But maybe he just didn't want to upstage the woman he had fallen in love with. By contrast Richard Burton is a positively subdued Marc Antony. Rex Harrison plays Julius Caesar to the hilt. Act II tells of this alliance with Marc Antony that leads to both of their downfalls. She falls in love with Caesar's best friend and righthand man.
So Cleopatra does what any good diva would under the circumstances. Of course things turn out a bit differently when Caesar is assassinated. The first act shows Cleopatra's relationship with Caesar, how she gets pregnant and eventually arrives in Rome with her son ready to be made Queen. She imperiously commands, "I asked it of Julius Caesar. My favorite line is when she tells Marc Antony to kneel before her and he refuses. Still she looks great in the many stunning outfits she wears and she chews up the scenery in a few scenes. Taylor has the necessary charisma to play the most famous woman in history but at a rather mature 30 she is a bit too old for the role.
The focus is never allowed to be off of Cleopatra long enough for that. Sure there are a few battle scenes but the movie's heart is never in them. Compared to most Historical Epics this one has relatively little action. Unfortunately no amount of money spent on visual opulence can make up for a plot that crawls along at a tedious pace. Has there ever been a scene more gloriously over-the-top than Cleopatra's entrance into Rome? The greatest of these was a recreation of Alexandria that remains to this day the largest set ever constructed for a movie. 26,000 original costumes were made and 79 separate sets designed and built.
#Movie about julius caesar and cleopatra movie
Taylor made headlines around the world when she became the first movie star in history to be paid one million dollars by a studio for a single motion picture. The problems during its more than two years in production are legendary, including the near fatal illness of its star. For one thing it nearly bankrupt 20th Century Fox and turned the retreat of the studio era into a rout. The Elizabeth Taylor version of Cleopatra is quite possibly the most extravagant spectacle Hollywood has ever produced. Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor in Cleopatra.
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