Review of Caesar and Cleopatra (1945) by Tiffany D — 17 Mar 2014

Once upon a time, there was an Egyptian princess, Cleopatra(Vivien Leigh), who was in a fierce battle with her brother Ptolemy(Anthony Harvey) for the kingdom. Just before the Romans are about to arrive to start eating babies, Cleopatra wanders out into the desert to make a sacrifice at a sphinx where she meets Julius Caesar(Claude Rains) who makes a fine point not to believe everything she hears. However, he would like the Egyptian treasury opened to him.

"Caesar and Cleopatra" starts well enough and continues on firm ground through its first act in dramatizing the life of human immortals as portrayed by living legends. That's supported by George Bernard Shaw's witty dialogue in smartly showing how empires extend their power. Just as much, there are some things that never change like sibling relations and the insanity of Egyptian politics, albeit under completely different circumstances. But after all of that promise, the movie sputters to a halt, just about the time when the usually reliable Stewart Granger shows up(not his fault, really). So, instead of thought provoking debates, we get lots of talk until everybody just decides to call it a day.