Solomon and Sheba

1959 "Only once in 3000 years... anything like..."
6.1| 2h19m| en| More Info
Released: 25 December 1959 Released
Producted By: United Artists
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Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
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Synopsis

Near death, King David has a vision that his poet son, Solomon, should succeed him, rather than hot-headed Adonijah. Furious, Adonijah departs the court, swearing he will become king. Other rulers are concerned that Solomon's benevolent rule and interest in monotheism will threaten their tyrannical, polytheistic kingdoms. The Queen of Sheba makes an agreement with the Egyptian pharaoh to corrupt Solomon for their mutual benefit.

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Reviews

Evengyny Thanks for the memories!
Kamila Bell This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.
Roxie The thing I enjoyed most about the film is the fact that it doesn't shy away from being a super-sized-cliche;
Brooklynn There's a more than satisfactory amount of boom-boom in the movie's trim running time.
lorddoctorray A previous reviewer states that this film IS historically inaccurate. You CANNOT make such a daft statement. We're talking about ancient history here where they are few if any contemporary writings and witnesses etc so NO ONE knows exactly what happened. Anyway does it really matter? A film should be watched and enjoyed for its entertainment value NOT its historic accuracy.I personally love this film. I love any film about ancient history and cultures. This film was made in 1959 when Hollywood still knew how to make great biblical epics. The scene where the Egyptian army is destroyed by the Israelites using their highly polished shields is sheer brilliance!Yul Brynner was brought in to replace Tyrone Power who died 3 day into filming, and here gives one of his best ever performances. Gina Lollobrigida is beautiful and seductive as the Queen of Sheba.I give this film 9 out of 10.
Desertman84 Solomon and Sheba is a biblical romantic epic that is based from the events chronicled the events of the ninth and tenth chapters of the First Book Of Kings and Second Chronicles respectively.It stars Yul Brynner as Solomon and Gina Lollobrigida as Sheba in the title roles together with George Sanders, Marisa Pavan and David Farrar. The theme of the movie differs substantially from Biblical sources and is highly fictionalized story written by Crane Wilbur.In it,we have the the Queen of Sheba as an ally of ancient Egypt in opposition to King Solomon of Israel with whom she is having a love affair.Too bad that the movie somewhat failed to live into its expectation as Brynner looks weak in his portrayal as King Solomon.He fails to create a believable chemistry with Lollobrigida,who showcases a lot of wit and intelligence as Sheba.Added to that,it was slow in pacing despite having great spectacles such as the battle of the Egyptians and Israelites which would definitely entertain the viewer.
ma-cortes Breathtaking story set in Biblical times with emphasis in lavish costumes and crowds . Justly before his death in ancient Israel King David (Finlay Currie) has a vision from God saying him that his younger son Solomon (Yul Brynner) should succeed him as king . His other son Adonijah (George Sanders) is mean and promises to achieve the kingdom by whatever way . King David names his younger son, Solomon his heir , facing his older son Adonijah. King Solomon acts with wisdom and benevolent and his government is seen as a threat to more tyrannical monarchs in the region . Meanwhile the Egyptian Pharoah agrees to give up a Red Sea port to the Queen of Sheba (Gina Lollobrigida) if she can encounter a manner to overthrow Solomon . Sheba, Pharoah, Adonijah, the leaders of the Twelve Tribes and his own God make life dangerous for Solomon . Meantime the Queen of Sheba arrives in Jerusalem, supposedly for a friendly meeting , Solomon slowly falls in love with her. In fact, the Queen is in covenant with the Pharaoh of Egypt (David Farrar) and her aim is to destroy the twelve tribes of Israel and he utilizes the ambitious Prince Adonijah in her schemes .An overblown all-star treatment of the stories in the Old Testament dealing with David , Salomon , Sheba and Adonijah . Lavish spectacle about Solomon and his lover Sheba based on hokey historical events. Brynner and Lollobrigida play a sultriest couple , including some sexy scenes very erotic for the 50s . Tyrone Power died during the shooting in Spain and some shots still show him , he was replaced by Brynner who remade his early scenes .There's so much visual padding full of armours , weapons, carriages , feathers and crowd scenes . Director Vidor gives this film the feel of a Cecil B. De Mille spectacle , but there is little human touch to any of the deeds. Very good photography in super Technirama 70 by the classic cameraman Freddie Young filmed in Madrid, Valdespartera, Zaragoza, Aragón, Spain . Evocative and impressive musical score by Mario Nascimbene . King Vidor's last movie that is recently restored to 139 minutes . Vidor realized an excellent career plenty of classics as ¨Bird of paradise , Champ , Our daily bread , The citadel , Duel in the sun ; also directed another super-production as ¨War and Peace¨ . Rating : 6 , passable and acceptable.
fedor8 Mostly uninvolving biblical mumbo-jumbo that drags on for well over two hours. The only thing that saves this film from God's wreath (and there is only one God, remember) is the unintentionally funny dialog, and a good battle scene which comes far too late in the movie. For most of the two hours until the action scenes there is too much talking; the dialog is so inept that the movie just begs to be spoofed by MST3K.George Sanders is absolutely awful; one of the most animated, overly-theatrical performances I've ever seen. Brynner isn't much better; his stiff, wooden acting, combined with the horrendous fortune-cookie wisdom utterings make for a rather boring and silly Solomon. It seems that every time Brynner opens his mouth something oh-so wise and ridiculously high-and-mighty comes out. To an extent it's not Sanders's and Brynner's fault, because of the crappy, comical dialog and the typically biblical one-dimensional characterization, but they made little effort otherwise. Brynner's accent even reminds a bit of Schwarzenegger's; this is not a plus. Only Lollobrigida manages to avoid embarrassing herself, by playing the role with more conviction and in an appropriate way which befits a role in such a silly film. To describe these biblical characters as one-dimensional would be too give them undeserved credit; the characterization is half-dimensional.