Cleopatra (1999– )

Cleopatra, the famed Egyptian Queen born in 69 B.C., is shown to have been brought by Roman ruler Julius Caesar at age 18. Caesar becomes sexually obsessed by the 18 year old queen, beds ... See full summary »

Stars:

Billy Zane, Timothy Dalton, Rupert Graves

Nominated for 4 Primetime Emmys. Another 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Billy Zane	...	Marc Antony
Timothy Dalton	...	Julius Caesar
Rupert Graves	...	Octavian
Leonor Varela	...	Cleopatra
John Bowe	...	Rufio
Art Malik	...	Olympos
Nadim Sawalha	...	Mardian
Owen Teale	...	Grattius
Philip Quast	...	Cornelius
Daragh O'Malley	...	Ahenobarbus
Bruce Payne	...	Cassius
Sean Pertwee	...	Marcus Brutus
David Schofield	...	Casca
Kassandra Voyagis	...	Arsinoe
Indra Ové	...	Charmian (as Indra Ove)

Storyline

Cleopatra, the famed Egyptian Queen born in 69 B.C., is shown to have been brought by Roman ruler Julius Caesar at age 18. Caesar becomes sexually obsessed by the 18 year old queen, beds her, and eventually has a son by her. However, his Roman followers and his wife are not pleased by the union. In fact, as Caesar has only a daughter by his wife, he had picked Octavian as his successor. The out-of-wedlock son of Cleopatra is seen to be a threat to his future leadership. Thus Brutus and other Roman legislators plot the assassination of Caesar. Caesar's loyal general, Marc Antony, and Octavian then divide up the Roman empire. Antony takes Egypt and soon takes up the affair with Cleopatra. However, Octavian soon launches an attack on Antony and ultimately defeats and mortally wounds him. Rather than permitting herself to be humiliated by Octavian, Cleopatra sends her son away to India and she commits suicide by permitting the deadly asp to bite her.

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Plot Keywords:

cleopatra | queen | marc antony | julius caesar | egyptian | 

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Taglines:

Passion. Power. Betrayal.

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Genres:

Biography | Drama

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

Hallmark Entertainment

Country:

Germany USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

23 May 1999 (USA)

Also Known As:

Cléopatre

Filming Locations:

Agadir, Morocco

Box Office

Budget:

$30,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Babelsberg International Film Produktion, Hallmark Entertainment, RTL2

Technical Specs

Runtime:

177 min 50 min (3 episodes) 155 min (DVD)

Sound Mix:

Dolby (as Dolby Surround)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Goofs

No mention is made of Cleopatra's three children by Marc Antony, twins Alexander Helios and Cleoptra Selene II (born 40 BC), and Ptolemy Philadelphus (born 36 BC). After Octavian conquered Egypt, they were sent to Rome, where they would eventually be raised by Octavia Minor, Octavian's sister and Marc Antony's wife. Marc Antony also had at least five children before he fell in love with Cleopatra, none of whom are mentioned.

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Quotes

[Final lines]
Octavian: You have won, Cleopatra. You have won!

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Connections

References Ben-Hur (1959)

User Reviews

It's a nice historical and overlong television film

The movie deals upon the epic lives of Cleopatra (Leonor Varela) , Julius Caesar (Timothy Dalton) , Marcus Antonius (Billy Zane) and Octavius Augustus (Rupert Graves) . It's created the first triumvirate formed by Caesar , Pompeyus and Crasus . Caesar fights against Pompeyus who's vanquished in Farsalia . Julius goes to Alejandria , Tolomeo hands over the Pompeyo's head to Caesar who rules over Egypt and gives up the throne to Cleopatra . After that , Julius Caesar is killed by Bruto (Sean Petwee) and Casio (Bruce Payne) . Later on , it happens the second triumvirate : Marc Anthony commands Egypt , Lepido rules Africa and Octavio Augustus governs over Rome and Hispania . Marc Anthony is married to Octavia , Augustus's sister . After that , Marcus Antonius is wedded to Cleopatra , but they are defeated by Octavio Augustus (Rupert Graves) in Actium .

Runtime film is overblown , it's a little bit boring but the history aficionados will appeal too much . The picture obtained various nominations for television prizes but achieved none . The battle scenarios are breathtaking , they have been made by computer generator special effects and thousands of extras . First range set design , the film is very atmospheric , Roman time is well designed . Timothy Dalton's interpretation is top notch , likeness to Billy Zane , Leonor Varela is beautiful and enjoyable . Frank Roddan's direction is excellent and Trevor Jones musical score is riveting . Rating : 6,5 . Well worth catching