10 Historical Movies About Romans That Are A Must Watch

The history of the Roman Empire, its rise and fall, has been of interest to historians and readers for centuries. Cinema has been no exception. From taking inspiration from classical plays by Shakespeare to ultra-high-budget productions, here are a few excellent (not necessarily accurate) movies about Romans that will grip your imagination; check them out.

List of Movies About Romans

Gladiator
Centurion
Agora
The Last Legion
Spartacus
Titus
Ben-Hur
Life of Brian
Cleopatra
Julius Caeser

1. Gladiator (2000)

Gladiator is an epic drama masterpiece set in Ancient Rome Empire. The story follows a high-ranking Roman soldier (Russell) who is forced into slavery while his family is murdered. Hence, he seeks revenge on the cruel Emperor Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix). The performances are terrific. Russell even wrote many of his iconic dialogues.

The movie was so well executed and popular upon its release that it became a blockbuster, earning $460 million and winning 5 Academy Awards. Gladiator is known for spawning a spike in the interest of the Ancient Roman Empire, referred to as the ‘Gladiator Effect’. Though Gladiator is now recognized for its cliches and parodies, it is truly one of the most iconic movies about Romans you can watch!

2. Centurion (2010)

Centurion is an action-packed war film following a Roman centurion and a man who is a son of a legendary gladiator as they lead a group of soldiers on a charge of a disputed camp to rescue a captured general. While the film is quite violent and gory, it presents a brutally riveting story. Micheal Fassbender is quite brilliant in his role.

The movie isn’t very historically accurate, but it is spectacular. Centurion, as a great tale, will make you wonder how primitive life was in the ancient days of Rome. The battle techniques from that period are plausible enough. The movie is a truly grand adventure; watch it if you’re in search of movies about Romans.

3. Agora (2009)

Agora is a biopic that stars Rachel Weisz as Hypatia, a philosopher, mathematician, and astronomer in the late 4th century of Roman Egypt. She investigates the faults of the geocentric Ptolemaic system and the heliocentric model that contests it. Being surrounded by religious turmoil and social unrest, Hypatia finds it difficult to save the knowledge of classical antiquity from being destroyed.

Amidst the increasing influence of Christianity on the Roman Empire, Greek philosopher and teacher Hypatia found herself targeted for favouring science over faith. If you are looking for a well-written movie about the Romans, check out Agora.

4. The Last Legion (2007)

After being betrayed by his allies, Roman emperor Romulus escaped to Britain and took up the daunting task of searching for a legion of supporters. This may not be the most historically accurate or perfect story, but The Last Legion is surely underrated.

Before the coronation of Romulus Ausgustulus in 475 AD as the Emporer, A Druid called Amborious becomes the tutor of the young Romulus Augustulus. Ambrosius is a member of a secret brotherhood that protects the sword of Julius Caesar. If you have seen Game of Thrones, you will see many of the actors from the series in this film about Romans as well.

5. Spartacus (1960)

The epic historical drama film directed by Stanley Kubrick Spartacus is based on the 1951 novel ‘Spartacus’ by Howard Fast. Considered by many to be a masterpiece, this film was highly influential upon release. This is a real-life story of a slave revolt that the Thracian Gladiator Spartacus led in 73 BC.

Spartacus is a moving and compelling story of epic proportions. Surely a great film. Yes, the film is dated now, with no CGI, and it gets a bit corny in parts, but it packs a lot of incredible sequences. Spartacus existed in a brilliant era of classics where such films as this Lawrence of Arabia, Dr Zhivago and The Great Race. Your watchlist for movies about Romans is incomplete without Spartacus.

6. Titus (1999)

Titus is an adaptation of William Shakespeare’s revenge tragedy called Titus Andronicus, which is about the downfall of a Roman general, the first theatrically-released feature film adaptation of the play.

This is an epic revenge tragedy of brutal savagery based in Roman times. Titus, the general, returns to Rome victorious and decides to sacrifice the son of his enemy, the Goths, to appease the Roman dead. This one is by far the most interesting, well-produced, and heart-capturing film. The grim nature of the text is captured superbly by the director. Hopkins shines as usual. In fact, this is an excellently cast rendition of Titus to consider if you like watching movies about Romans.

7. Ben-Hur (1959)

The film Ben-Hur follows a story of a hero named Judah Ben-Hur. He is a Jewish nobleman– falsely accused and convicted of an attempted assassination of the Roman governor of Judaea and consequently enslaved by the Romans. Judah Ben-Hur, a nobleman, is sentenced to years of slavery after being accused by his adopted brother, Messala of treason. However, he returns to seek revenge by competing with him in a race.

Ben-Hur is truly an epic movie that is an exciting, violent, and heartfelt film with intense moments. The film is an all-rounder in showcasing human sentiments. The dialogue is concise and very well written. The mixture of myth and drama is perfect. Ben-Hur is a classic movie that has stood against the test of time and is perhaps one of the greatest films about Romans. Check it out.

8. Life of Brian (1979)

Monty Python’s Life of Brian, also known as Life of Brian, follows A young man, Brian, born on the same night as Jesus. He becomes intrigued by a young rebel, Judith. To try and impress her, he joins the independence movement against the Romans. However, in an attempt to hide from the Romans, he relays some of the teachings he heard from Jesus, which ends up spurring a crowd to believe he is the Messiah. While trying to get rid of his followers and reunite with Judith, he embarks on several misadventures.

The film has a lot of funny references, though I suppose some religious people would not find this movie funny. Irrelevant, brilliantly observed and finely crafted with a significant twist of madness and surrealism – by far Python’s crew’s best work. If you want to see light-hearted movies about the Roman Empire, I recommend you to watch this comedy film.

9. Cleopatra (1963)

Cleopatra, the queen of Egypt, becomes the mistress of Julius Ceaser of Rome in order to save her kingdom. However, when Ceaser is assassinated, she becomes Mark Antony’s ally and lover. The story follows the struggles of Cleopatra, the young queen of Egypt, and the resistance to the imperial ambitions of Rome.

Quite a spectacle, It undoubtedly has slow, ponderous scenes, but overall the film is magnificent. The sets, photography, score and acting are excellent, even if the script has a few ridiculous and uninspiring moments. The scene depicting the arrival of Cleopatra in Tarsus is absolutely breathtaking, and both Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton put in epic performances. One of the greatest films about the Roman era.

10. Julius Caeser (1953)

I’m sure you might have heard about Julius Caesar. This epic classic is a definitive adaptation of Shakespeare’s play. Julius Caesar returns to Rome after defeating Pompey– the Great. His successful conquests make him rise to the status of a dictator amongst the high-ranking Romans, and hence they conspire to kill him.

Deemed as the best film version of Julius Caesar! This is a quick blitz through Julius Caesar’s tragedy. Here, Julius Caesar– the political treachery plotted out by Brutus and Cassius is played brilliantly by James Mason and John Gielgud, respectively. Movies about Romans like Julius Caesar will rouse the spirit and entertain all Shakespeare fans.