Cleopatra

Annotation for KRRR! 2016 by Kristýna Zelníčková

The famous story of the Egyptian queen Cleopatra has inspired many creators to create literary, film and television adaptations of her life. However, the most famous of these rulers is probably the opulent Hollywood film from 1963, which is attributed to Joseph L. Mankiewicz, of the three directors who directed it. Although Mankiewicz's work is quite genre-spanning, his direction of Cleopatra followed on from the author's experience that is very similar in terms of thematics, as he directed Julius Caesar in 1958.

Cleopatra represents everything you can imagine under a historical epic, such as crowd scenes, rich costumes and lavish decorations, and it is the wide-angle format that makes these aspects stand out. However, if you expect spectacular battle scenes from the historical genre beyond the above-mentioned, they have rather less space here, because the magnificence of Cleopatra lies mainly in the emphasis placed on the set. Rome and Egypt are magnificently portrayed in the film through rich backdrops, detailed props and countless costumes, which find their application in the construction of monumental space and in the staging of crowd scenes.

The film captures the part of Cleopatra's life when she becomes the ruler of Egypt. It focuses on her duties as well as her desires and relationships with the powerful men of the Roman Empire, through whom the monarch tries to achieve everything she wants. She uses her beauty to do this, which not only Mark Antony but also Caesar himself, who devotes himself more to politics than to warfare, succumbs to. All this results in power on a political and property level, which, however, brings with it powerlessness on a relational and emotional level. Both of Cleopatra's relationships are influenced by both the political duties and sufferings associated with ruling in different empires, as well as the consequences of certain, often fatal decisions.

The four-Oscar-winning historical epic Cleopatra starred big stars including Elizabeth Taylor, Rex Harrison and Richard Burton, and the filming of this (not only) the biggest and most expensive blockbuster of its time brought 20th Century Fox to the brink of bankruptcy. And although the first magnificent adaptation of Cleopatra from 1934 is also one of the studio's significant films, it was its "vain" successor from 1963 that inevitably entered film history. After all, its fiftieth anniversary was celebrated with a screening at the 66th Cannes Film Festival.