The Sign of the Cross

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The Sign of the Cross

1932,

1h 58m,

History/

Drama

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Watchlist

80%

25 Reviews

Tomatometer

64%

250+ Ratings

Popcornmeter

80%

Tomatometer

25 Reviews

64%

Popcornmeter

250+ Ratings

After Emperor Nero (Charles Laughton) blames the Christians for burning Rome, he orders that they be sent to the Colosseum. While rounding them up, military leader Marcus Superbus (Fredric March) meets pretty young Mercia (Elissa Landi), who begs him to free her stepfather, Titus (Arthur Hohl). Marcus does so with the hope of seducing her but is unsuccessful. Empress Poppaea (Claudette Colbert), who has her eye on Marcus, soon learns of Mercia and, out of jealousy, orders her fed to the lions.

Katherine Hill

San Francisco Chronicle

Jul 14, 2026

The maestro of "spectacle" has outdone himself in the filming of the Wilson Barrett play.

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George Campbell Dixon

Daily Telegraph (UK)

Jul 14, 2026

The Sign of the Cross -- partly, it must be admitted, because of the nature of the subject -- remains the most brutal as well as the most spectacular talkie yet made.

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Irene Thirer

New York Daily News

Jul 14, 2026

3.5/4

Magnificent in background and stupendous in cast, with countless thousands assisting the excellent principals in lurid scenes of court and sordid scenes of sport. And in spite of its spectacular scope and power, the picture moves.

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Martin Dickstein

Brooklyn Daily Eagle

Jul 14, 2026

Truly, The Sign of the Cross is the biggest thing the screen has offered since the coming of the talkies. We would hesitate to report, however, that it is the talkies' greatest achievement.

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Hagrid S

Oct 12, 2018

Cecil B. DeMille again, this time in the Rome of Emperor Nero, imagining on film for his breathless fans what it was like for Christians in those days of public executions for entertainment and propaganda sake. Laughton (with a ridiculous nose piece) is the depraved ("because he's homosexual") Nero, existing only for the next moment's debauchery. Colbert (barely dressed for the length of the film) is his manipulating wife and the real power in town (and herself a slave to her unbridled passions). And March plays Nero's muscle (loyal to Nero mainly as it allows him his vices). The film exists to make money, and DeMille's plan is simple: bathe the yokels in the sin they're curious about, and then pretend to redeem them with some bargain basement piety (sort of). It's all a setup for the last portion of the film wherein DeMille unleashes his undeniably interesting spectacle of what a day at the Colosseum might've been like. He might've been a populist, but he knew his audience, as any good carny does. Not to be missed.

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Cecil B. DeMille

Director

Fredric March

Marcus Superbus

Claudette Colbert

Poppea

Charles Laughton

Nero

Elissa Landi

Mercia

Ian Keith

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Synopsis

After Emperor Nero (Charles Laughton) blames the Christians for burning Rome, he orders that they be sent to the Colosseum. While rounding them up, military leader Marcus Superbus (Fredric March) meets pretty young Mercia (Elissa Landi), who begs him to free her stepfather, Titus (Arthur Hohl). Marcus does so with the hope of seducing her but is unsuccessful. Empress Poppaea (Claudette Colbert), who has her eye on Marcus, soon learns of Mercia and, out of jealousy, orders her fed to the lions.

Director: Cecil B. DeMille
Producer: Cecil B. DeMille
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Production Co: Paramount
Genre: History, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Nov 30, 1932, Original
Release Date (DVD): May 10, 2011
Runtime: 1h 58m

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