Customer Reviews

Two movies in one - By: Trevor Willsmer, 01 Feb 2008
With more than $25min advance bookingsin the kitty before it even opened, 20th Century Fox's notoriously out-of-control nightmarish production of Cleopatra is far from the biggest flop of all time but is certainly the most notorious. Indeed, it only has one major problem. Unfortunately, it's Elizabeth Taylor. When she's off the screen & Joseph L. Mankiewicz concentrates on Harrison's Caesar (the screen performance of his lifetime) & the events surrounding the death of the Republic, it becomes a different class of film altogether: intriguing, witty & absolutely riveting. And then the Queen of Hollywood comes on speaking Americanese ("I've done nothing but rub you up the wrong way.") & ruins it all.

Burton's Marc Antony is also a major problem. We have to take his greatness entirely on trust - we see him win no battles, nor does Mankiewicz attempt his own take on his famous oration at Julius Caesar's funeral. What we do see is Burton at his hammiest, flagon of wine constantlyin hand, giving us a petulant drunken schoolboy much given to breathy intonations & snorts of outrage. His love scenes with Taylor, the odd well-written exchange aside, strike no sparks but all too-often come across as a camp rehearsal for Virginia Woolf. Still, he does at least get better as he goes along. The same cannot be said for Hume Cronyn, who is simply inept beyond belief here.

Unfortunately, when Harrison dies, so does the film, or very nearly, only showing signs of recoveryin the last half hour as Roddy McDowall's superbly realised Octavian takes centre stage. There's still much to admire - the sombre opening, some beautiful writing, North's score, the lavish production design & some fine supporting performances from the likes of Martin Landau & George Cole (yes, George Cole) - but it is definitely a case of taking the rough with the smooth.

This is the uncut four-hour roadshow version, & the restored sequences, among the bestin the film, really do make a difference. However, be sure to get the three-disc edition for the excellent two-hour documentary on the making of the film not included on the two-disc set.

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should be six stars...no, 10 stars, no, 100 stars! - By: Ben Dover, 28 Oct 2007
As someonein my 30s I have a low tolerance for "old" movies often seen as "classics", "masterpieces" by everyone else. Such words are all too frequently used today & seldom with any credible justification. But notin the case of 'Cleopatra'; such words insult this film, for they do not say enough, they are so inadequate. After watching this movie twice on digital tv's Film4 channel, & despite its incredible length of over 4 HOURS, I would gladly watch it over & over again. I would never tire of it. Just as I never tire of watching the LOTR trilogy all the way through, I know great films when I see them. Indeed truly great films are to be savoured, & 'Cleopatra' is no exception.

I could go on, enthusing about this film's magnificent set-pieces, its spectacular & detailed set designs, its learned & established cast (Liz Taylor is just gorgeous as Cleopatra, sublime), but I won't. Suffice it to say, if there were ever a movie to deserve the mantle of "classic", & "masterpiece", it is without a doubt 'Cleopatra'. This glorious, sumptuous, lavish film simply has not been, & never will be surpassed. Accept no imitations; this is the only movie about this enigmatic queen that you should ever see, either on the small screen or big. It set the standard for any historical drama, & nothing has come close to challenging it. If 'Cleopatra' were remade today, with all the money & trickery available to modern day movie-making, it would be utterly terrible, barely a faint shadow of this great classic. Indeed, I would find such a remake offensive, blasphemous. 'Cleopatra' is simply a gem, a treasure to rival the great queen herself. One can only hope it lives onin legend as long as she has.

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DVD Print Quality Simply Outstanding - By: letsgetitright, 17 Nov 2005
For a film that is now more than forty years old this DVD is simply outstanding. The film itself is contained on two DVDs & the extra features can be found on the third DVD. But if you view the film you will feel that this has just been produced, such is the quality. Sure the special effects are not there, so obviousin modern films like the 2004 epic Troy, but everything is done on a grand scale. The film remains the most expensive film ever made & you can understand why. Whereas today many of the grand sets would be done on computers, 20th Century Fox had to produce everything as a real set. So when you see Cleopatra's grand entrance to Rome this is the real deal, not pixels. The colours are vivid, the sound very powerful & the acting of the two main stars - Elizabeth Taylor & Richard Burton - is highly charged. Impressive historical entertainment.

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The Cleo that we all know and love - By: B. Chandler, 26 Feb 2005
Cleo's have come & gone. There have been many films & books depicting Cleo as she really was to great melodramatic Cleo. Three other popular Cleo's were the Claudette Colbert (1934), Vivien Leigh (1945), & Leonor Varela (1999). There were many more variations between those years.
The one Cleo that will always stand out & lets not forget Mark, is the one staring Elizabeth Taylor & Richard Burton (1963). I was old enough to enjoy it on the big screen. Rex Harrison made a good Caesar; watch him have a similar attitudein "The Honey Pot" (1967).

Enough time, thought, & money have been put into this production that I am bound to overlook a few of the most important items about this film. The movie is more than just the actors are. The characters are very well portrayed. The set & costumes are dazzling. They really showed upin the scene when Cleopatra enterd Rome. And the navel battle was spectacular.

Every one is going to have a favorite Cleo & find flawsin the others. However this Cleo will always the one others are gauged by.

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First class - all the way! - By: , 05 Jan 2004
The ultimate Cleopatra - starring a gorgeous Liz Taylor & v.young & handsome Richard Burton as the tormented Marc Antony with Rex Harrison playing the ageing Julius Caeser. Everything about this movie screams class - sets, direction, diaglogue, action - it all adds to the watcher's enjoyment of this grand spectacle.
You find yourself drawn into Cleopatra's world - her loves & betrayals. Inspired casting of various well known faces including Roddy McDowall, Martin Landau, Hume Cronyn; makes this one of the most star oriented films for its time