I don't get the reverence attached to this film. It's a plodding, unsightly mess, pompously over-acted and stiffly staged. Elizabeth Taylor looks bloated, and Richard Burton chews the scenery unmercifully. I forced myself to watch the whole thing last night and it was not easy to keep from laughing in places. It's amazing what people would sit through in 1963.
Anything played wrong twice in a row is the beginning of an arrangement. FZ
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Loved every minute of it myself. Mind you, I first saw it many years ago, when I was young. It seems times have changed, so now I rarely find time to watch anything much more than 2 hours long in one sitting - even though I actually do have the time. I have noticed this change in myself, and much more so in the younger generations: these days films and series are fast paced, and we tend to get impatient or downright bored much more quickly than we used to be. I particularly blame the TV series format, which has pretty much eclipsed the regular movie-viewing experience: episodes of 50-80 minutes, with fast pacing throughout even if they attempt to drag the overall plot out for three or more seasons.
shareHave you changed your mind about the movie after 11 years? Hah-hah.
shareThe only things I liked about it were the costumes and sets, and even those are flawed. I can't watch the film after the scene where Cleopatra says goodbye to Caesar, before he goes to the senate and is murdered by his own people. The film just goes downhill after that.
I heard when Elizabeth Taylor watched this at the premier, after it was over, she went to the bathroom and threw up.
Now, if you want an more interesting story, read up on the making of the film. It will all make sense when you hear how epic and chaotic everything was behind the scenes.
On the contrary, it was amazing.
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