Cleopatra – 1963
This movie was alright, but I’ll be honest. I expected more from the cast. I was a bit underwhelmed by the performances of Elizabeth Taylor as Queen Cleopatra, Rex Harrison as Julius Cesar, and Richard Burton as Mark Antony. They didn’t do a horrible job, but I’ve seen each of them in other films in which they did better jobs. This was an epic and Hollywood made it into a huge deal. It had big sets, big costumes, big music, big stars, hundreds and hundreds of extras, and, consequently, a budget that nearly bankrupted 20th Century Fox. I think the film was too ambitious, trying to be bigger than it needed to be. The film was over 4 hours long, but in my research, I have learned that the original cut was over 6 hours!
Unfortunately, the production was plagued with so many problems that there was no way it could have been any better than it was. The original budget was $2 million, but the film ended up costing $37 million. Why? Because everything was originally set to be filmed in London. Gigantic sets were built, exotic plants were imported, and scenes were filmed. But then Elizabeth Taylor became ill, so ill that surgery was required to save her life. However, the weather in London was so detrimental to her recovery that the filming was moved to Rome.
This caused great delays in the schedule. Due to prior commitments, the actors playing Julius Cesar and Mark Antony had to leave the production, so they had to be recast, and all their footage had to be filmed a second time with Harrison and Burton. In addition to that, the sets all had to be built again in the new location, and the problems just continued to get worse.
Director Joseph L. Mankiewicz originally screened his 6 hour version, but the studio wanted the film cut down to just over 3 so that more screenings could be shown per day in theatres. Mankiewicz asked if the film could be split into 2 parts and released as 2 separate movies, but his request was denied. Apparently, Elizabeth Taylor had started a very public affair with Richard Burton. Cleopatra and Antony’s love story was told in the 2nd half of the film and Fox wanted to capitalize on the affair. They felt that waiting an entire year before showing their on-screen romance was too risky.
As for the film, itself, I loved all of Cleopatra’s costume changes. She was wearing something different in every single scene. In fact, Taylor held a Guinness Book of World Records title for the most costume changes in a single film: 65 to be exact. That record was eventually surpassed by Madonna in 1996’s Evita, in which she wore 85 different costumes.
I loved the opulence and glamour of the production as a whole. I am a fan of epics and this was one on the same scale as other such great films as Quo Vadis, Ben-Hur, and The Ten Commandments. I enjoy the larger than life sets and the props. But as always, when watching a historical drama, I have to ask how historically accurate the film was. I’m happy to say that Cleopatra was pretty spot-on. Only a few minor details were altered, ones that I have absolutely no problem with.
But I think the film’s failings were two-fold. First, it was the length. Four hours is a long time to sit through a movie. I would have loved to see the original 6 hour version split into two films. Second was the acting. Taylor, playing the lead, was obviously not at the top of her game. Harrison did a good enough job, though I couldn’t help noticing that the Roman Cesar had a decidedly British accent and mannerisms. He was nothing more than a costume change away from Henry Higgins. Roddy McDowel’s British accent was no better as he played Octavian, the new Cesar.
Sure, Burton had the same accent, but I thought his performance was a cut above the others. He seemed a little more natural in his role than his costars. Mark Antony was portrayed as a great military leader who was effective emasculated by his relationship with Queen Cleopatra. He loved her so much that he was willing to give up everything to serve her: his country and the adoration of his men. And when he saw how his love turned him into her slave, destroying his self-respect, not to mention his career, he turned to drink. Burton played that story line especially well. Realistic self-pity is not easy to play effectively. Well done, Burton!