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in her bath, soaking in milk and attended by maids. The scene characterizes Antony as feminine in his enjoyment of delicate luxuries, vulnerable in his nudity, and emasculated in his lack of interest in war. Antony’s feminizing bath recalls the “deviant bath” scene in Spartacus, where Crassus is bathed by Antoninus and expresses his sexually ambivalent proclivities as he tries to seduce the slave boy. Antony’s sexual migration in the second half of the film is emphasized by the bath scene, and closely precedes his separation from Cleopatra and his collapse under pressure from Octavian. At the end, Octavian’s legions take over Cleopatra’s palace, and several Roman soldiers are shown reveling in her bath, perhaps a cinematic signal of their corruption. Octavian, however, the virtuously masculine Roman, does not go near the bath. In the final scene, Cleopatra reveals her skill in controlling the spectacle of her beauty, brilliance, majesty, and divinity. By designing the tableau of her death, she contributes to the creation of her own legend, just as the film Cleopatra participates in the same image-making activity. The ability of spectacular and public death to define and create the mythology of political heroes was especially significant in the violent 1960s, with the assassinations and funerals of President Kennedy in November 1963, his brother Robert F. Kennedy in June 1968, and Martin Luther King, Jr. in April 1968. The audience of Cleopatra takes the visual perspective of the Romans as they come rushing into her mausoleum. A snake slithers away from an overturned basket of figs. After the exchange between Agrippa and the dying maid, Charmian, the film’s final voice-over echoes it back as a narrative quotation, while the camera pans back over the Roman’s shoulder and through the dark open doors of the tomb: “And the Roman asked, ‘Was this well done of your lady?’ And the servant answered, ‘Extremely well – as befitting the last of so many noble rulers.’ ” As a painted image is superimposed over the film scene, Cleopatra proceeds into legend, just as she planned. CORE ISSUES 1 How does the film depict the theme of civil war, between Caesar and Pompey, and between Antony and Octavian? 2 How does the film portray Cleopatra as the sexually and politically powerful woman? Is this image of female empowerment consistent within the film? 3 How does the film present the three main characters, Cleopatra, Caesar, and Antony, and their relationships with each other? CLEOPATRA (1963) 157
4 How does the film use the spectacle of Egypt and the Egyptian queen to put the contemporary audience in the role of Romans watching the epic film? 5 How did/does the external publicity about the movie star Taylor and her affair with Burton affect the film? 158 CLEOPATRA (1963)
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Big Screen Rome
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BIG SCREEN ROME Monica Silveira Cyr
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Contents List of Illustrations vi A
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11 A Funny Thing Happened on the Wa
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permissions were secured in part wi
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Map 1 The city of Rome in the imper
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R P I D A C I A M O Sarmizegetusa C
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provocative combination of dignity
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chapters examine how both films use
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duty and desire set against the mon
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Plot Outline It is the summer of ad
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Plate 1 Quo Vadis. Petronius (Leo G
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a soldier kills Tigellinus, calling
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of Rome. Their obstinate refusal to
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he was also condemned to death. The
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associated with the Catholic Polish
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ambivalent one, given the glitterin
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This is the Appian Way, the most fa
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suggestive of the illumination she
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in historical epic films (Winkler,
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narrative and thematic focus also s
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later decades evolved into the Amer
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Peter. Eunice is the slave of Petro
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Chapter 2 The Robe (1953) The great
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Plate 3 The Robe. Marcellus (Richar
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on the command of the new emperor,
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him to retire to the island of Rhod
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of the Senate, the institution was
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of Caesarea, the prefect would spen
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of the changes in Catholicism that
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of showing off the enduring power,
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have made a great empress, thus hig
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would also play Odysseus in Helen o
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crime as a Roman citizen who has jo
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Hollywood artists who sold out duri
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Demetrius, and his jealous rage whe
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Plot Outline In the Roman province
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Judah, his mother and sister are le
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farewell: they embrace and kiss, an
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voice take the sword out of my hand
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throughout the countryside around G
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of people during its twenty-year ru
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Since Ben-Hur was in preparation lo
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technology, in particular the newly
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forceful, almost fanatical, speeche
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emperor’s offer of Roman citizens
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Messala, as Esther recounts her mem
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The appearances of Jesus are few an
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War to condemn oppressive foreign t
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poisoned by Rome, as he tells Pilat
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CORE ISSUES 1 How does the film por
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Plot Outline In the mines of North
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Plate 7 Spartacus. Draba (Woody Str
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army, losing nineteen thousand men
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second broke out in 104 and was que
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At this time, gladiatorial combat w
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Senate had no choice but to yield.
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the Communist Party of the United S
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the first time in thirteen years. T
Page 121 and 122: the slave movement with the migrati
Page 123 and 124: From this point, the film divides i
Page 125 and 126: At the heart of the new slave famil
Page 127 and 128: Antoninus dies in the arms of Spart
Page 129 and 130: Plate 8 Spartacus. Varinia (Jean Si
Page 131 and 132: learning from their mistakes; Gracc
Page 133 and 134: complaint.” As Gracchus observes
Page 135 and 136: Spartacus continues the epic cinema
Page 137 and 138: Plot Outline Part 1. On the battlef
Page 139 and 140: Plate 9 Cleopatra. Cleopatra (Eliza
Page 141 and 142: command at Tarsus in Asia Minor, an
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Page 145 and 146: Later, Ptolemy XIII fled and was fo
Page 147 and 148: Antony came to Tarsus in Cilicia wh
Page 149 and 150: for future campaigns. Early in 34 b
Page 151 and 152: honored her request for burial with
Page 153 and 154: Extra-cinematic commentary also sug
Page 155 and 156: The script, based on C. M. Franzero
Page 157 and 158: Plate 10 Cleopatra. Mark Antony (Ri
Page 159 and 160: as Caesar, but is best known for hi
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Page 163 and 164: desertion: I from myself.” As he
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Page 171: desire for sons, as she articulates
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Page 177 and 178: Plate 11 A Funny Thing Happened on
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Page 185 and 186: In A Funny Thing Happened on the Wa
Page 187 and 188: series of preposterous sight gags,
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Page 191 and 192: Chapter 7 Monty Python’s Life of
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Page 207 and 208: The cartoon construction during the
Page 209 and 210: Chapter 8 History of the World, Par
Page 211 and 212: Ancient Background The Roman Empire
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Page 217 and 218: 202 HISTORY OF THE WORLD, PART I (1
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Page 221 and 222: 3 How does the sequence incorporate
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Plot Outline In the year ad 180, th
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vets them with color codes. Maximus
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from the upper stands. Commodus inf
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to 98. Nerva’s most significant a
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most of the last decade of his reig
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morale of Roman legionaries on long
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unit known for their courage, high
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38). Although dismayed by the games
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In contrast to earlier epics like Q
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gladiator epic that would reflect c
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$3 million. A dedication in the clo
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soft, admiring light of nostalgia.
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The film hinges almost completely o
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with the reluctance of Maximus to a
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attitudes about female political sk
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hero Maximus, an event that leaves
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Earlier epic films traditionally si
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laughs bitterly through tears when
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his new gladiator idol, as he waits
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246 GLADIATOR (2000) Plate 15 Gladi
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“Fear and wonder,” Senator Grac
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the provincial arena in Zucchabar,
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the words of Maximus’ prayer in a
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The field of wheat is thus a symbol
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city, Maximus becomes a symbol both
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2 Reference Maltin, Leonard, et al.
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Killed Spartacus? How Studio Censor
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Index Page numbers in italic refer
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Caesar, Sid 166, 197 Caesarea 44, 6
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Falco (Gladiator) 208, 210, 212 The
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Jackson, Peter 83 Jacoby, Georg 18
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musical scores A Funny Thing Happen
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The Road Warrior 230 The Robe 3, 22
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Via Appia 11, 12, 21, 24, 95, 99, 1
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