Customer Reviews

Androcles & The Lion [VHS]

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This movie is highly entertaining and very funny. I had laughed at some scenes in this movie. Even kids will enjoy this movie.
"Androcles and the Lion" is about a meek tailor befriending a lion by removing a thorn out of his paw (his mean wife ran away though). Androcles named the lion "Tommy". The tailor, Androcles, gets captured by the Roman army because he's a Christian, and makes friends with a beautiful woman and a burly man named Fevvorus (sp?), among other Christians with them. The beautiful woman, named Lavina, falls in love with a Roman Captain (played by Victor Mature), but she still keeps her faith in God. Later when all the Christians arrived at the Colluseum where the fighting to kill the Christian men, and the lions are for the ladies to die, Fevvorus slays all the fighters and won the affections of Ceaser. Androcles was picked to be killed by the lions...and guess who he met? The lion named Tommy! Ceaser gets impressed once more because Tommy and Androcles danced together in the arena and the lion is tame. :) Ceaser finally lets all the Christians go free, Fevvorus gets to be a guard at the palace, and Tommy and Androcles walk the streets together at the end.
Very good movie and it's highly recommended!

This Hollywood adaptation of Shaw's play came as a very pleasant surprise indeed since as Shaw's plays are always about ideas, I was gratified to see those outlined in the play were faithfully retained in the film. It is also one of Shaw's wittiest tracts on behalf of his abiding belief in animal rights, (the theological debate about whether animals have souls being retained and convincingly presented), as well as his mistrust of any religious dogma that isn't constantly on the side of the here-and-now and the Life Force. Although obvious budget constraints show here and there, all concerned certainly display a grasp of what Shaw was trying to say, and acquit themselves with distinction in all department. Full of Shavian irony and compassion, (the sadness and poignancy in Shaw's work is seldom noted these days), it turns accepted values upside down and helps you on the road to thinking laterally and, hopefully, autonomously. Subversive stuff as always with Shaw! Highly recommended.

A very funny, entertaining black and white movie. It's quite lively and I would recomend it!