Helen of Troy (1956)

Director:

Robert Wise

Writers:

Hugh Gray (screenplay) &
John Twist (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

26 January 1956 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Action | Drama | Romance | War

Tagline:

Its towering wonders span the age of titans!

Plot:

The Iliad's story of the Trojan war, told from the Trojan viewpoint.

Plot Keywords:

Trojan War | Queen | King | Warrior | Battle

Cast

Rossana Podestà	...	Helen of Troy
Jacques Sernas	...	Paris (as Jack Sernas)
Cedric Hardwicke	...	Priam (as Sir Cedric Hardwicke)
Stanley Baker	...	Achilles
Niall MacGinnis	...	Menelaus
Nora Swinburne	...	Hecuba
Robert Douglas	...	Agamemnon
Torin Thatcher	...	Ulysses
Harry Andrews	...	Hector
Janette Scott	...	Cassandra
Ronald Lewis	...	Aeneas
Brigitte Bardot	...	Andraste
Eduardo Ciannelli	...	Andros
Marc Lawrence	...	Diomedes
Maxwell Reed	...	Ajax

Also Known As:

Elena di Troia (Italy)

Runtime:

Germany:111 min (theatrical version) | Germany:116 min (with overture and exit music) | USA:118 min | UK:116 min (uncut) | UK:114 min (cut)

Country:

USA | Italy

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour (Warnercolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo (RCA Sound Recording) (magnetic prints) | Mono (RCA Sound Recording) (optical prints)

Certification:

West Germany:12 (nf) | South Korea:15 | Australia:G | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | UK:U

Filming Locations:

Cinecittà Studios, Cinecittà, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

Noted British actor Edmund Purdom overdubbed in English the lines of French-Lithuanian actor Jacques Sernas on the soundtrack of this film, due to Sernas not having a firm English-speaking voice. Sernas at that point in his career was learning English but had not yet mastered the language. Purdom was not credited with his voiceover talent for this picture, as the film's producers wanted the public to think Sernas did it all on his own.

Movie Connections:

Version of Troy (2004)

Classic Greek Saga given Hollywood treatment

The first thing I read about this movie was that it was terrible and that the first lady even though very gifted as far as bust is concerned was a nightmare when it comes to acting. However when I saw this film I had to disagree with those critics who tried to ruin a good movie. Even though the sets are nothing to those of "Ben-Hur", "Cleopatra" and other screen giants the sets of Cinecitta are stupendous. The colour is magnificent and the acting is quite good. It is true that the part of the heroine could have portrayed some more fragility, still Ms. Podesta' was quite satisfying. The cinematography is very good and the story never lingers. It is action-packed and is bound to marvel anyone who likes this genre.