This week we take a look at one of the biggest movies of all time. This movie offers massive scale, massive scope, and a massive run time. Does this story merit its 4.5 hour runtime? Does it stick the landing? Does it remain entertaining from start to finish? 

The film had one of the most infamous production histories of all time. One disaster after another, an unheard of budget, and the tumultuous romance of its stars all add up to an experience unlike any other. But does this story merit its 4.5 hour runtime? Does it stick the landing? Does it remain entertaining from start to finish?  

Listen to our review or watch the video review below…

https://CupOfTea.podbean.com/e/cleopatra-the-450m-spectacle-you-have-to-see/

Read a transcript here…

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Hello and welcome to Cup of Tea’s 3 Minute Reviews. And the time it takes you

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to brew a cup of tea, we’ll cover an entire movie. My name is Tim and I’m joined as always by Michael.

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Thanks for having me. Thank you for joining me. Today’s movie is Cleopatra.

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It is a 1963 historical epic starring Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, and Rex Harrison.

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Michael, please give us your hot take. Tim, this movie was my cup of tea.

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It’s like nothing I’ve ever seen before. It is an incredible, sweeping visual epic.

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I mean, it’s crazy. I mean, they just don’t make movies like this anymore.

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With that said, this is a long four and a half hour movie, so we’ll talk about

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all of this, but it was my cup of tea. What about you?

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This movie was my cup of tea. Like you said, it’s an experience unlike any other.

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It’s vast, it’s sweeping, it’s over the top.

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I mean, you will never see money thrown away on screen like this ever again,

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but I really had a good time with it. And I found it really engaging, really compelling.

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I mean, this is a great three-hour movie that just happens before and a half hours.

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So, Tim, what’s it about? One of the most expensive films ever made,

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this movie recounts the historical events of Cleopatra’s life and relationships

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with Julius Caesar and Mark Antony. Michael, where would you like to start?

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The spectacle, Tim. I mean, this movie in today’s money would cost over $450 million.

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I mean, this is insane. People just don’t do this anymore.

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So as a visual spectacle, this was one of the most incredible things I’ve ever seen.

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That’s what I liked most about it. And it’s what got us into this.

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We were like, oh, man, we got to see someone throw away this much money.

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And it did not disappoint.

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I got to double down on that. The spectacle in this movie is absolutely insane.

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I mean, there are sets that are 20, 30 feet high, and they are painted and carved

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in intricate detail from the top to the bottom. They’re massive.

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They’re really evoking the grandeur and the opulence of the Roman Empire and

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of Alexandria at this time.

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There are scenes of hundreds of thousands of people dressed in costumes marching

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across the desert. The shot only lasts five seconds long, and when you actually

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think about it, that is 10,000 people that had to get costumed and marched through

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the desert for five seconds of screen time.

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It’s an insane way to spend, you know, whatever, when you said $400 million,

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but it’s all there on screen, and you really do get immersed and get completely

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enveloped in the experience of watching this much money and this much spectacle.

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It’s absolutely fabulous.

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I agree with you, Tim. What was so surprising to me about this was I actually really liked the story.

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I was expecting a visual spectacle. We knew that was going to be the case, and we got that.

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What I was not expecting was a really good story with really good performances.

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The first three hours of this movie were just a good movie. Like,

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if it had ended at three hours, I think this would have been one of the best

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movies ever made in that classic old era of cinema. I mean, really,

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like, nothing would be like it.

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The problem was, of course, it was not three hours. It was four and a half hours.

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But it was really good. It was a big surprise.

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I didn’t expect that much range, heart, emotion to come out of this story.

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No, I think Elizabeth Taylor is really good. I think Rex Harrison is excellent.

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Richard Burton is really good at times, but we’ll talk a little bit more about him in the negative.

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But I really like the performances. I like the actors. And the script is really

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tight and really strong, especially in the first three hours.

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The dialogue scenes really crackle and they’ve got a lot of insight and a lot

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of intrigue and a lot of…

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Great dialogue moments i’m gonna go shift down to the

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negative unless there’s anything else you want to talk about the writing really

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does falter in the last hour and a half of the movie now by the time you get

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there you’ve already seen two movies worth of great cinema by

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the time you get to the final hour and a half it’s it’s a huge letdown because

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the writing just falters they go from really sharp dialogue scenes to endless

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monologues richard burton just will not shut up about his oh his his terrible

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woe is me and oh i should be dead and oh caesar was so much better than me.

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It’s like, holy crap, man.

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Monologues on monologues on monologues. It’s just endless. And the final hour

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and a half does become a slog.

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I agree with you, Jim. I think what was the biggest problem for me is not only

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those monologues that Mark Anthony gives, but the fact that he’s just a less

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interesting character than Caesar.

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Caesar is a really compelling protagonist.

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His relationship with Elizabeth Taylor’s character, Cleopatra, is really, really good.

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And then Mark Anthony comes in, and he’s just like a worse version of Caesar

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in every way. He’s filled with self-pity.

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And again, I’m sure this is historically accurate. I mean, from the looking

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we did, it matches the story of history.

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This is a moment where history didn’t really order this in the best way to tell

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a movie, you know, and that was a problem because you’ve already watched,

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as you said, two 90-minute movies that were pretty good.

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And then you get a third 90-minute movie, and that one’s not very good.

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So it’s really hard to stick with it after you’ve been sitting on the couch

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that long. Yeah, absolutely. Michael, why don’t you watch the film?

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I would not recommend this to most people in my life.

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I think you have to be at a place where you’re looking, you’re a movie person,

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you’re looking for something new, different, because this is a commitment.

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I mean, you’re committing four and a half hours of screen time,

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let alone the fact you got to get up and go to the bathroom and get some snacks.

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And maybe you probably have to eat a meal during this because it’s so long.

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I mean, this is just a massive investment of time. So if you’re looking for

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a spectacle, if you’re a movie person and you really wanted to push yourself

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to that next level, see something new and different, that’s the perfect person

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to watch this. But man, if you’re just looking for a fun movie on a Sunday,

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do not click this on. What about you?

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I would recommend this movie to, again, movie buffs who are really interested in the spectacle.

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Anybody who has listened to the What Went Wrong podcast episode about this movie,

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you’ll know the fascinating stories behind it. And it’s really cool to see the

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movie after you’ve heard those stories about the production.

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Famously troubled production. But no, if you’re an average moviegoer and you’re

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looking for a movie to watch, this is not the one I would point you to.

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I mean, it is an all-day investment. you’re going to be in for three hours of

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greatness and an hour and a half of slog.

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So I wouldn’t recommend it to the average person. But if you got the day,

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I would go for it because it’s really, it’s an experience unlike any other.

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Thank you guys for listening. This has been Cup of Teas, 3-Minute Reviews.