Cleopatra (1934)
Good old Turner Movie Classics! This one is nigh impossible to find on VHS or DVD, but Turner came thru for me, now I got it on VHS. Glad I taped it. It's a good film, but like many historical type flicks, it toys pretty significantly with the actual history.
History be damned tho, it was a good flick even by modern day standards in my opinion. Maybe it's just me, but the Roman armor and regalia seems to look better and more authentic in these old black and white films, and this film is a good example of this. Color tends to make these period pieces look cheap, unless they are fairly modern and very high budget. The naval Battle of Actium is done suprisingly well, I was pretty impressed at all the full scale ships and pyrotechnics that were used, this thing must have cost an arm and a leg.
And then of course if the centerpiece of the whole thing that simply must be done right for the film to succeed, Cleopatra.
Of the multitude of Cleos that Ive seen over the years, the Claudette Colbert incarnation is in my opinion, the sexiest. Yes, even moreso than Liz Taylor's rendition. This little manx looks like she could easily seduce any man, I'm an instant Colbert fan. The outfits that she's in are a bit risque for the time, but theyre well done, she
looks regal.
This is a great 30's Cleo flick, probably going to have it on a loop in the background this weekend while I'm getting some gaming done.