This tragically underrated film is a typical example of those wonderful biblical epics that used to be all the rage in the fifties and sixties. Long before the days of CGI, the thrills were provided by casts of thousands on the wide screen in glorious colour. The shooting of this film seemed to take months and months and became a story in itself. A combination of soaring costs and the scandalous relationship blooming between the two principle superstars filled the newspapers day after day. I remember it well even though I was a young sprog at the time who couldn’t understand what all the fuss was about. Perhaps if Taylor and Burton hadn’t been married to other people at the time there might not have been much of a story to print. Despite all the fuss, when the film was finally released, it got panned by the critics and failed miserably at the box-office to recoup its original production costs let alone turn a profit.
It is one of my favourite movies that I like a lot despite its flaws. There is some vital thing missing somewhere that I can’t quite put my finger on. The acting performances are first rate. It is a visual feast for the eyes to see on the big screen. Even the desperately overrated Rex Harrison shines as Julius Caesar here. We see the usual familiar faces of the British acting elite of those times who always lent a degree of authenticity and respectability to a cinematic interpretation of Greco-Roman history. Without their distinguished presence – change the costumes, and we are left with a traditional ‘Western’. What I think is needed, is a “Directors cut” version. There is a great movie in there somewhere. It just needs fetching out that’s all.
