Monday Morning Maybe

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Poster for Androcles and the Lion

Androcles and the Lion

Seen it?

1952 | 98 min | Comedy

Weeknight Watchearly rating

Why it’s a Weeknight Watch

With almost no lasting buzz and middling reviews (43% on Rotten Tomatoes), it's a mixed bag. Fine if it's on; don't plan your night around it.

Based on critics, audiences, awards, box office and buzz. Details below.

Is it for you?

Who'll love it
A natural pick for anyone who likes a story with a soundtrack worth keeping and anyone who wants a laugh. The music is woven into the story, not just laid on top. If you loved Chicago or Grease, start here.
The mood
Light and funny.
The pace
Light on its feet, at 1 hr 38 min.
What might put you off
  • Made in 1952: an older pace and style.
  • Skip it if you're after something serious tonight.

George Bernard Shaw’s breezy, delightful dramatization of this classic fable—about a Christian slave who pulls a thorn from a lion’s paw and is spared from death in the Colosseum as a result of his kind act—was written as a meditation on modern Christian values. Pascal’s final Shaw production is played broadly, with comic character actor Alan Young as the titular naïf. He’s ably supported by Jean Simmons, Victor Mature, Robert Newton, and Elsa Lanchester.

How it earned its rating

  • CriticsBelow par

    43% on Rotten Tomatoes

  • AudiencesNot counted

    Not measured yet: not enough ratings

  • AwardsNot counted

    No major awards or nominations

  • Reach & staying powerBelow par

    Streaming release that reached a small audience so far; still draws a steady audience long after release

  • Buzz & cultural impactWeak

    About 9K people sought it out in the past year

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Cast & crew

Directed by Chester Erskine

  • Victor MatureCaptain
  • Jean SimmonsLavinina
  • Alan YoungAndrocles
  • Robert NewtonFerrovius
  • Maurice EvansCaesar
  • Elsa LanchesterMegaera
  • Reginald GardinerLentulus
  • Gene LockhartMenagerie Keeper
  • Alan MowbrayEditor of Gladiators
  • Noel WillmanSpintho