Cleopatra in world cinema: Which actress became the most beautiful queen of Egypt

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

November 2, 69 BC the last queen of Egypt was born from the Macedonian dynasty of the Ptolemies, Cleopatra. And although, according to the modern attempts of scientists to recreate her appearance, she was not a beauty, her image on the screens was always embodied by the most beautiful actresses of world cinema. Which of them looks the most organically in the role of the most mysterious and attractive ruler - it's up to you to judge.

The first films about Cleopatra appeared in the era of silent cinema. in 1899 the director Georges Méliès released the film Cleopatra, after which two more films were released. The most striking in this image was a little movie star Ted Bara, who at the time of filming was already over 30. Her beauty was called "vampire", and the outfits looked more than revealing for that era. No one doubted that such a fatal beauty could seduce the harshest Roman ruler.

In 1934, the French actress Claudette Colbert tried on the image of Cleopatra. During the filming, the actress did not behave in the best way - it constantly seemed to her that Cleopatra's outfits did not fit well enough on her, they had to be sent for alterations, which is why the shooting was systematically delayed. In the performance of Claudette Colbert, the queen of Egypt looked like an earthly woman with her passions and a difficult character. The Italian audience did not appreciate the film, critics called it a "parody and farce", but in the USA the film was nominated for an Oscar in 5 nominations and received a statuette for the best cinematography.

In 1945, the British film Caesar and Cleopatra was released, starring the incomparable Vivien Leigh. This picture was the last adaptation of the play by Bernard Shaw, filmed during the life of the playwright, and she deserved his stern verdict: the actress is completely unsuitable for this role! Many film critics were in solidarity with him and called this film not the best work of the actress. But on one thing they were unanimous: the beauty of Vivien Leigh overshadowed her uncertain performance of the role.

Sophia Loren starred in the 1953 comedy Two Nights with Cleopatra. In addition, she played the queen's double - a concubine named Niska, whom Cleopatra impersonates. Initially, Gina Lollobrigida was invited to this role, but she refused at the last moment, and then Sophia Loren was invited. As a result, a very atypical image of a playful queen was created, who constantly flirts with men and twists intrigues. The film was far from historical facts, but enjoyed great success with the audience.

The reference Cleopatra is usually called the image created by Elizabeth Taylor. Despite the fact that the 1963 film with her participation failed at the box office, it was her heroine who became one of the most striking and unforgettable. After the premiere of this film, makeup in this style came into fashion - with clearly drawn eyes and long arrows. A record amount for those times was spent on 65 costumes of the actress - about 200 thousand dollars. The film even got into the Guinness Book of Records for the largest number of disguises of the main character. But the result was impressive: once even the crowd scene nearly disrupted the scene of Cleopatra's entry into Rome, when, instead of the name of the queen, the audience began to chant with admiration: “Liz! Liz!" Filming took 4 years, during which time about $ 44 million was spent. This film became one of the most expensive projects and one of the biggest financial failures, leading 20th Century Fox to the brink of bankruptcy. And this despite the fact that "Cleopatra" received 4 "Oscars"!

Unlike the previous heroine, Cleopatra, created by Elena Koreneva, is hardly known to the general public. Few people know that this actress also tried on the image of the Egyptian queen in the television play "Caesar and Cleopatra" in 1979. Innokenty Smoktunovsky became her filming partner.

In 1999, the film Cleopatra was released, in which Caesar was played by Timothy Dalton, and Cleopatra was played by the Chilean-born actress Leonor Varela. The shooting was quite large-scale: large sets were built in Morocco and London, about 1000 people were involved in the extras. The film was often shown on television, which brought the producers $ 150 million. For the actress who played the main role, the film became fateful in her personal life - she repeated the story of Elizabeth Taylor: while filming Cleopatra, she had an affair with Richard Burton, and Leonor - with Billy Zane, who played the role of Mark Antony.

In the comedy Asterix and Obelix. Mission Cleopatra ", which became a sequel to the popular comics, the role of the Egyptian ruler was played by one of the most beautiful women in world cinema, Monica Bellucci. The filmmakers did not pursue the goals of historical accuracy, which justified the genre, and the image of Cleopatra turned out to be not realistic, but glamorous and grotesque. Monica Bellucci's Queen of Egypt is domineering and stylish. Fabulous sums were spent on the costumes of the main characters, the picture received the main French film award "Cesar" in the nomination "Best Costume Design".

She is called one of the most mysterious figures in history, because many unsolved mysteries are associated with her name, such as the mystery of Cleopatra's death: committed suicide or was killed in the struggle for the throne?