant bronze statue that comes to life, and is considered by Tom Hanks as the greatest movie ever made.

Watch: Binge

300 (2006)

Here’s one for the bros, especially the bros who love nothing more than the nihilistic ultra-violence of Zack Snyder’s movie, of which 300 is likely the most intense of his oeuvre. In fans’ praise of 300, they might say, “oh, it’s so stylistic” but what they mean is, “it’s so bloody!”.

Based on Frank Miller and Lynn Varley’s comic book series, it is a fictional recount of the Battle of Thermopylae and King Leonidas who leads his Spartan warriors against a much larger invading army. The plot is beside the point, which is just “stabby-stabby”.

Watch: Netflix, Prime Video

AGORA (2009)

Rachel Weisz leads this film by Spanish director Alejandro Amenabar, along with a cast which includes Oscar Isaac and Max Minghella, and examines how the power structures of religion and faith suppress the pursuit of knowledge when it doesn’t suit certain agendas.

Weisz plays Hypatia, a scholar, mathematician and scientist living in Alexandria in the 4th century when religious clashes between the pagans and the Christians, and then later the Christians and the Jews, threaten her work, her life and truth itself.

Watch: Beama

I, CLAUDIUS (1976)

This ambitious 1976 British miniseries starred some of the most renowned thespians of the day with Derek Jacobi in the title role, and the likes of John Hurt, Sian Phillips and Patrick Stewart in the large ensemble.

The 12-episode series spans the rule of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, as recalled by an ageing Claudius looking back at the tenures of Augustus, Caligula and Nero.

Watch: DVD

THE TEN COMMANDMENTS (1956)

Directed by Cecil B. DeMille (yes, the guy the Oscar award is named after), it features Charleton Heston in the lead as Moses and Yul Brynner as Rameses, and based primarily on the Book of Exodus. Ol’ Heston loved those bible epics.

The highest grossing film in the year of its release, The Ten Commandments was noted for its technical ambitions, and continues to be remembered as a remarkable filmmaking achievement.

Watch: Digital rental

TROY (2004)

Look, Troy is not an amazing movie but it’s certainly a lot of movie (the director’s cut is bolts past three hours), but if you can overlook the iffier parts that don’t hold up so well after 20 years (we’re not so forgiving of dated effects until a film is over 40 years old), then it’s an interesting companion piece to The Odyssey.

If nothing else, that is one very good looking cast. Brad Pitt is reliably bronzed and flexing.

Watch: Digital rental

XENA: WARRIOR PRINCESS (1995 – 2001)

We couldn’t resist. Xena was an icon, as she should be. That war cry, that strength, that warmth. The character originally started off as a support act on Hercules (which is now hard-to-watch thanks to Kevin Sorbo being a ridiculous person), and soon broke out because she’s too cool to be confined to someone else’s story.

The show was also beloved by the queer community thanks to how it portrayed the relationship between Xena and her companion Gabrielle.

Watch: Digital rental