A very stagy looking film with dazzling sets and costumes that were the trademark of the (in)famous Director. But this film seems unnecessarily studio bound and that is not typical C.B.
Almost every scene is an exercise in opulent, overdone wonder that stuns the senses with hypnotic beauty and sound. All the indoor sets are impressive and sensuous.
However, the battle scenes in the middle are pedestrian by the standards set in other, earlier films (some directed by DeMille), and are clumsily cut, and seem, unfortunately, unsatisfying and out of place. This is some lazy movie-making from a Director, that one doubts, has ever been accused of such.
Cleopatra is alluring and sweet, beautiful and sexy, as are all the female extras semi-clad in sheer material and stepping sensuously throughout. The male leads are less than Shakespearean and are completely extinguished by the lavishness of it all and that's acceptable if one is looking for an example of a large number of pretty pre-code sex-pots and sensational choreography, but the dialog and story are nothing but sophomoric strings that loosely, and "barely" hold it all together.
Almost every scene is an exercise in opulent, overdone wonder that stuns the senses with hypnotic beauty and sound. All the indoor sets are impressive and sensuous.
However, the battle scenes in the middle are pedestrian by the standards set in other, earlier films (some directed by DeMille), and are clumsily cut, and seem, unfortunately, unsatisfying and out of place. This is some lazy movie-making from a Director, that one doubts, has ever been accused of such.
Cleopatra is alluring and sweet, beautiful and sexy, as are all the female extras semi-clad in sheer material and stepping sensuously throughout. The male leads are less than Shakespearean and are completely extinguished by the lavishness of it all and that's acceptable if one is looking for an example of a large number of pretty pre-code sex-pots and sensational choreography, but the dialog and story are nothing but sophomoric strings that loosely, and "barely" hold it all together.