Epic and Disaster : Classic Epics

Classic Epics

Here are some I can think of, even though I haven't seen most of them:

Intolerance
Birth of a Nation
Gone with the Wind
Quo Vadis
The Fall of the Roman Empire
Lawrence of Arabia
Dr Zhivago
El Cid
The Last Emperor
Giant
Spartacus
Cleopatra
Ben Hur
The Ten Commandments

What are some others that would fall into this category, and are there any on my list that wouldn't fit (probably meaning I haven't actually seen them)?



"Your dumb" My dumb what?
Nobody doesn't not like double negatives.

Re: Classic Epics

You might add:

War and Peace
Barry Lyndon
Moby Dick
Braveheart


"Did you make coffee...? Make it!"--Cheyenne.

Re: Classic Epics

You may want to consider...

Khartoum from 1966 directed by Basil Dearden and starring Charlton Heston and Laurence Olivier

55 Days at Peking from 1963 directed by Nicholas Ray starring Charlton Heston, Ava Gardner, and David Niven

From the same era as The Last Emperor would be Gandhi from 1982 directed by Richard Attenborough and starring Ben Kingsley

If you were to include modern epics you could include the likes of Dances with Wolves, Braveheart, Gladiator, The Last Samurai, etc. You could even probably consider ones like The English Patient and Titanic in a Gone with the Wind/Doctor Zhivago sort of way. Though only time will tell if all or any of them become considered classics like the other ones listed. Granted some of the older ones we have listed in this thread (El Cid, 55 Days at Peking, The Fall of the Roman Empire, and Khartoum) have become pretty obscure at this point. (which is quite a shame)

Re: Classic Epics

The Vikings (1958)
The Robe
Demetrious & The Gladiators
The Egyptian

The Grapes Of Wrath

The Count Of Monte Cristo
The Sea Hawk (1940)
Bounty
The Prince & The Pauper (1937)
The Sound of Music
The Fiddler on the Roof
...
Other notable movies I would like to mention (that happen to be both "epic" and "classic" but are not essentially "classic epics":
The Wizard Of Oz
2001: A Space Odyssey

"Don't buy the books I wrote https://sites.google.com/site/authorschindler/"

Re: Classic Epics

As great of films as The Wizard of Oz and 2001: A Space Odyssey are, I don't think they fit the standard definition for the epic genre.

Re: Classic Epics

Why not?

"Don't buy the books I wrote https://sites.google.com/site/authorschindler/"

Re: Classic Epics

The problem is that the genre is pretty hard to have a universal definiton for, and different people seem to have their own definitions on what constitutes one. But given how IMDB has split up the message boards (which does have sci-fi and fantasy as their own which those two films, 2001 and Wizard of Oz respectively, would be more closely classified as) for each genre, they (including the OP) appear to be going with the one AFI one of as "A genre of large-scale films set in a cinematic interpretation of the past." (With their examples here on the link to this board being Gone With The Wind, Ben-Hur, and The Last Samurai. Granted I'm still not sure why they decided to roll them in with disaster films) And those types of films are usally the ones normatively put into the epic genre, though it is when you get beyond that that different people seem to potentially start having other additions. (Though it should be noted that there could be a distinction between "epic" as a genre and as a description) Now maybe a better term for IMDB would of been "historical epic" or "period drama", or something to that effect. Again, I'm not trying to say who's right and who's wrong or anything. But I thought it was notable that I'm pretty sure this is what's being gone for when talking about "Epics" on this board.

Re: Classic Epics

I think I see your point. I have made an amendment to my list since I get why those two films are not entirely appropriate for the intended definition. Thanks for explaining the misconception.

"Don't buy the books I wrote https://sites.google.com/site/authorschindler/"

Re: Classic Epics

It is obvious why not as some of the films you list are under two hours long and cannot possibly be described as epic.Surely including THE WIZARD OF OZ was a joke? Please tell me that it was.

Re: Classic Epics

I give your list a ten.

Don't buy the books I wrote https://sites.google.com/site/authorschindler/
Top