Oedipus Rex (1967)

Overview · Where to watch · Cast & crew · Reviews

Pasolini’s Terrifying… Compassionate… Magnificent…

In pre-war Italy, a young couple have a baby boy. The father, however, is jealous of his son - and the scene moves to antiquity, where the baby is taken into the desert to be killed. He is rescued, given the name Oedipus, and brought up by the King and Queen of Corinth as their son. One day an oracle informs Oedipus that he is destined to kill his father and marry his mother. Horrified, he flees Corinth and his supposed parents - only to get into a fight and kill an older man on the road…

Released: 1967-09-07
Genres: Drama
Runtime: 1h 45m
Status: Released
TMDB rating: 6.8/10 from 373 votes

Directed by Pier Paolo Pasolini.

Top cast

Franco Citti as Oedipus
Silvana Mangano as Jocasta, Queen of Thebes (and unnamed Italian young mother)
Alida Valli as Merope, Queen of Corinth
Carmelo Bene as Creon
Julian Beck as Tiresias
Luciano Bartoli as Laius, King of Thebes (and unnamed Italian young father)
Francesco Leonetti as Servo di Laio
Ahmed Belhachmi as Polybus, King of Corinth
Giovanni Ivan Scratuglia as Sacerdote
Giandomenico Davoli as Pastore di Polibo

Full cast & crew

Where to watch Oedipus Rex

United States: stream on Criterion Channel
United Kingdom: rent on Amazon Video; buy on Amazon Video
Canada: stream on Criterion Channel

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