IMDb > Julius Caesar (1953)
Julius Caesar
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Julius Caesar (1953) More at IMDbPro »

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Overview

User Rating:
7.4/10   3,296 votes
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View company contact information for Julius Caesar on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
4 June 1953 (USA) more
Genre:
Plot:
The assassination of the would be ruler of Rome at the hands of Brutus and company has tragic consequences for the idealist and the republic. full summary | add synopsis
Plot Keywords:
Awards:
Won Oscar. Another 5 wins & 6 nominations more
NewsDesk:
(9 articles)
Me and Orson Welles | Review
 (From SmellsLikeScreenSpirit. 24 November 2009, 10:00 AM, PST)

Emmerich To Direct Shakespeare Thriller
 (From Screen Rant. 22 October 2009, 5:47 PM, PDT)

User Comments:
All-Star Cast in Faithful Adaptation... more (54 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Additional Details

Also Known As:
William Shakespeare's Julius Caesar
more
Runtime:
120 min
Country:
Language:
Color:
Black and White | Black and White (tinted) (1969 UK re-release)
Aspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono (Western Electric Sound System) (original release)

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
The featurette on the DVD, "The Rise of Two Legends", is presented in anamorphic widescreen format (16:9), while the film itself is presented in its original standard "Academy format". more
Goofs:
Anachronisms: A stylized chess set can be seen in the home of Caesar and Calpurnia. The earliest precursor of chess did not develop until 550 A.D. in the Punjab. more
Quotes:
Marc Antony: Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears; I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him. The evil that men do lives after them, The good is oft interred with their bones; So let it be with Caesar. more
Movie Connections:
Referenced in Dead Poets Society (1989) more

FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
10 out of 14 people found the following comment useful.
All-Star Cast in Faithful Adaptation..., 15 September 2003
Author: Ben Burgraff (cariart) from Las Vegas, Nevada

1953's JULIUS CAESAR was a milestone in it's time, and still is, perhaps, the finest American production of a Shakespeare play ever recorded on film. Until Joseph L. Mankiewicz's production, only Laurence Olivier's British versions of HAMLET and HENRY V had truly displayed the power and poetry of the Bard's work. Hollywood seemed content to either truncate it in miscast all-star extravaganzas (A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM, and ROMEO AND JULIET) or turn it into a weird kind of carnival sideshow (Orson Welles' MACBETH, performed with incomprehensible Scottish accents). Perhaps American film makers were afraid audiences would be put off by Shakespeare's text, with its archaic words, or felt that a British cast and the confines of a stage were 'required' to do a 'proper' rendition. For whatever reason, the British seemed to have a 'lock' on filmed versions of the Bard.

But Mankiewicz understood that Shakespeare was both universal and timeless, and in his capacity of director and (uncredited) screenwriter, he 'opened up' JULIUS CAESAR, eliminating the 'studio' feel of key scenes, and, with producer John Houseman, gathered together an impressive array of talent, with British actors John Gielgud as Cassius, James Mason as Brutus, Greer Garson as Calpurnia, and Deborah Kerr as Portia, and stage-trained American actors such as Oscar winner Edmond O'Brien in supporting roles.

Where the greatest gamble, and payoff, came was in the casting of Marlon Brando as Marc Antony. While Brando was already being hailed as the finest American actor of his generation, there were critics, prior to the film's release, who called his acceptance of the role an ego trip, and expected him to fall on his face. Were they ever WRONG! Brando gave the role a power, a physicality, and charisma that stunned critics and audiences alike. With a flawless British accent, he easily held his own with the veteran cast, and displayed a magnetism that is still enthralling, over 50 years later. His performance became the keystone of the film's success.

Not that JULIUS CAESAR is without faults; it is, occasionally, stagy and artificial, the pacing is a bit too slow and deliberate at times, and, as the title character, Louis Calhern is woefully miscast (he looks and sounds more like a jaded grandfather than the charismatic despot who both enthralled and frightened the Roman world). Still, the film is so strong and dynamic that subsequent versions (such as Charlton Heston's ambitious 1970 production) pale in comparison.

Hollywood finally got it 'right', and we can be grateful that a truly unforgettable presentation of JULIUS CAESAR is available for us, and future generations, to enjoy!

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