Cleopatra (1963)

Director:

Joseph L. Mankiewicz
(more)

Writers:

Joseph L. Mankiewicz (screenplay) and
Ranald MacDougall (screenplay) ...
(more)

Release Date:

31 July 1963 (UK)

Genre:

Biography | Drama | History | Romance

Tagline:

The motion picture the world has been waiting for!

Plot:

Historical epic. The triumphs and tragedy of the Egyptian queen, Cleopatra.

Plot Keywords:

Last Will | Desert | Father Son Relationship | Stabbing | One Word Title

Awards:

Won 4 Oscars. Another 3 wins & 11 nominations

Cast

Elizabeth Taylor	...	Cleopatra
Richard Burton	...	Antony
Rex Harrison	...	Caesar
Pamela Brown	...	High Priestess
George Cole	...	Flavius
Hume Cronyn	...	Sosigenes
Cesare Danova	...	Apollodorus
Kenneth Haigh	...	Brutus
Andrew Keir	...	Agrippa
Martin Landau	...	Rufio
Roddy McDowall	...	Octavian - Caesar Augustus
Robert Stephens	...	Germanicus
Francesca Annis	...	Eiras, Cleopatra's handmaiden
Grégoire Aslan	...	Pothinus (as Gregoire Aslan)
Martin Benson	...	Ramos
Herbert Berghof	...	Theodotos
John Cairney	...	Phoebus
Jacqui Chan	...	Lotos, royal taster
Isabel Cooley	...	Charmian (as Isabelle Cooley)
John Doucette	...	Achillas
Andrew Faulds	...	Canidius
Michael Gwynn	...	Cimber
Michael Hordern	...	Cicero
John Hoyt	...	Cassius
Marne Maitland	...	Euphranor
Carroll O'Connor	...	Casca
Richard O'Sullivan	...	Pharaoh Ptolemy XIII
Gwen Watford	...	Calpurnia
Douglas Wilmer	...	Decimus
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Elisabeth Welch	...	Children's nurse (scenes deleted)
John Alderton	...	1st Officer (uncredited)
Ronald Allen	...	(uncredited)
John Alvar	...	Valvus (uncredited)
Audrey Anderson	...	(uncredited)
María Badmajew	...	(uncredited)
Michèle Bailly	...	(uncredited)
Marina Berti	...	Queen at Tarsus (uncredited)
Salvatore Billa	...	Egyptian Slave / Centurion (uncredited)
Bruna Caruso	...	(uncredited)
Finlay Currie	...	Titus (uncredited)
Rod Dana	...	One of Caesar's entourage (uncredited)
Marie Devereux	...	Bacchanal reveler (uncredited)
Peter Forster	...	2nd Officer (uncredited)
John Frederick	...	Captain Palace Guard (uncredited)
María Luz Galicia	...	(uncredited)
John Gayford	...	Guard (uncredited)
Peter Grant	...	Palace guard (uncredited)
Rosalba Grottesi	...	Cleopatra's servant (uncredited)
Rupert John	...	Bit Part (uncredited)
John Karlsen	...	High Priest (uncredited)
Jeremy Kemp	...	Agitator (uncredited)
Maureen Lane	...	(uncredited)
Margaret Lee	...	(uncredited)
Desmond Llewelyn	...	Senator (uncredited)
Calvin Lockhart	...	Bit Role (uncredited)
Loris Loddi	...	Caesarion at Age 4 (uncredited)
Jean Marsh	...	Octavia (uncredited)
Kathy Martin	...	(uncredited)
Luigi Martocci	...	Marcellus (uncredited)
Gesa Meiken	...	(uncredited)
Furio Meniconi	...	Mithridates (uncredited)
Simon Mizrahi	...	(uncredited)
Violeta Montenegro	...	Dancer (uncredited)
Boris Nacinovic	...	Gladiator (uncredited)
Laurence Naismith	...	Arachesilaus (uncredited)
Kenneth Nash	...	Caesarion at Age 12 (uncredited)
John Pepper	...	Caesarion (uncredited)
Paola Pitagora	...	Cleopatra's servant (uncredited)
Michela Roc	...	Cleopatra's servant (uncredited)
Del Russel	...	Caesarion at Age 7 (uncredited)
Sandra Scarnati	...	Cleopatra's servant (uncredited)
Mike Steen	...	Undetermined Role (uncredited)
Jack Taylor	...	Bit Part (uncredited)
Meri Welles	...	Cleopatra's Handmaiden (uncredited)
Ben Wright	...	Narrator (voice) (uncredited)

Directed by
Joseph L. Mankiewicz
Rouben Mamoulian		(uncredited; fired, replaced by Joseph L. Mankiewicz)
Darryl F. Zanuck		(uncredited)

Writing credits
Joseph L. Mankiewicz		(screenplay) and
Ranald MacDougall		(screenplay) and
Sidney Buchman		(screenplay)
Plutarch		(histories) and
Suetonius		(histories) and
Appian		(histories)
Carlo Mario Franzero		(book "The Life and Times of Cleopatra") (as C.M. Franzero)
Ben Hecht		uncredited

Produced by
Walter Wanger	....	producer
Peter Levathes	....	executive producer (uncredited)

Original Music by
Alex North

Cinematography by
Leon Shamroy		(director of photography)
Jack Hildyard		(uncredited)

Film Editing by
Dorothy Spencer
Elmo Williams		(uncredited)

Production Design by
John DeCuir		(as John De Cuir)

Art Direction by
Herman A. Blumenthal		(as Herman Blumenthal)
Hilyard M. Brown		(as Hilyard Brown)
Boris Juraga
Maurice Pelling
Jack Martin Smith
Elven Webb

Set Decoration by
Paul S. Fox
Ray Moyer
Walter M. Scott

Costume Design by
Vittorio Nino Novarese		(costumes: men)
Renié		(costumes: women) (as Renie)

Makeup Department
Alberto De Rossi	....	makeup artist (as Alberto de Rossi)
Vivienne Walker	....	hair stylist: Miss Taylor (as Vivienne Zavitz)
Robert J. Schiffer	....	makeup artist (uncredited)

Production Management
C.O. Erickson	....	production manager
Forrest E. Johnston	....	production manager
Saul Wurtzel	....	production manager: second unit
Francisco Ariza	....	production manager (uncredited)
Edward Joseph	....	production manager (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Ray Kellogg	....	second unit director
Andrew Marton	....	second unit director
Fred R. Simpson	....	assistant director

Art Department
José Algueró	....	assistant set decorator: Spain (uncredited)
Ferdinand Bellan	....	scenic artist (uncredited)
Bill Dennison	....	chief draughtsman: exteriors (uncredited)
Harold Michelson	....	storyboard artist (uncredited)
Giovanni Natalucci	....	set designer (uncredited)
Don Picton	....	assistant art director (uncredited)
Italo Tomassi	....	scene painter (uncredited)

Sound Department
James Corcoran	....	sound recording supervisor
Bernard Freericks	....	sound recordist
Fred Hynes	....	sound recording supervisor
Murray Spivack	....	sound recordist

Special Effects by
L.B. Abbott	....	special photographic effects
Emil Kosa Jr.	....	special photographic effects
Herbert Cheek	....	miniatures supervisor (uncredited)
William F. Mittlestedt	....	mechanical effects (uncredited)

Stunts
Ken Buckle	....	stunts (uncredited)
Jack Cooper	....	stunts (uncredited)
Alberto Dell'Acqua	....	stunts (uncredited)
Joe Powell	....	stunts (uncredited)
Nosher Powell	....	stunts (uncredited)
John Sullivan	....	stunt double: Richard Burton (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Piero Portalupi	....	photographer: second unit (as Pietro Portalupi)
Claude Renoir	....	photographer: second unit
Bernie Abramson	....	publicity photographer (uncredited)
Sherman Kunkel	....	assistant camera (uncredited)
Bob Penn	....	still photographer (uncredited)

Casting Department
Stuart Lyons	....	casting consultant

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Irene Sharaff	....	costumes: Elizabeth Taylor

Editorial Department
Leonard Doss	....	color consultant

Music Department
Lionel Newman	....	associate conductor
Alex North	....	conductor
Henry Brant	....	orchestrator (uncredited)
Herbert W. Spencer	....	orchestrator (uncredited)
David Tamkin	....	orchestrator (uncredited)

Other crew
Hermes Pan	....	choreographer
Bill Batchelor	....	publicist (uncredited)
Marie Devereux	....	stand-in: Elizabeth Taylor (uncredited)
Geoff Freeman	....	unit publicist (uncredited)
Ralph M. Leo	....	production accountant (uncredited)
Lucie Lichtig	....	continuity (uncredited)
Elaine Schreyeck	....	script supervisor (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation (as Producers Pictures Corporation)
• MCL Films S.A.
• Walwa Films S.A.

Distributors

• Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation (1963) (USA) (theatrical)
• Fox Films (1963) (Finland) (theatrical)
• P.P. Film Polski (1970) (Poland) (theatrical) (Polish subtitles)
• American Broadcasting Company (ABC) (1972) (USA) (TV) (original airing) (pan/scan)
• Fox Video (199?) (USA) (VHS) (pan/scan)
• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (200?) (Brazil) (DVD)
• 20th Century Fox de Argentina (2004) (Argentina) (all media) (re-release)
• Abril Vídeo (19??) (Brazil) (VHS)
• CBS/Fox Video (1985) (Belgium) (video)
• CBS/Fox (1991) (USA) (laserdisc)
• Gativideo (19??) (Argentina) (VHS)
• Gativideo (2004) (Argentina) (DVD)
• Gativideo (2004) (Argentina) (VHS) (re-release)
• Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment (2001) (USA) (DVD)

Other Companies

• American Optical Company  development of Todd-AO
• Magna Corporation  development of Todd-AO

Also Known As:

Cléopâtre (France) [fr]
Cleópatra (Brazil) [pt]
Cleopatra (Finland: Swedish title) [sv]
Cleopatra (Spain) [es]
Cleopatra (Denmark) [da]
Kleopatra (Finland) [fi]
Kleopatra (Poland) [pl]
Kleopatra (Greece) [el]

Runtime:

192 min | 243 min (roadshow version) | Argentina:233 min | Germany:233 min (TV version) | Sweden:232 min | USA:320 min (director's cut)

Country:

UK | USA | Switzerland

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo (35 mm prints) | Stereo (Westrex Recording System) | 70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints)

Certification:

Canada:G (Quebec) | USA:Approved (certificate #19756) (original rating) | Brazil:Livre | Peru:PT | Argentina:Atp | Iceland:L | USA:Unrated (video rating) | Canada:G (video rating) | Canada:A (Nova Scotia) | Canada:PG (Manitoba) | Australia:M | Finland:K-16 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:PG | USA:G (1971 re-release) | West Germany:12

Filming Locations:

Almería, Andalucía, Spain

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

Histories by Plutarch, Suetonius, Appian, other ancient sources, and Carlo Mario Franzero's book "The Life and Times of Cleopatra" are credited as the basis of the screenplay.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Cleopatra's boat approaches the shore, the white translucent curtains are pulled open, yet in a view from the shore, they are still closed.

Quotes:

Cleopatra: How DARE you and the rest of your barbarians set fire to my library? Play conqueror all you want, Mighty Caesar! Rape, murder, pillage thousands, even millions of human beings! But neither you nor any other barbarian has the right to destroy one human thought!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in A Legacy of Filmmakers: The Early Years of American Zoetrope (2004) (V)

The Return Of The Queen

That a film as good as CLEOPATRA is was created at all under the madness and panic of it's legendary production is indeed an amazing feat. That CLEOPATRA has been given such loving care in its restoration in this DVD of the "Road Show" print and the attendant bonus materials is a wondrous gift to those who love this film. The documentary, "Cleopatra: The Film That Changed Hollywood" is in on it's own an engrossing and informative two hour movie. For anyone who knows little of the history of CLEOPATRA, or who was not around at the time, this documentary will give them the feeling of what those last days of old Hollywood was like. And therein one can find the reasons why this intimate epic is indeed the wonder that it is. Many thanks should go to the Mankiewicz family and the producers of the documentary. The print and the sound of CLEOPATRA seems now to surpass what I recall it to be in its first presentation nearly forty years ago. The depth of the colors and the richness of the shadows are indeed splendid. In this restoration, it is hard to believe this film is as old as it is. The commentary track is in and of itself like finding the lost treasures of the long dead monarch. For there are wonderful recollections by Martin Landau, Tom and Chris Mankiewicz, and even the one of the films publicists Jack Brodsky gets to read sections from his book "The Cleopatra Papers" which gave a blow by blow description of everyday events on the set. But I must give special mention to Landau's part. With his keen eye for the art direction of John DeCuir one sees things in the background and along the edges of the scene that one never noticed before. Such lovingly detailed sets and interiors will never be seen again. The costs today are just too prohibitive. Also his insights into what was cut from the film, particularly his and Richard Burton's contributions in the second act give one the idea of what Mankiewicz was intending. Poor Richard suffered the unkindest cut of all. The presentation of the DVD menus is so clever and exotic. The creators of this DVD are to be commended in their art direction. At last we now know what is behind the massive 20th Century Fox logo!

The film itself remains what it has always been. It is a good film that might have been a great one if only Zanuck had trusted Joe Mankiewicz' original vision. It is said that they are still looking for the missing film; one can only hope that they succeed in this task. The performances range from good to excellent. Particular praise must go to Rex Harrison, Richard Burton, Martin Landau, Robert Stephens, Andrew Keir, and Roddy McDowall. Lastly in this department there remains Elizabeth Taylor's performance as Cleopatra. At the films release the brickbats were reserved for her and for reasons that had nothing to do with her performance. Many reviewed her behavior as seen through the narrow focus of the tabloids and emerging paparazzi. Even today it is sometimes hard to separate the history of the lady from her film roles. But here is the moment in time, in this film where she became the ELIZABETH TAYLOR she has remained in the mind of the world ever since. In this fact alone she is perfect in the role. But she is more than that. As Cleopatra she is at once regal and commanding, strong and tender, soft and hard. These are all the contradictions that have always been at the heart of Cleopatra herself. She and the Queen are masters of a public enigma wrapped within a mystery. In her performance as written by Mankiewicz Elizabeth Taylor is probably not too far off from the historical Cleopatra. Finally, ever since Judith Crist gave CLEOPATRA the needle in 1963 and in the act made her name, the public, for the most part, has viewed this film a failure. But today, stripped of the scandal, hype and hysteria of its release in June of 1963 it is now possible to view CLEOPARTA as the film it is. A near great film that is the signpost of when Hollywood passed from one age into another. Historically this is an important DVD and I recommend it highly. CLEOPATRA remains as seductive, beautiful, and intelligent as it was in Walter Wanger's original conception. "Age cannot wither her, nor custom stale her infinite variety."