Robe, The

Historically important as the first movie released in the original CinemaScope® anamorphic process, "The Robe" is based on the novel by Lloyd C. Douglas and is one of the first of many Biblical epics. Marcellus Gallio (Burton) is a Roman centurion in charge of Christ's crucifixion. Drunk, he wins the robe Jesus wore to the crucifixion while gambling with other Roman soldiers. Convinced that his hallucinations and violent outbursts are the result of a curse received from the robe, which is now in the possession of his escaped slave, Demetrius (Mature), he sets out to find Demetrius in order to destroy the robe and the curse. Instead, the garment transforms the cynical and hardened Marcellus into a believer—at the cost of his own life. The movie spawned a 1954 sequel, "Demetrius And The Gladiators." Fox earned an Oscar® for the development of CinemaScope. (Gary Reber)