On J List of Movie Reviews

(For optimum viewing, adjust the zoom level of your browser to 125%.)

---

Julius Caesar (1953)

Rate: 2
Viewed: 12/07

12/07: Just because a bunch of actors had excelled in memorizing difficult lines for a Shakespeare play and speaking them with some ease for a film doesn't mean it's automatically a masterpiece.

That being said, it's a dreadful chore to sit through Julius Caesar. Joseph L. Mankiewicz tries hard enough to transform the movie conceptually into a theatrical medium. Here's a free piece of advice: leave the theater to where it belongs.

As far as Julius Caesar goes, it has to be one of the most boring films I've ever seen in my life. Yes, there are worse ones that yap, yap, yap endlessly such as Before Sunset, Before Sunrise, and Alexander, but Julius Caesar rises above them simply because of Marlon Brando's performance.

When I see the thespians, all I can think of is "stagy." Then, when I see Marlon Brando, I eloquently say, "That's acting." Hence, his Shakespearean performance is excellent. Because Brando receives little screen time, the title makes less sense as it should be called either Brutus the Assassin or, rather tersely, Brutus.

The production values are rank as compared to Ben-Hur or The Last Emperor. One reviewer said it should be essentially so because high production values, such as lavish costumes and elegant in/exterior sets, would undermine the performances, diverting attention away from them. Well, that's not a bad notion there, but what performances in Julius Caesar? All I saw is actors and actresses struggling with words and making sure they had them down pat. When they say them, it's as if the lines are tattooed right in front of their forehead.

Of all, James Mason's performance is the worst because he's unenergetic and flat. His eyes seem confused and lost as if he's holding onto the ledge of a cliff while looking down. It's not that I have a strong aversion to Shakespeare, but I have a strong aversion to films when it's talk and talk and nothing else, especially when the laguage is so old.

All in all, Julius Caesar is boring beyond belief.