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Summary: The Cleo that we all know and love.
Review: Cleo's have come and gone. There have been many films and books depicting Cleo as she really was to great melodramatic Cleo. Three other popular Cleo's were the Claudette Colbert (1934), Vivien Leigh (1945), and Leonor Varela (1999). There were many more variations between those years.
The one Cleo that will always stand out and lets not forget Mark, is the one staring Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton (1963). I was old enough to enjoy it on the big screen. Rex Harrison made a good Caesar; watch him have a similar attitude in "The Honey Pot" (1967).Enough time, thought, and money have been put into this production that I am bound to overlook a few of the most important items about this film. The movie is more than just the actors are. The characters are very well portrayed. The set and costumes are dazzling. They really showed up in the scene when Cleopatra enterd Rome. And the navel battle was spectacular. Every one is going to have a favorite Cleo and find flaws in the others. However this Cleo will always the one others are gauged by.
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Summary: "You can not burn the Library or destroy one human thought"
Review: If you are occasionally fed up and tired of the eccentric wisecracks that highlight film scripts these days, you will be happy to discover intelligent human conversation and a different Hollywood in this memorable film. Another important matter is that you will not be offended by the history of this film, because it relates things very closely to what has been recorded in history proper, and you can trust the story to be true, as well as the environs and costumes to be historically correct. Either filmmaking people knew their history better at the time, or Hollywood had more respect for its audience then-- or both...
This is an example of what was called "a historical film" -- and it transpires an ambition to make something more worthwhile than a moneymaking product. After all this time, it is proven more and more of a success, by comparison. Elisabeth Taylor has embodied the psyche of Cleopatra in her performance, and no other actress has surpassed her --this will remain a challenge forever. Burton and Harrison are memorable as Anthony and Caesar, all the cast and thousands of extras are in role and in place. Like a good book, this film must be revisited again and again, and every time we learn something about ourselves as well. One instance to ponder in thought, now, is when Caesar (accidentally?) lets the Library of Alexandria (one of the seven miracles of the ancient world) to burn. Cleopatra enters his room furious and lets him have it: "You Roman generals become gods quickly, with a few victories and a few massacres. You can destroy some pyramids, burn and pillage a few cities; but you can not burn my library nor can you destroy one single human thought!"
That's as much as I remember-- but you must see and hear Elisabeth Taylor say this, to understand what it meant and still means in our life and history.
One film that makes filmmaking a lovable profession.
Rating: 
Summary: Well worth the time investment required to watch it
Review: I feel compelled to offer my perspective, since I might not watch this film again for a decade or so. I first saw it as a child, and was dazzled by the spectacle of it, the cast of thousands, and Ms. Taylor's breathtaking costumes. It is, of course, a very different film when viewed from the perspective of adulthood. It definately feels like a 248-minute long film, which makes it hard to get to the "Bonus Features" disk. Where to begin with an epic like this . . . perhaps the performances would be a good starting point. Elizabeth Taylor is wonderful, conveying convincingly the ruthlessness and arrogance of this historical personage as well as the more intimate manifestations of a woman in love. I find Rex Harrison to be a bit tired and stagey in the role of Caesar, but Richard Burton is beautifully cast as Marc Antony. That great voice! Roddy McDowall disappears into his character and almost steals the show as the ambitious Octavian. Joseph L. Mankiewicz, who was often disparagingly called "a woman's director" (Hollywood could use more of his kind right now!), manages exemplary performances out of all of his major players, and it is his vision which holds the whole thing together. The Alex North soundtrack is perfect, the cinematography stunning, the screenplay very powerful and emotionally honest. It's too bad so much Hollywood mythology has surrounded this film from its production onward, because it is a very intelligent and well-done epic.
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Summary: The Sad Tale of a Great Film
Review: 'Clopeatra' has always suffered from its theatrical release failure in 1962, and has never been recognised as the classic it is. This DVD release has done this incredible film justice. To demonstrate the awesome scale of the film, I'll use this example: there is a sea battle in the film. One has to remember that, in the early 1960's, computer effects didn't exist. What you see in 'Cleopatra' is real, not fake, real! But, as we discover in the documentary 'Cleopatra: The Film That Changed Hollywood', there is two hours of footage of this superb film missing. Who knows what story lies in this lost footage. There is a worldwide search to find it, but no such luck has been made. For the time being, we can marvel at this fantastic four-hour DVD set. It certainly makes your appreciation for the film grow.
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Summary: ELEPHANTINE MOVIE GETS ELEPHANTINE TREATMENT ON DVD
Review: "Cleopatra" is a film that has come to symbolize great excess and tragedy. Liz nearly died while filming this gargantuan epic. She also launched into an affair with then married Richard Burton while she herself was married to Eddie Fischer. Well, I suppose every queen has her suitors. The movie itself made a resounding thud at the box office even though ticket sales were better than average. The reason - "Cleopatra" was the most expensive flop ever made in Hollywood until Kevin Costner's "Waterworld" eclipsed it some 35 years later. But enough about the film's backstory. All the lurid details on the making of this giant-sized motion picture are brought together in an exceptional supplement featured with the movie called "Cleopatra - the Film that changed Hollywood". One wonders why Fox abandoned their 5 star line of DVD special releases. This one is a definite must have.
The transfer is pretty pristine. Colors are rich, bold and vibrant. There is some minor edge enhancement and some pixelization but neither terribly distracts. For the most part the picture is sharp, smooth and eye popping to look at. "Cleopatra" has never looked better. The soundtrack is equally impressive, a remastering effort that brings out the film's brilliant underscoring and presents dialogue at very pristine levels. As already mentioned, there's a fantastic documentary on the making of this movie. There's also an original featurette, some stills, an audio commentary and theatrical trailers. BOTTOM LINE: YOU MUST BUY IT!
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Summary: Grandiose Movie!
Review: This movie was much better then I thought, I was impressed by all the scenery, the dance, the costumes. Elizabeth Taylor make a great Cleopatra for her look but not such much as for her acting performance, she was okay but got an annoying voice, I think she didn't have the charisma of a Queen, her acting was kind of weak. As for Richard Burton his acting performance is great, he make a very good Mark Anthony. Rex Harrison acting performance for Julius Ceasar is fine but could had been much better and for the one who play Octavian he look and act gay and I think in real life he his gay, well that's not a problem that his life but his acting was bad he got on my nerves he was annoying. I like when the show at the end some video of the Premiere of the movie Cleopatra. I don't understand Elizabeth Taylor saying that Cleopatra had such a bad script, what she know about all that, her acting was not that good, in my opinion the script was not that bad, what she want it to be?
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Summary: War&Love
Review: Some films last forever and I think this is one of them.I mostly got this because Rex Harrison is in it and I love him in his films.This one blew me away.Due to the fact that it was one of the most expensive movies of all time.I am not suprised that it is still as powerful and provoking as it was back then and still is today.
Rating:
Summary: mad genius
Review: Yeah the film is too long. Yeah, Taylor's weight gos up and down and yeah, Rex Harrison looks like he's struggling with hemorhoids throughout his performance but you know what? None of that matters. This is a film of mad genius. Elizabeth Taylor was stunning, just glorious as Cleopatra. We will not see a movie star with that kind of glamour ever again. Cleopatra is a spectacle and should be enjoyed as such.
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Summary: Beautiful Movie
Review: This was one of the most beautiful movies I have ever seen! Liz and Dick were at their finest! Must have for true collectors!
Rating:
Summary: A very respectable epic film
Review: Cleopatra was an amazing woman in her time, and her story translates well in this film despite it's reputation as the biggest flop of all time. Through production problem after production problem, the film ended up costing more then any other film ever made when taking inflation into account, and led to problems making it all back upon release (which it eventually did after a few years). But leaving all that aside, the spectacle of the film speaks for itself. Told in a grandiose fashion like that of the Ten Commandments and Ben Hur, Cleopatra originally was to be two separate films. The first dealing with the relationship between the woman and Julius Caesar, and the second about her and Marc Antony. But the studio forced the two films shortened and combined into one, resulting in a more then four-hour-long epic. The passion, political intrigue, and cinematic beauty of the film is all encompassing and amazing. The sets are among the largest ever produced for film, and definitely the most lavish. Some of the set pieces are so large it's hard to believe they'd even think to attempt to create them. The visuals are simply breathtaking. Added to that, Rex Harrison is a wonderful Caesar, and of course Elizabeth Taylor creates the perfect Cleopatra. The only fault this movie has is the pace drags at times. But with such a long film, its hard to avoid that. Strangely enough, I think the addition of lost scenes would improve the pace. The studio cut about an hour and a half of footage before release, most of it battle scenes and character development. What's left is a lot of plot development and it creates long stretches of talk between characters without many breaks. Despite the pace problems, Cleopatra still delivers everything you expect in a grandiose epic, and is finally receiving much of the praise it deserves. Hopefully some day the lost scenes will be restored, then we may have the perfect masterpiece the director originally envisioned.
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