TORONTO – “Hannibal ad Portas” was a Latin phrase popularized by the Roman politician and orator Cicero, in 44 BC. The phrase, meaning “Hannibal at the gates”, refers to Rome’s most averted catastrophe: The moment when it was nearly sacked in 211 BC. A moment that is evoked in a line in Italy’s national anthem: “She [Italy] has bound her head with Scipio’s helmet”. And this inflection point for Western Civilization is finally getting a movie…
