Egyptian Tales Galore Essay - 1525 Words

When Cleopatra came out in 1963, it was running on the budget of $44 million ($297 in 2007 dollars). The movie follows Cleopatra VII, last queen and monarch of Ancient Egypt from 48 BCE (allying with Caesar) to her suicide in 31 BCE. Cleopatra was born in 69 BCE to Ptolemy XII and an unknown mother and she would later inherit the throne along with her brother Ptolemy XIII when her father died in 51 BCE. Her brother had gotten Cleopatra to leave Egypt the same Caesar came chasing his rival Pompey into Egypt. They crossed paths and became allies against Ptolemy XIII, getting Cleopatra’s power as the sole queen back along with a son, Caesarion. After Caesar’s assassination in 44 BCE, Cleopatra was brought back to Rome 3 years later and had an†¦show more content†¦Women’s clothing showed very little skin, the opposite shown in the film, â€Å"The female extras complained about their overly tight and revealing costumes,† (anothermag.com). (i) In many H ollywood dramas, there is always some sort of slip when it comes to designing the costumes needed for the characters in a movie but Cleopatra went over the top. (ii) Cleopatra’s designers, â€Å"placed emphasis on the actress’ beauty and sexuality over historical accuracy† (anothermag.com) (iii) The gowns Elizabeth Taylor wore were designed by Renie Conley, who won an Academy Award for her efforts but the Academy doesn’t measure accuracy. Ancient Egyptian clothing for women was very conservative and costumes in the film, especially the gowns, don’t reflect that. (i) More inaccuracies are shown by what became popularized because of the film, especially maxi dresses. Elizabeth Taylor was shown to be wearing maxi dresses throughout the film, which isn’t accurate at all. (ii) â€Å"Most people think of the maxi dress as a ‘70s trend but in fact it was first seen in the ‘60s. Oscar de la Renta is credited with creating the very first maxi,†(www.wish.com.au/maxi-dress/). (iii) Maxi dresses first came around in the 60’s, more than 2000 years after Cleopatra’s reign. The maxi dress of today and the sheath dress of the ancient times are similar in terms of length, but is vastly different from the sheath dress when it comes to design and use. Furthermore, maxi dresses