Caligula (1979)
"Caligola" (original title)

Details the graphic and shocking, yet undeniably tragic story of Rome's most infamous Caesar, Gaius Germanicus Caligula.

Director:

Tinto Brass

Writer:

Gore Vidal (original screenplay)

Stars:

Malcolm McDowell, Teresa Ann Savoy, Peter O'Toole

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Malcolm McDowell	...	Caligula
Teresa Ann Savoy	...	Drusilla
Guido Mannari	...	Macro
John Gielgud	...	Nerva
Peter O'Toole	...	Tiberius
Giancarlo Badessi	...	Claudius
Bruno Brive	...	Gemellus
Adriana Asti	...	Ennia
Leopoldo Trieste	...	Charicles
Paolo Bonacelli	...	Chaerea
John Steiner	...	Longinus
Mirella D'Angelo	...	Livia (as Mirella Dangelo)
Helen Mirren	...	Caesonia
Rick Parets	...	Mnester (as Richard Parets)
Paula Mitchell	...	Subura Singer

Storyline

The rise and fall of the notorious Roman Emperor Caligula, showing the violent methods that he employs to gain the throne, and the subsequent insanity of his reign - he gives his horse political office and humiliates and executes anyone who even slightly displeases him. He also sleeps with his sister, organises elaborate orgies and embarks on a fruitless invasion of England before meeting an appropriate end. There are various versions of the film, ranging from the heavily- truncated 90-minute version to the legendary 160-minute hardcore version which leaves nothing to the imagination (though the hardcore scenes were inserted later and do not involve the main cast members).

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Plot Keywords:

hardcore | emperor | marriage | horse | orgy | 

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Taglines:

The most controversial film of the 20th century is now the most controversial film of the 21st century.

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Genres:

Adult | Drama | History

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Certificate:

Unrated

Details

Country:

Italy USA

Language:

Italian English

Release Date:

15 February 1980 (USA)

Also Known As:

Caligula

Filming Locations:

Dear Studios, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Box Office

Budget:

$17,500,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$8,669 (USA) (17 September 1999)

Gross:

$80,256 (USA) (8 October 1999)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Penthouse Films International, Felix Cinematografica

Technical Specs

Runtime:

156 min 102 min (R-rated) 123 min (recut) 148 min (re-release)

Sound Mix:

Dolby (re-release: 1999) Mono (original release)

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

After Maria Schneider's abrupt departure, Katharine Ross was briefly considered for the role of Drusilla, but in the end, after some heavy lobbying by Tinto Brass, Teresa Ann Savoy ended up getting the part.

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Goofs

When Tiberius and Caligula are in the three-story sex building (noted by the man with stilts), first Caligula goes down, following Tiberius on the elevator. Later, they are talking at the bottom, then back on top of the building, then back at the bottom.

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Quotes

[at an orgy]
Caligula: Longinus, you're not having any fun! Enjoy yourself! What is your preference?
Longinus: Everything and nothing Caesar.

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Crazy Credits

The opening credits of the Russian release mistakenly list Tinto Brass as the "camera operator," while Bob Guccione and Giancarlo Lui are given the honour of being listed as the "directors."

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Connections

Referenced in Mystery Science Theatre 3000: The Day the Earth Froze (1993)

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Soundtracks

"Adagio Of Spartacus And Phrygia"
Aram Khachaturyan

User Reviews

Beyond the controversy lies a good film

This film, as with all, has good points and bad points.

In general, I feel that the good ones far outweigh the bad.

The film simply gives the story of the rise and death of Emperor Caligula in a very straight-forward manner. Indeed, it can be seen as shocking, but I think that this is a side-effect of it's desire to be realistic, rather than a deliberate act on the part of the film-makers.

The cinematography and camera work is awful. The huge sets seem at times almost claustrophobic which is an absolute crime considering the magnificence of them. There is also too much emphasis on Caligula himself, to the detriment of revealing some important traits in other characters, making them seem somewhat shallow at times.

The sex scenes are very well placed within the context of the film. I thought that only two scenes stood out as being unnecessarily overt, but for the most part, the explicitness is on the fringe of the focus of each scene, while also playing a major part in the atmosphere.

Never once did I feel that any dialogue was out of place, nor did the acting strike me as being bad.

By far the biggest problem with this film is the fact that the sexual content is widely advertised and therefore anticipated before viewing. This may cause people to focus dominantly on those scenes without really looking at the film as a whole. For me, it enhanced the film. Not in a particularly titillating way, but in the fact that there was no compromise during scenes of sexual acts. Roman orgies are regarded to have been extremely opulent and promiscuous - I found it refreshing to see one as it may have actually been rather than lots of fully-clothed laughing fat men pouring red wine over their faces and eating grapes while draped with female automatons.

In summary, Caligula definitely has it's place in film history due to it's controversy, but if you look beyond that controversy, you should find a rather good film which neatly tells the story of how power can turn someone into a madman.