Alexander the Great

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Alexander the Great

1956

2h 21m

History

Drama

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Popcornmeter

8%

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12 Reviews

41%

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5,000+ Ratings

The son of Philip of Macedonia (Fredric March) and Olympias (Danielle Darrieux), Alexander the Great (Richard Burton) is one of the most legendary leaders throughout history. As the Macedonian king, Alexander successfully unites all the ancient Greek tribes and leads them to defeat the imposing Persian Empire. With the fall of Babylon, Alexander continues to conquer most of the known world. Eventually, he achieves the status of unparalleled ruler atop his newly formed Greek empire.

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Guardian Staff

Guardian

Jul 14, 2026

A great, unwieldy blunderbuss of a film, for all its avoidance of most of the follies of its kind and for all its honorable attempt to do justice to Alexander's barbarism as well as to his Aristotelean culture.

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Bernard McElwaine

Sunday Mirror (UK)

Jul 14, 2026

Lots of spectacle and a fine cast, including Richard Burton, Claire Bloom, Fredric March and Stanley Baker. But they don't save this 161-minute piece of ancient history from being like a route march.

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Ardis Smith

Buffalo News

Jul 14, 2026

They have failed in this opinion to penetrate his secret or learn his humanity, to make him live more credibly on the screen than in ancient pages.

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Eagle Staff

Brooklyn Daily Eagle

Jul 14, 2026

In battle tactics and the psychology of power, the film leaves much to the imagination; but its settings, its scope and its narrative sweep combine to do justice to its subject.

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Andrew Sarris

Film Culture

Feb 3, 2021

Robert Rossen has aimed for greatness in Alexander the Great and has missed honorably.

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Ed Travis

Cinapse

Dec 24, 2018

Overlong, over-written, and over-wigged, writer/director/producer Robert Rossen's Alexander The Great (1956) is a shining example of a lesser classical Hollywood historical epic.

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alan g

@agenser Sep 23, 2025

Not a bad but not a good movie either. They try hard though.

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Steve D

@RT35616104 Jul 2, 2023

There isn't much of a reason to pull for Alexander but the acting is strong.

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Sep 8, 2018

Bad. Boring. Fright wigs and scraggly beards galore.

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Oct 20, 2017

i liked the action but somehow my words cant explain its bad side

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Sep 21, 2016

Surprisingly, it's really bad.

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Aug 13, 2016

It wasn't the worst movie ever but it could've been better.

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Robert Rossen

Director

Richard Burton

Alexander

Fredric March

Philip of Macedonia

Claire Bloom

Barsine

Danielle Darrieux

Olympias

Barry Jones

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Synopsis

The son of Philip of Macedonia (Fredric March) and Olympias (Danielle Darrieux), Alexander the Great (Richard Burton) is one of the most legendary leaders throughout history. As the Macedonian king, Alexander successfully unites all the ancient Greek tribes and leads them to defeat the imposing Persian Empire. With the fall of Babylon, Alexander continues to conquer most of the known world. Eventually, he achieves the status of unparalleled ruler atop his newly formed Greek empire.

Director: Robert Rossen
Producer: Robert Rossen
Screenwriter: Robert Rossen
Production Co: Rossen Films
Genre: History, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 16, 2008
Runtime: 2h 21m

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