Sign of the Cross Review

Overall, "The Sign of the Cross" was a pretty powerful movie.  I also believe that being able to see the final scene in which Marcus Superbus and Mercia ascend the steps to their death would have made for a more impactful effect on us.  There are definitely parts that could have been done better though.  For instance, the character Stephan was weak and whiny.  It seems as though he would be stronger because he is always around Mercia who is always so unshakeable in her views on religion.  The scene in which all of the Christians are massacred in the arena is disturbing, but does it's job to illustrate the cruelty of the Romans.  Parts of it seemed excessive, such as the woman fighting the midgets.  It did, however, all work to show the brutal deaths that Christians endured and the inhumanness of the Romans who simply laughed at their pain.  This is not to take anything away from the scenes that were done spectacularly.  The movie did a good job at showing how Nero was conflicted between doing the right thing and doing what the influential people around him wanted him to do.  When Marcus asks for Mercia to be spared, Nero provides a compromise so that Marcus and Poppaea could both have what they desired.