Stoutor It's not great by any means, but it's a pretty good movie that didn't leave me filled with regret for investing time in it.

ChicDragon It's a mild crowd pleaser for people who are exhausted by blockbusters.

Ketrivie It isn't all that great, actually. Really cheesy and very predicable of how certain scenes are gonna turn play out. However, I guess that's the charm of it all, because I would consider this one of my guilty pleasures.

Joanna Mccarty Amazing worth wacthing. So good. Biased but well made with many good points.

Filipe Neto This film was a sequel to "The Robe" and was immediately shot after the end of this film, retaining the cast, crew and sets. However, they present us a better script: it's still necessary to make an effort to believe in all the story, but it's credibility has generally improved. One of the most unbelievable moments its when Caligula orders to confiscate Jesus tunic believing that it could confer some power to him, when he saw himself as a god. But these far-fetched moments are punctual. The absence of Richard Burton, which I didn't like to see in the first film due to his bad acting, was another improvement, allowing Demetrius to come out and be the center of our attention. His course throughout the film will be an efficient and effective test of faith. These character was played by Victor Mature, who gives us a very good work. Michael Rennie had little time to show his talent but never seemed quite alright in the role of St. Peter while, on the other hand, Susan Hayward was perfect in the role of the Machiavellian and treacherous Messalina. Jay Robinson retained the role of Caligula, who performed with quality and panache but no big surprises. Debra Paget played a minor role, as a love interest for Demetrius, but what she did was well done. Much more interesting was William Marshall, who gave life to an African gladiator who is converted to Christianity by the example of his companion in the arena. Sets and costumes result from the recycling of material used in "The Robe", so there are no surprises or improvements. These material, however, is considerably better, more convincing and historically accurate than what we can see in some much more famous and successful biblical films of this period.So, far from being a rehab for "The Robe", this movie seems to have learned from the mistakes of that film, being better and more enjoyable in almost every aspect. However, perfection or artistry is still far from being achieved.

writers_reign The TV station that screened this recently billed Richard Burton as the lead. In the sense that Demetrius begins with the final sequence of The Robe in which Burton and Jean Simmons are condemned to death by Caligula, this is merely misleading, in the sense that this blatant cashing in on the success of The Robe is farcical it is best described as misguided. Risible more or less from start to finish it squanders the talents of people like Susan Hayward, Barry Jones and Michael Rennie and whilst Victor Mature had little or no talent to squander he may still have done better sticking to decent efforts like Kiss Of Death and Easy Living (the 2nd version with a screenplay by Irwin Shaw rather than the screwball comedy written by Preston Sturges). There's nothing much to say about this other than YAWN.

thomreid A worthy, though rushed, follow-up to "The Robe" has a fun cast, a tired looking Victor Mature (from all his work on the previous film, no doubt). Susan is a bit 50s looking for ancient Rome, with her bushy hairdos. Jay Robinson again goes way over the top as Caligula but really has some delicious mad scenes. One oddity: while watching the trailer on the DVD, scene 17 with Debra Paget on the trailer has her saying a line about "seeing Jesus". This line was NOT in the finished film. Wonder why. All in all, fun to watch, a good cast, and a fine score by Franz Waxman, who wisely gives credit to Newman for the themes used.

Spikeopath Demetrius and the Gladiators is a sequel to The Robe. It's directed by Delmer Daves and stars Victor Mature as Demetrius, a Christian slave made to fight in the Roman arena as a gladiator ( and ultimately entering into a bigger fight, that of faith), and Susan Hayward as Messalina. Filling out the support cast are Ernest Borgnine, William Marshall, Michael Rennie, and Jay Robinson as the maniacal emperor Caligula. The screenplay is from Philip Dunne (How Green Was My Valley/ The Agony and the Ecstasy} and cinematography comes courtesy of Milton R. Krasner (Academy Award winner Best Color Cinematography for Three Coins in the Fountain 1955).Following straight on from The Robe, Demetrius and the Gladiators is a safe and enjoyable Biblical picture that doesn't outstay its welcome. Running at just over 100 minutes, the film is far from being epic in its telling. However, and without cramming in, it does contain all the necessary ingredients to make up a sweaty sword and sandals pie. Filmed in CinemaScope, persecuted hero, bonkers villain, sexy babe, huge sets, colourful costumes, and fights, lots of fights. Thankfully the serious dialogue is mostly kept brief, there a few things worse in this genre of film than bloated discourse on religious beliefs and political dalliances. Get in there, let us know what is going on, and move on to the next chapter of the story. This is something that Daves' film does real well, it has an eagerness to entertain with dots of gusto and sexual swagger. The acting is mixed, Mature is solid without ever really convincing as the heroic figure of Demetrius, Hayward and Robinson are camping it up and thus entertain royally, while Borgnine and Rennie earn there pay.Very much like another Phillip Dunne screenplay genre piece, David And Bathsheba, this one is often overlooked or forgotten in discussion about the sword & sandals genre. That both film's are not in the same league as the likes of Ben-Hur and Spartacus is a given, but both have much to offer the discerning cinephile. Recommended Sunday afternoon fare with a flagon of claret and a roast ox dinner. 7/10