I hope I didn't shortchange you with my "Cleopatra" review. I know it was lengthy but I didn't mention much about the film's content. It was mostly about the hoopla surrounding the production and my raving about what a Monumental Epic it was, lol. I was kind of in a hurry to get it finished because I was due back at Pearl's for my current work cycle. That's where I'm writing from now (and I'll once again be publishing at night). Anyhow, I hope you enjoyed the review despite it's lack of plot details, and I'll try to make up for it with a short description of same. Here goes : Following his war with rival general Pompey, Julius Caesar sets off for Egypt to visit the boy-king Ptolemy. Caesar is concerned about maintaining Rome's wheat supply, which is imported from Alexandria. When he arrives he sees that Ptolemy is King in name only; really he's controlled by a group of older Eunuchs, one of whom calls most of the shots. To bolster his standing, the Eunuch has deposed Ptolemy's sister Cleopatra, who'd been appointed co-ruler by their late father, the former King Ptolemy VII Auletes, who intended the siblings to share the crown. The Enuch knew he couldn't push Cleopatra around as he does Ptolemy Jr., however, so he got rid of her. Now she's in hiding, but when Caesar shows up, she sees a chance to reclaim her half of the throne.
Knowing he is strong, and thus a potential powerful ally, she sets out to seduce Caesar. The seduction works - soon she's not only regained her authority but she's the sole ruler of Egypt, her brother having been executed in the coup. Caesar has fallen in love with her, too. Being ambitious, Cleopatra now sees a chance to become Queen of All Rome as well, with Caesar as King. They marry and plan to join forces. Oh, and there's a child on the way too, little Caesarian. He's the boy I told you I wasn't aware of, and in fact I didn't even know that Cleo hooked up with Julius Caesar, either. I suppose we learned that in 8th grade, but I forgot it. The first half of the movie involves their romance and attempted political alliance. But Caesar is informed by members of his Senate that the Roman public will never accept a King, especially one who's married to Cleopatra. She's despised by many of the Senators, who see her as an opportunistic witch, but in truth she's a brilliant politician who uses her intelligence and attributes to achieve her desires. The thing is, though, she doesn't seem to be doing any of this for the benefit of the Egyptian people, at least not in the way it's portrayed in the movie. She's no selfless Joan of Arc. What she's about is power, pure and simple, but because she enters the story as an Underdog, you root for her......up to an extent, but then Caesar is murdered ("Et tu, Brute"?) and you still have two hours to go.
The second half of the movie is about Cleopatra's second romance, with Marc Antony, Caesar's most steadfast General. Antony comes to her rescue after Caesar's assassination, and soon she has so captivated him that he renounces his Roman citizenship and decides to live with her in Egypt. By now, Octavius, Caesar's adopted son, has become ruler of Rome. He despises Mark Antony, especially after Antony's betrayal of Rome, and he's also jealous of the relationship between Antony and Cleopatra. I should repeat that I thought Roddy McDowall's portrayal of Octavius was the strongest in the movie. The remainder of the story will hinge on his attempts to bring down both Antony and Cleopatra, but as I've noted over and over, there are a lot of other subplots happening as well, all historically based and involving dozens of characters.
So there's some of the story for you. I know most folks won't wanna sit through a four hour movie, but if you'd like to see what I'm talking about, then you have no choice haha. Just whatever you do, don't watch it in two parts or break it up in any way. If you're gonna watch, make sure you're ready, and set aside enough time with no distractions. You can either thank me or chastise me later. :) ///////
My album for today was "The Least We Can Do Is Wave To Each Other" by Van der Graaf Generator. Though the musical themes are simple compared to their later works like "Godbluff" and "Still Life", and while the songs have similar chord progressions, this record is nonetheless brilliant and emotionally involving, due to the songwriting and vocal performance of Peter Hammill, who was all of 21 years old when he made this record with his bandmates.
It was released in 1969, just after the first Genesis record, which isn't nearly as strong (not even close), and besides that, it wasn't the VDGG debut. That would be "The Aerosol Grey Machine", released six months earlier, and one month before "In The Court of the Crimson King". While few records can match "Court", just the fact that Hammill and company launched their first effort at the same time as KC is noteworthy, especially since it wasn't a subpar debut ala "Genesis to Revelation". Quite the opposite - "Aerosol Grey Machine" is a solid album that stands up today, over 50 years later. I mention this because I'm a huge Van der Graaf fan, but also because Peter Hammill, who writes all the VDGG music, was doing so as a 21 year old kid, and was releasing strong albums at that age, at a time when The Beatles were still together. He was there at the birth of Progressive Music, and he's still doing it today. Listen to his recent solo album "From the Trees", but listen to "Wave To Each Other" first. Hammill's lyrics and vocals on that record are something very special.
That's basically all I've got for tonight. I did watch a movie this evening, but it was a WW1 documentary ("The Guns of August" from 1965), and while it was tremendous, I won't give you a detailed review because we have done WW1 by now, and if you wanna know more you can research the subject for yourself.
I just finished James Patterson's "The Last Days of John Lennon", which was a quick read and very gripping, but he presents the lowlife who I won't name as a main character, which will be off putting to any but the most strong-willed Lennon fans. Still, if you can read it in spite of that person's inclusion, it's one heck of a story.
Now I am beginning "Paul McCartney : The Life"(2016), by Philip Norman.
I'll see you in the morning and I hope you have a great day. Tons of love.
xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxooxoxoxoxo :):)
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