Queen Cleopatra VII of Egypt experiences both triumph and tragedy as she attempts to resist the imperial ambitions of Rome.Queen Cleopatra VII of Egypt experiences both triumph and tragedy as she attempts to resist the imperial ambitions of Rome.Queen Cleopatra VII of Egypt experiences both triumph and tragedy as she attempts to resist the imperial ambitions of Rome.
- Won 4 Oscars
- 6 wins & 13 nominations total
Grégoire Aslan
- Pothinus
- (as Gregoire Aslan)
Jacqueline Chan
- Lotos
- (as Jacqui Chan)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaWriter and director Joseph L. Mankiewicz was fired during post-production, due to the quarrels with the then-newly reinstalled Fox President Darryl F. Zanuck over the nature of editing the movie's length. Since he wrote the script as he was shooting, Twentieth Century Fox soon realized that only Mankiewicz knew how the story fit together. He was then brought back to complete the project.
- GoofsWhen Caesar is saying goodbye to Cleopatra in Alexandria before sailing back to Rome, one of his aides hurries him by warning, "Caesar, I'm afraid the tides will soon be against you." In fact, the Mediterranean Sea has no tides, or, more precisely, its tides are so minimal that they don't affect navigation. No ship sailing from a Mediterranean port would have to worry about catching a tide.
- Alternate versionsPremiered at a length of 243 minutes. A week after the premiere, the film was reduced to 222 minutes, and edited further to 194 minutes for general release. The 194-minute version was the default broadcast television version for years; home video and cable television releases are of the full-length cut.
- ConnectionsEdited into Marilyn: Something's Got to Give (1990)
Featured review
For something that nearly bankrupted Fox, this is a very good movie
An absolute fiction of an epic very very loosely based on the life of Queen Cleopatra of Egypt with Elizabeth Taylor in the title role, this film has a fantastic score that should have won the Oscar, great acting, fabulous art design and a cast of thousands. If this had been made 23 years before, like epic Gone with the Wind, maybe it would have been less trouble. The studios had more control over personnel in those days, to the detriment of the welfare of personnel, and thus could keep costs down. This film had the misfortune of being made as the studio system was in its death throes. It ultimately had three directors.
Richard Zanuck - put in charge after his father regained control of Twentieth Century Fox - actually had to shut down Fox to deal with the bad financial shape it was in at the time Cleopatra was in production. And then there was the Taylor/Burton affair that finally busted up the shaky Taylor/Fisher marriage. Hey Eddie (Fisher), like they say, what goes around comes around. The film did make money, and It's a fiction that it was a bomb at the time. It was number one at the box office for several weeks. But it just barely made up its stratospheric production cost, even after being sold for television broadcast.
As for the production itself - It is interesting to see the dynamic between the lead players. Rex Harrison's Julius Caesar approaches Cleopatra from a standpoint of strength. And yet, before she becomes involved, she learns of his secret by observing one of his epileptic seizures when he thinks that he is alone. So you could say his vulnerability attracts her. In contrast, after Caesar's death, Burton's Anthony always seems to reach her after confessing weakness - that he is confused by politics and its subtlety, that he is at a loss for words when it comes to her, that he feels guilty for not having died with his men in battle at one point. She is the strong one in this relationship for sure, but in both relationships - the one with Julius Caesar and the one with Anthony - it seems to be a vulnerability that incites her passion. I wonder if this is how Taylor was directed to play it?
Roddy McDowell excels as the wily Octavian. Martin Landau is endearing as Anthony's soldier friend, loyal to the very end. Hume Cronyn is the father figure/wise advisor to Cleopatra. He played good guys and villains with skill over the years and was very underrated in my opinion. This epic holds up and I'd recommend it. But you will need to set aside four hours to see the whole thing.
Richard Zanuck - put in charge after his father regained control of Twentieth Century Fox - actually had to shut down Fox to deal with the bad financial shape it was in at the time Cleopatra was in production. And then there was the Taylor/Burton affair that finally busted up the shaky Taylor/Fisher marriage. Hey Eddie (Fisher), like they say, what goes around comes around. The film did make money, and It's a fiction that it was a bomb at the time. It was number one at the box office for several weeks. But it just barely made up its stratospheric production cost, even after being sold for television broadcast.
As for the production itself - It is interesting to see the dynamic between the lead players. Rex Harrison's Julius Caesar approaches Cleopatra from a standpoint of strength. And yet, before she becomes involved, she learns of his secret by observing one of his epileptic seizures when he thinks that he is alone. So you could say his vulnerability attracts her. In contrast, after Caesar's death, Burton's Anthony always seems to reach her after confessing weakness - that he is confused by politics and its subtlety, that he is at a loss for words when it comes to her, that he feels guilty for not having died with his men in battle at one point. She is the strong one in this relationship for sure, but in both relationships - the one with Julius Caesar and the one with Anthony - it seems to be a vulnerability that incites her passion. I wonder if this is how Taylor was directed to play it?
Roddy McDowell excels as the wily Octavian. Martin Landau is endearing as Anthony's soldier friend, loyal to the very end. Hume Cronyn is the father figure/wise advisor to Cleopatra. He played good guys and villains with skill over the years and was very underrated in my opinion. This epic holds up and I'd recommend it. But you will need to set aside four hours to see the whole thing.
helpful•124
- AlsExGal
- Aug 28, 2021
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Official site
- Language
- Also known as
- Nữ Hoàng Cleopatra
- Filming locations
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $44,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $57,777,778
- Gross worldwide
- $57,778,494
- Runtime3 hours 12 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 2.39 : 1
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