Spartacus

7/17/2025

Come with me, you whose pulse beats faster than the magic name of freedom…”. If your appreciation of this acclaimed rebel comes courtesy of Stanley Kubrick and Kirk Douglas, then you might not readily recognise this far earlier telling of his story. Not least because the characterisation of Crassus from Enrico Bracci far more closely resembles Charles Laughton than Sir Laurence! This version establishes our hero as a defeated Thracian chief brought home by Crassus after his successful foray into Asia Minor. Initially, he is well enough treated and trains to be a gladiator whilst his wife “Idamis” (Cristina Ruspoli) becomes a confidante of the powerful “Narona” (Maria Gandini). That all goes a bit pear-shaped when Spartacus is accused of killing a man, and his resultant treatment opens his