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Cleopatra
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Cleopatra (1963) More at IMDbPro »

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Cleopatra (1963) -- Historical epic. The triumphs and tragedy of the Egyptian queen, Cleopatra.
Cleopatra (1963) -- Cleopatra is delivered to Caesar rolled in a rug.
Cleopatra (1963) -- Cleopatra summons Caesar to her quarters to demand her throne back.
Cleopatra (1963) -- Cleopatra demands that Antony kneel as a suppliant before her throne.
Cleopatra (1963) -- Cleopatra makes a grand entrance into Rome.

Overview

User Rating:
6.8/10   6,836 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Up 5% in popularity this week. See rank & trends on IMDbPro.
Writers:
Joseph L. Mankiewicz (screenplay) and
Ranald MacDougall (screenplay) ...
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Contact:
View company contact information for Cleopatra on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
31 July 1963 (UK) more
Tagline:
The motion picture the world has been waiting for!
Plot:
Historical epic. The triumphs and tragedy of the Egyptian queen, Cleopatra. full summary | add synopsis
Awards:
Won 4 Oscars. Another 3 wins & 11 nominations more
User Comments:
Mutilated potential classic more

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)
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Additional Details

Runtime:
192 min | Germany:233 min (TV version) | Sweden:232 min | USA:320 min (director's cut) | 243 min (roadshow version) | Argentina:233 min
Country:
UK | USA | Switzerland
Language:
English
Color:
Color
Aspect Ratio:
2.20 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) | 4-Track Stereo (35 mm prints) | Stereo (Westrex Recording System)
Certification:
USA:Unrated (video rating) | Iceland:L | Canada:A (Nova Scotia) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PG (Manitoba) | Argentina:Atp | Peru:PT | USA:Approved (certificate #19756) (original rating) | Canada:G (video rating) | Brazil:Livre | Australia:M | Finland:K-16 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:PG | USA:G (1971 re-release) | West Germany:12

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
When Fox employees were searching for a successful Fox property that could be remade, they decided upon Cleopatra (1917), a silent epic starring Theda Bara. However, they could only made their judgment from an archived copy of the original script and some stills from the production. There were no prints surviving of the movie itself. more
Goofs:
Continuity: During Cleopatra's big parade as she enters Rome there are tire tracks on the dirt road more
Quotes:
Marc Antony: This son of Caesar, does it upset you?
Caesar Augustus: No.
Marc Antony: You were so shut at the mouth just now one would think your words were are precious to you as your gold.
Caesar Augustus: Like my gold, I used them where they are worth most.
Marc Antony: Ah! And your virtue?
[Leans over to him]
Marc Antony: My friend has a friend.
Caesar Augustus: That too.
more
Movie Connections:
Featured in "De wereld draait door: (#4.39)" (2008) more

FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
46 out of 69 people found the following comment useful:-
Mutilated potential classic, 13 December 2005
7/10
Author: Jeff Stone (straker-1) from New Zealand

Fritz Lang's Metropolis is rightly regarded as a classic, but many reviews make note of the 'illogical' story and bad character plotting. Characters come and go without rhyme or reason, and the plot makes no sense, they say. Well, yes, but that's not Fritiz's fault, nor the movie's; Metropolis makes little sense because 55 minutes of the film was hacked out and destroyed, never to be seen again, by the US distributors. Of course it's gonna be a dog's dinner with an hour missing, ya clods!!

The same is true of Cleopatra, and this is basically the only reason the film fell flat on its' 1963 release. It was originally intended to release Cleopatra as two three hour movies, the first dealing with Cleo's relationship with Caesar, the second her affairs with Marc Antony. Fox said no to this idea, and demanded a single four hour film instead. This decision is like taking Peter Jackson's Lord Of The Rings Trilogy and removing an hour from each film wherever an hours' worth can be removed...a recipe for incoherence and total disaster.

So, with two hours of footage gone, major characters are reduced to glorified walk-ons, vital plot points and motivations are lost, and the story loses what LOTR has...length with the proper pacing. People will sit and watch 4 hours of Return Of The King because it flows properly. People will not sit and watch 4 hours of stitched together rough cuts...that's what Cleopatra is, even in the DVD roadshow edition...because what we have is something that is too bitty and haphzard to sustain interest.

But there is still glory in Cleo....Roddy McDowall, Martin Landau and Rex Harrison all act their socks off, the sea battle is kick ass, and Liz Taylor looks pretty scrummy in Egyptian softcore porn clothes. And only a Gen Xer like me could love that hideously pompous overblown dialogue.

Great film! For what it is. It just should have been TWO films, that's all. Real eyepopping trippy spectacle, done in a 'damn the money, full speed ahead' way that just doesn't happen any more. Like Casino Royale, Cleo is a wonderful disaster.

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Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Cleopatra (1963)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
God this thing is awful Boats_Gilhooley
Book punkskater_7
Boring music score mr6708
The London scenes cut? JCS-3
Anyone else think Burton... jmobleyj
A better movie would have been Rex Harrison as Caesar palmer-4
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