Cleopatra (1963)
- Directed by
- Joseph L. Mankiewicz
- Genre
- drama film, war film, biographical film, epic film, romance film, sword-and-sandal film
- Country
- United Kingdom, Switzerland, United States
- Runtime
- 4h 01m
- Rated
- G
- Rating
- 7.0 of 10 from 857 voters
- Elsewhere
- IMDb
The catalogue in 3D
The film shelves have a room of their own that you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real films from the same catalogue when you tell them what you feel like watching. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this film is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.
How it feels
The film follows the Egyptian queen Cleopatra as she uses her political skills and personal relationships to keep her kingdom independent from an expanding Rome. It shows her interactions with powerful Roman leaders and the personal costs of her ambitions.
grandioseslow-movingdramaticintimatelushambitioussoapysprawling
What happens
Cleopatra is a 1963 American epic historical drama film directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, who co-wrote the screenplay with Ranald MacDougall and Sidney Buchman, adapted from the 1957 book The Life and Times of Cleopatra by Carlo Maria Franzero, and from histories by Plutarch, Suetonius, and Appian. The film stars Elizabeth Taylor in the eponymous role, along with Richard Burton, Rex Harrison, Roddy McDowall and Martin Landau. It chronicles the struggles of the young queen Cleopatra VII of Egypt to resist the imperial ambitions of Rome. Walter Wanger had long contemplated producing a biographical film about Cleopatra. In 1958, his production company partnered with Twentieth Century Fox to produce the film. Following an extensive casting search, Taylor signed on to portray the title role for a record-setting salary of $1 million. Rouben Mamoulian was hired as director, and the script underwent numerous revisions from Nigel Balchin, Dale Wasserman, Lawrence Durrell, and Nunnally Johnson. Principal photography began at Pinewood Studios in September 1960, but Taylor's health problems delayed further filming. Production was suspended in November after it had gone over budget with only ten minutes of usable footage. Mamoulian resigned as director and was replaced by Mankiewicz, who had directed Taylor in Suddenly, Last Summer (1959). Production was re-located to Cinecittà , where filming resumed on September 25, 1961, without a finished shooting script. During filming, a personal scandal made worldwide headlines when it was reported that co-stars Taylor and Richard Burton had an adulterous affair. Filming wrapped on July 28, 1962, and further reshoots were made from February to March 1963. With the estimated production costs totaling $31 million (not counting the $5 million spent on the aborted British shoot), the film became the most expensive film ever made up to that point and nearly bankrupted the studio. The cost of distribution, print and advertising expenses added a further $13 million to Fox's costs. Cleopatra premiered at the Rivoli Theatre in New York City on June 12, 1963. It received a generally favorable response from American film critics, but an unfavorable one in Europe. It became the highest-grossing film of 1963, earning box-office receipts of $57.7 million in the United States and Canada, and one of the highest-grossing films of the decade at a worldwide level. However, the film initially lost money because of its production and marketing costs totaling $44 million ($463 million in 2025). It received nine nominations at the 36th Academy Awards, including for Best Picture, and won four: Best Art Direction (Color), Best Cinematography (Color), Best Visual Effects and Best Costume Design (Color). (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)
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The son of Cleopatra (1964)
A Queen for Caesar (1962)
The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964)
Legions of the Nile (1959)
Saladin the Victorious (1963)- More like this film, on a shelf you can walk up to.It's the lit case on the top shelf.