Cleopatra (1912)

The fabled queen of Egypt's affair with Roman general Marc Antony is ulimately disastrous for both of them.

Director:

Charles L. Gaskill

Writer:

Victorien Sardou (adapted from the play by)

Stars:

Helen Gardner, Pearl Sindelar, Miss Fielding

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Helen Gardner	...	Cleopatra - Queen of Egypt (as Miss Gardner)
Pearl Sindelar	...	Iras - An Attendant (as Miss Sindelar)
Miss Fielding	...	Charmian - An Attendant
Miss Robson	...	Octavia - Wife of Antony
Helene Costello	...	Nicola - a Child (as Miss Helene)
Charles Sindelar	...	Antony - a Triumvir and General (as Mr. Sindelar)
Mr. Howard	...	Pharon - a Greek Slave and Fisherman
James R. Waite	...	Venditius - a Roman Soldier (as Mr. Waite)
Mr. Osborne	...	Diomedes - a Rich Egyptian (as Mr. Osborn)
Harry Knowles	...	Kephren - Captain of the Guards to the Queen (as Harley Knowles)
Mr. Paul	...	Octavius - a Triumvir and General
Mr. Brady	...	Serapian - an Egyptian Priest
Mr. Corker	...	Ixias - Servant to Ventidius

Storyline

When she discovers that a slave named Pharon professes his love for her, Cleopatra makes a bargain with him: she will give him ten days of "love," at the end of which he is to commit suicide. He agrees, although the queen's handmaiden Iras, in love with the slave, isn't happy with the arrangement. Later when Cleopatra is seducing Marc Antony, her relationship with Pharon is used against her, but with little effect. She allies herself with Antony against Octavius, participates in a brief war, then meets her end rather than be subjected to Roman rule.

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Plot Keywords:

slave | queen | marc antony | cleopatra | egypt | 

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Genres:

Drama | History

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Certificate:

Unrated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

13 November 1912 (USA)

Also Known As:

Cleopatra: The Romance of a Woman and a Queen

Filming Locations:

Tappan, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$45,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Helen Gardner Picture Players

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min 88 min (TV)

Sound Mix:

Silent

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

William Shakespeare's play was produced in London circa 1606-7; Victorien Sardou's play, "Cléopatre", opened in Paris on 23 October 1890.

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Quotes

Cleopatra - Queen of Egypt: Go - - but be faithful to me!

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Crazy Credits

Helen Gardner Picture Players, Tappan-on-the-Hudson, New York.

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Alternate Versions

A restored version, funded by Turner Classic Movies and in the George Eastman House Collection, was shown on Turner Classic Movies on 10 August 2000. It has an original music score by Chantal Kreviazuk and Raine Maida, and runs 88 minutes.

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Connections

Version of Cleopatra (1963)

User Reviews

Worth watching, still interesting after over ninety yrs.

Good but not great. Like some of the other commentors, I saw this on TCM with the new music soundtrack. Unlike many, I liked the new music. Since this film is so dated, the music "freshens it up" a little. It's really more effective as a time capsule rather than as a drama. The star, Helen Gardner, also produced, so this is her vision. We all know the story, but what is interesting is the acting style and visuals. I agree with the other viewer here about the female cast members. You can't help but notice. With all these surgically enhanced, or personal-trainer enhanced, washboard-abbed stars today, it is nice to see a movie full of people who weren't under such pressure to look a certain way. There's plenty of "unintentional humor" here too, for those looking for camp value.