Cleopatra

[fajrdrako]

In keeping with my pursuit of Julius Ceasar in fact and fiction, last night I watched the movie Cleopatra. Not the famous one with Elizabeth Taylor, but the 1999 made-for-TV one with Timothy Dalton as Caesar.

The problem with this movie is, it's bland. It recounts history without much in the way of interpretation or imagination. It isn't bad, but it isn't particularly good, either.

Dalton was okay as Caesar; not quite my mental image of him - too large, not intense and energetic enough - certainly not brilliant enough - but adequate. The problem was basically with the script.

I had three favourite bits. First was when Caesar was stabbed, and fell dramatically on the stairs of the Senate. Marc Antony gathered him in his arms and wept, cradling and fondling him, very nicely.

The other favourite bit featured Antony as well. (Yes, Billy Zane did a fine job. Best of the bunch.) Antony wass sitting with Cleopatra while Caesar went by in his Triumph and waved to her. The crowd booed and jeered. Cleopatra said to Antony, "I can't hear what they're saying."

"They're calling you Caesar's whore, your majesty," said Antony, with perfect blandness.

My third favourite part was the scene where Caesar acknowledged Caesarion as his son.

The trouble with depicting Cleopatra is: she's young. It's difficult to get the right touch of intelligence, ambition, passion and youth; even if the writers can capture it, a young actress has to make it convincing. It might be impossible - as far as I know, it's never been done - but there are actresses around who might be up to it. Usually Cleopatra's passionate temperament just comes across as childishness and her ambition looks self-serving. Well, I suppose, historically speaking, a case could be made for that. But to make her sympathetic... Shaw did it by making her kittenish, at the expense of historical fact.

I see this movie is based on the Margaret George novel. I should read it.

Comments

[widget-alley.livejournal.com]

Dalton was okay as Caesar; not quite my mental image of him - too large, not intense and energetic enough - certainly not brilliant enough - but adequate.

Hmmm... that doesn't fit my image of Dalton at all, but that's probably because the only thing I've seen him in that I actually remember him from is The Lion in Winter, and he gives a lovely impression of (mostly justified) arrogance then.

"Why, she's Cleo-lishious!"

[teenygozer.livejournal.com]

Shaw did it by making her kittenish, at the expense of historical fact.

I tend to agree with you about Shaw and the kitten thing, and yet I still feel Vivian Leigh did a fantabulous job as Cleopatra in GBS's "Ceasar and Cleopatra". Fall-down fantastic film, it's the kind of movie that makes you glad you have eyes and a brain. I think a lot of Cleo's kittenishness was written as contrast to the getting-on-in-years, but still personally charismatic, Ceasar that Shaw wrote. An old guy at the time, GBS had more to say about Ceasar's end than Cleo's beginning, and her character suffered for it. I must admit, I do wish I could go into the film and just make Leigh play Cleo with a backbone during the scene where she is made, by a man who she later finds out is Ceasar, to stand up to the Romans who are invading her country. He makes her believe that if she quails in the face of the Romans, Ceasar will kill her, and she pretty much acts the whuss to the very end. I wish she'd pulled it out of her to just stand on her own two feet and face them bravely, but you sorta don't get to see that. *sigh* Stupid 1940's (somewhat) anti-feminist film! Grrr!

On the other hand, Claudette Colbert (usually a good actress) did an embarrassingly sucky job as Cleopatra in the movie "Cleopatra." Just... NO. Here's the plot description from the IMdB: "The man-hungry Queen of Egypt leads Julius Caesar and Marc Antony astray, amid scenes of DeMillean splendor." Yes, she played it "man-hungry" and vamped it up quite a bit, which I gotta say was an interesting acting choice. Not a good choice, but interesting. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0024991/

Re: "Why, she's Cleo-lishious!"

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

I am getting more and more eager to see that Vivian Leigh movie. I love the Shaw script - though parts of it also tend to make me cringe; yes, I also would like to see a Cleopatra with backbone, and plenty of it. Still, Shaw's version has plenty of potential. I always love Claudette Colbert and want to see her version, too, but I don't really expect to like the story - and I don't think I've ever heard of Warren William.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

Timothy Dalton does arrogance fairly well, which is probably why they cast him as Caesar - but he was really much better as young Philip in "The Lion in Winter". I also liked him (against all expectations) in the 1983 version of "Jane Eyre" with Zelah Clarke, which was wonderful - the best filmed version of the novel by far. And no, I don't think the beautiful Timothy Dalton looks like the harsh Mr. Rochester, but that's beside the point - his acting was perfect.

I've seen him in a few more recent movies in which I thought he was absolutely terrible. In "Cleopatra" he isn't terrible, he just... isn't good.

Re: "Why, she's Cleo-lishious!"

[teenygozer.livejournal.com]

Hmmm... I can only find it on DVD in Australia, which would make it Region 4. And the only tapes of the movie I can find are in PAL, from England! For such an amazing movie, it certainly seems underserved. I'm lucky I have it taped from when it appeared on PBS, uncut & with no commercials, here in America! Where are you located, are you British & can find a copy or would you need me to dig out my tape and get a friend to make a copy for you?

Re: "Why, she's Cleo-lishious!"

[teenygozer.livejournal.com]

Oopsie! I take it back, I was looking on eBay and didn't look in the "Some of the matching items can be found in other eBay areas" section. I found the tape in NTSC VHS, which is USA and Canada. Check this (http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=309&item=6302183333&rd=1&ssPageName=WD1V) out, you can get the tape for $4.99, which is a good price. Go for it! ;)

[widget-alley.livejournal.com]

Timothy Dalton does arrogance fairly well...

He also does gay fairly well. HAR. Okay, that was lame.

Jane Eyre the book bored me to death, but that's probably because I tried to read it when I was eight. I don't actually remember anything at all about it other than the fact I fell asleep and drooled all over it.

Substituting the absolutely gorgeous Timothy Dalton for any non-attractive character is a-okay with me. Except, y'know, maybe, as Grima Wormtongue. Wait, actually. I can kind of see that. Okay, now I'm scaring myself.

I confess to having never read the Shaw version. Should I? Is it good?

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

He also does gay fairly well.

I can't argue with that!


Jane Eyre the book bored me to death, but that's probably because I tried to read it when I was eight

My goodness, yes! You have to be adolescent to appreciate Jane Eyre. It's one of my favourite books, all full of banked passion and desperate needs and a strange mix of Victorian suffering and religion. Intense stuff. Not for the very young, for sure.

I would be happy to see Timothy Dalton in any role, including Grima Wormtongue. It would put a different angle on the role.... And hey, I like Brad Dourif.

Shaw's Caesar and Cleopatra is brilliant. You have to keep in mind that it's Shaw rather than it's history, and it's Shaw expressing his own thoughts from early 20th century patriarchalism, but in an intelligent and insightful way. I'd highly recommend it - but then, I like Shaw's style and I'm more than happy to make allowances for the sake of its good qualities. It's definitely dated, but it's still wise on its own terms. Besides, Shaw liked Caesary.

Re: "Why, she's Cleo-lishious!"

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

Excellent! Thanks for the link.

[widget-alley.livejournal.com]

::adds to reading list:: It might be a while. My reading list is sixteen pages long. And some of is, like, war and Peace... ;)

I shall also reconsider my stance on Jane Eyre (my stance being, mainly, my desperate avoidance of it.) I plan on going on an Bronte sisters kick sometime soon-- I still haven't read Wuthering Heights although it's so cliche now I kind of feel like I have.

I got a book in French ("The History of the Reigns of the Kings of France", I think it translates in English) today, out of the free pile of books outside my local used bookstore. It had pictures. I found Phillippe right away. No where *near* as pretty.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

I never got through all of War and Peace, but I got many pages into the Battle of Borodino before giving up - on at least three occasions.

I loved all the novels of Charlotte Bronte (though I don't think I read quite all of them.) Didn't like Wuthering Heights much at all.

Console yourself that there are no really accurate portraits of Philippe Auguste. He might have looked just like Timothy Dalton and we'd never know.