Pompeii: The Last Day (2003) on Netflix
Mount Vesuvius erupts in the late summer of 79 CE. Ash and pumice fall on Pompeii and Herculaneum, and the politician Julius Polybius and other residents face the eruption's phases.
- Netflix3.4/5
- IMDb7.1/101,105 votes
- Rotten TomatoesNot available
Plot summary
In late August of 79 CE, Mount Vesuvius erupts and buries the Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum under ash and pumice. The documentary follows residents whose names and trades survive in the record, among them the politician Julius Polybius, a fuller named Stephanus and his wife Fortunata, and two gladiators, through the stages of the eruption. The elder Pliny and the nephew who left an eyewitness account of the disaster both appear. The account rests on that testimony, on historical research, and on recent findings in volcanology, with computer imagery recreating the eruption's effects. It also looks at present-day life around the mountain and the danger it still presents.
Cast
- Rebecca Nortonas Fortunata
- Martin Hodgsonas Gaius
- Rachel Atkinsas Plinia
- Chad Shepherdas Africanus
- Katharine Whitburnas Julia
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about Pompeii: The Last Day (2003)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- The family death scene of the pregnant Julia is staged on a real 1975 archaeological find: her skeleton was discovered surrounded by her family in the actual House of Julius Polybius, with her husband Sabinus's bones nearby, apparently having poisoned himself.
- This was the highest-rated specialist factual programme of its year, watched by 10.3 million people for a 40% audience share.
