Review of Solomon and Sheba

...and presto! a screenplay! I do not exaggerate :there are five or six lines given over to Sheba in the Bible .She came to visit Solomon and suggested riddles to him.Then she came back singing the king's praises .These riddles allow double entendre, mind you.So why not a love story between Solomon and Sheba? In 1959,King Vidor had nothing to prove.He had made at least a dozen of classics:"the big parade" "the crowd " and "hallelujah" are Early.""Our daily bread" and "duel in the sun" are Middle ."Fountainhead" and "Ruby Gentry" are Late."Solomon and Sheba" belongs to the latter phase of Vidor's brilliant career.It has not to be taken seriously but it's much fun to watch it,even if it sometimes becomes ridiculous (all the "religious pagan" scenes ,Lollobrigida praying her idol or the infamous orgy that does not equal the one which the Jews enjoy when Mosis is talking with God in "the ten commandments" ).Lollobrigida ,in spite of her Italian accent, is a superb queen .George Sanders is a delightful villain.Brynner is wearing a wig,but it does not prevent him to be fair, as the obligatory "whose-baby-is-it?" scene shows.

SPOILER:Sheba's resurrection is weird.I'm not a specialist,but it seems to me that this concept is Christian.There's not such a thing in the Old testament.

Never mind.If you enjoy epics,you'll enjoy "Solomon and Sheba".