Cleopatra (1963)

Director:

Joseph L. Mankiewicz

Writers:

Joseph L. Mankiewicz (screenplay) and
Ranald MacDougall (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

31 julio 1963 (UK)

Genre:

Biografía | Drama | History | Romance

Frase comercial:

The motion picture the world has been waiting for!

Plot:

Historical epic. The triumphs and tragedy of the Egyptian queen, Cleopatra.

Plot Keywords:

Last Will | Desert | Father Son Relationship | Stabbing | One Word Title

Awards:

Won 4 Oscars. Another 3 wins & 11 nominations

Comentarios de los usuarios:

An amazing film

Cast

Elizabeth Taylor	...	Cleopatra
Richard Burton	...	Antony
Rex Harrison	...	Caesar
Pamela Brown	...	High Priestess
George Cole	...	Flavius
Hume Cronyn	...	Sosigenes
Cesare Danova	...	Apollodorus
Kenneth Haigh	...	Brutus
Andrew Keir	...	Agrippa
Martin Landau	...	Rufio
Roddy McDowall	...	Octavian - Caesar Augustus
Robert Stephens	...	Germanicus
Francesca Annis	...	Eiras, Cleopatra's handmaiden
Grégoire Aslan	...	Pothinus (as Gregoire Aslan)
Martin Benson	...	Ramos

También conocida como:

Cleopatra (Spain) [es]

Duración:

192 min | 243 min (roadshow version) | Argentina:233 min | Germany:233 min (TV version) | Sweden:232 min | USA:320 min (director's cut)

País:

UK | USA | Switzerland

Idioma:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

Sonido:

4-Track Stereo (35 mm prints) | Stereo (Westrex Recording System) | 70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints)

Clasificación:

Canada:G (Quebec) | USA:Approved (certificate #19756) (original rating) | Brazil:Livre | Peru:PT | Argentina:Atp | Iceland:L | USA:Unrated (video rating) | Canada:G (video rating) | Canada:A (Nova Scotia) | Canada:PG (Manitoba) | Australia:M | Finland:K-16 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:PG | USA:G (1971 re-release) | West Germany:12

Filming Locations:

Almería, Andalucía, Spain

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Trivialidades:

Histories by Plutarch, Suetonius, Appian, other ancient sources, and Carlo Mario Franzero's book "The Life and Times of Cleopatra" are credited as the basis of the screenplay.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Cleopatra's boat approaches the shore, the white translucent curtains are pulled open, yet in a view from the shore, they are still closed.

Quotes:

Cleopatra: How DARE you and the rest of your barbarians set fire to my library? Play conqueror all you want, Mighty Caesar! Rape, murder, pillage thousands, even millions of human beings! But neither you nor any other barbarian has the right to destroy one human thought!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in A Legacy of Filmmakers: The Early Years of American Zoetrope (2004) (V)

An amazing film

Cleopatra is a film of myths.

A massively troubled production combined with the extraordinary love affair between Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton made for plenty of hype.

But what really matters nearly 40 years on is the film itself.

At this distance it is possible to see the film for what it is. A grand example of the final flowering of Hollywood.

In 1963 it seemed old fashioned compared to the excitement of European cinema and what the critics perceived as new (many of their favourite films of that era now just seem dated and pretentious).

But Cleopatra grows in stature with time.

It is far from flawless. And certainly the second half is somehow not right. Whether the missing two hours will reclaim this part of the film is yet to be seen.

But compared with Gladiator or similar modern epics, Cleopatra is a brilliant film with an intelligent script, stunning design, masterly and beautiful cinematography in 70mm (which sure beats 35mm and does justice to the intricate sets and design), an evocative and effective musical score and superb costumes and makeup.

The big three, Taylor, Burton and Harrison are extremely good and in the case of Harrison, who has many of the best lines, brilliant.

The supporting cast and especially Roddy McDowall are equally excellent.

Cleopatra may not be a masterpiece but it is a superbly crafted and beautiful film.

If it fails, it fails because of our expectations.

Sit back, put your feet up and luxuriate in a quality of film-making that you simply don't see today! .... but I have always wondered what Miss Taylor thinks of this extraordinary film?