The Robe is 1953 religious epic directed by Henry Koster. The film stars Richard Burton, Jean Simmons, Victor Mature, and Michael Rennie. The Robe is based on Lloyd C. Douglas’s 1942 novel of the same name.
Director: Henry Koster
Production Company: 20th Century Fox
Distributor: 20th Century Fox
Cast: Richard Burton, Jean Simmons, Victor Mature, Michael Rennie, Jay Robinson, Dean Jagger, Torin Thatcher
US Box Office: $36,000,000 ($626,400,000 adjusted for inflation)
Film Format: Technicolor (shot in CinemaScope)
Genre: Epic, Drama
Release Date: September 16, 1953 (premiere)
Plot Summary: Roman military tribune Marcellus Gallio (Richard Burton) is sent to Jerusalem and is assigned to oversee the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. Marcellus wins Christ’s robe while gambling, but the robe is quickly taken by Demetrius (Victor Mature), Marcellus’s slave who recently became a Christian. Marcellus is haunted by his guilt and conflicted feelings about the ordeal, which deeply troubles his girlfriend Diana (Jean Simmons). He is soon sent to Galilee to destroy Christ’s robe and wipe out his followers led by the disciple Peter (Michael Rennie) and Demetrius. Marcellus hopes that this will end his inner turmoil, but he instead becomes a Christian himself.
Production: In 1942 producer Frank Ross purchased the film rights to Lloyd C. Douglas’s novel The Robe, which hadn’t been published yet, for $100,000. The Robe was a historical novel about a fictional Roman soldier, Marcellus Gallio, who is involved with the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, but later becomes a Christian himself. Ross also entered a deal with RKO Radio Pictures, which agreed to finance and distribute the film. Mervyn LeRoy was hired to direct the film, and production was set to begin in 1945. However, production was delayed due to the wartime difficulties of not having enough costume materials and extras available for an epic film. Ross attempted to restart production in the late 1940s, with Victor Fleming set as the director and Gregory Peck planned to star as Marcellus, but RKO canceled the project because the studio thought that it would be too expensive, having already spent $750,000 on pre-production costs.
In 1952, 20th Century Fox studio head Darryl F. Zanuck purchased the film rights to The Robe from RKO, with an arrangement that still allowed Frank Ross to be the film’s producer. Zanuck was interested in The Robe because David and Bathsheba (1951), an earlier Biblical epic produced by Fox, was a box office success. Douglas’s novel was adapted for the screen by Gina Kaus, and the script was written by Philip Dunne. Albert Maltz wrote a draft of The Robe‘s script in 1945 for RKO and apparently made some contributions to the final screenplay. Maltz was blacklisted in 1947 because he was a Communist, so he was uncredited in the final film. Henry Koster was chosen by Zanuck to direct The Robe, which was Koster’s first epic film. He was more well known as a comedy director: having recently directed Harvey (1950) and Mr. Belvedere Rings the Bell (1951). Alfred Newman was hired to compose the score for The Robe.
The role of Roman tribune Marcellus Gallio was first offered to Tyrone Power, who was at the end of his contract with Fox. Zanuck hoped that the role would convince Power to renew his contract with the studio, but Power declined because he wanted to star on stage instead. Ross chose to cast lesser-known Welsh actor Richard Burton in the part. The Robe was the third film in a three-film contract that Burton had with Fox. The first film was the mystery My Cousin Rachel (1950), which Koster had also directed. Jean Peters was originally cast as Diana, the love interest of Marcellus, but she dropped out of the film when she became pregnant. Peters was replaced by British actress Jean Simmons. The artwork for The Robe‘s main poster had already been designed before Peters dropped out, so her face, not Simmons’ face, appears on the final poster! Jeff Chandler was originally announced for the role of Demetrius, but he was later replaced by Victor Mature. Mature signed a contract to star in two films: The Robe, and a proposed sequel focused on his character. Emperor Caligula was played by stage actor Jay Robinson, who replaced John Buckmaster. The Robe was Robinson’s first film.
The Robe was originally planned to be shot in the standard 35 mm film format, but shortly before filming began Zanuck decided to have the film shot in the new anamorphic wide-screen format CinemaScope. Koster began filming The Robe in late February of 1953 and shooting wrapped up in late April. Many of the exterior scenes were shot outdoors, including on forty-one sets built on Fox’s backlot. The Robe was an impressive production, the crucifixion set alone took fifteen workers, sixty carpenters, and twelve artists who spent six weeks building the base of Golgotha, covering it up with dirt, and having to paint a massive panoramic backdrop. The chase scene was shot on location at Calabasas, California. San Francisco’s Palace of Fine Arts, the Corriganville Movie Ranch, and the Iverson Ranch were also used as exterior shooting locations.
Zanuck was aware that not all movie theaters would be equipped to play films shot in the new CinemaScope process by the time The Robe was released, so he had Koster shoot two versions of the film: one with CinemaScope’s anamorphic lenses, and one without. The takes for each process were filmed back-to-back, rather than simultaneously, so setups and some dialogue differ between the two versions. Richard Burton hated The Robe and resented having to star in it, and he got into a ferocious argument with Zanuck late in production. Although the plan had been that Burton would renew his contract with Fox after The Robe was shot, Burton turned it down due to his bad experience.
Fun Facts and Trivia: Jesus Christ was played by second assistant director Donald C. Klune, whose face is never clearly visible in The Robe. Henry Koster chose him for the role. Klune would sign all the extras’ vouchers and finish the paperwork while he was still in costume. He also had to eat lunch in his private dressing room as Frank Ross thought that it would be inappropriate for “Jesus” to eat in the commissary.
The “Alleluia” chorus at the end of The Robe was originally recorded as part of composer Alfred Newman’s score for the finale of The Song of Bernadette (1943). Only part of the chorus can be heard in The Song of Bernadette, but the full song was included in the film’s soundtrack. Footage of a gladiator arena is shown at the start of The Robe as part of an opening montage of Rome narrated by Richard Burton. This footage actually comes from a scene in The Robe‘s sequel Demetrius and the Gladiators (1954), which was filmed before The Robe was released.
Reception: The Robe had its premiere at the Roxy Theatre in New York City on September 16, 1953. The Robe was the first film to have been released in the CinemaScope format. The romantic comedy film How to Marry a Millionaire wrapped up shooting before The Robe, but Zanuck delayed the release of that film because he knew it would be more impactful to have an epic be the first CinemaScope film released. The Robe was initially given a limited roadshow release and it quickly became a massive box office hit for Fox. The Robe was the highest grossing film of 1953 when it was first released (though it has since been beaten by Walt Disney’s Peter Pan due to that film’s many re-releases).
Several factors likely contributed to The Robe‘s commercial success: positive audience word of mouth, the introduction of the exciting new CinemaScope format, the film’s use of technicolor, and the film’s strong Christian themes. Fox advertised the film as being, “The modern miracle you see without glasses!”, a dig at the recent trend of 3D films. Fox shot a sequel to The Robe, Demetrius and the Gladiators (1954), before the former was released. Victor Mature, Michael Rennie, and Jay Robinson all reprised their roles in Demetrius and the Gladiators. In 1967, ABC paid Fox a record $2 million to broadcast The Robe four times on television. The first screening was broadcast on Easter of 1967 at 7:00 pm. That broadcast received a Nielsen rating of 31.0 and an audience share of 53% (or about 60 million viewers). This was the second largest TV audience for a film, only behind The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957).
The Robe received mostly positive reviews from film critics when it was first released. The staff at Variety magazine praised The Robe for its massive scope and for the performances of the cast. Nell Dodson Russell of the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder described The Robe as a “beautiful picture.” She praised the film for its Christian themes, Koster’s use of CinemaScope, and the performances of the lead actors. Basil Wright of Sight & Sound praised The Robe for treating the story and Christianity in a more reverent manner than the earlier Quo Vadis (1951). Edwin Schallert of the Los Angeles Times and the critics at Harrison’s Reports also gave the film positive reviews. In a mixed review, Bosley Crowther of The New York Times praised The Robe for its impressive scope and production values, but criticized the film’s story and drama for not being as effective as it should have been. The Monthly Film Bulletin was critical of the film’s acting, particularly Burton’s performance.
The Robe has since received a mixed to negative response from modern critics. Emmanuel Levy thought that The Robe was artistically mediocre due to Koster’s poor directing. In a negative review, Tim Brayton of Antagony & Ecstasy praised The Robe for being “deeply earnest” but thought that the film was much too long. TV Guide and Time Out also gave The Robe negative reviews. Time Out specifically criticized Koster’s directing, the dialogue, and the acting performances. Conversely, Mike Massey of Gone With The Twins gave The Robe a positive review. He praised the film’s finale. Film4 also gave the film a positive review and praised The Robe for its “sheer spectacle.”
Oscars: The Robe was nominated for five Oscars at the 26th Academy Awards ceremony: Best Picture (Frank Ross for 20th Century Fox), Best Actor (Richard Burton), Best Art Direction in Color (Art Direction: Lyle R. Wheeler and George Davis; Set Decoration: Walter M. Scott and Paul S. Fox), Best Color Cinematography (Leon Shamroy), and Best Costume Design in Color (Charles LeMaire and Emile Santiago). The Robe won two Oscars: Best Art Direction in Color and Best Costume Design in Color. Ross lost the Best Picture award to Buddy Adler for From Here to Eternity and Burton lost the Best Actor award to William Holden for Stalag 17. Richard Burton was shocked to learn that he received an Oscar nomination. Burton personally thought that his performance was bad, and critics have frequently criticized his acting in The Robe as being “wooden.”
Why You Should See It: The Robe isn’t perfect, but it is a mostly good epic film. The film has an impressive scope, Leon Shamroy’s cinematography is great, and Alfred Newman’s score is memorable. Although Richard Burton’s performance is frequently criticized as being “wooden,” many of the supporting cast members are excellent. Dean Jagger is quite memorable as Justus, the leader of the Christians at Cana. Jagger does a great job embodying the character’s wisdom and faith. Jay Robinson is also fantastic as the arrogant young emperor Caligula. Robinson’s character is despicable and cunning. He makes a great villain for The Robe. The Robe also has a positive message about the importance and power of Christian faith.
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