Casablanca and Cleopatra -- digitally restored and on the big screen; and evidence of First Contact

Both movies were recently shown as part of the Cinemark Classics series. Despite having seen Casablanca enough times to be able to recite nearly the entire movie along with the actors, I'd never seen it on the big screen. I may have seen it on a moderately large screen in my college film appreciation class, but that might have been Citizen Kane.

And it did make a difference -- subtle, but noticeable. The street scenes were far more detailed and atmospheric, and somewhat claustrophobic; that sense of being in a crush of people, all moving and talking and shoving, really came through. The lighting, the sets, the close-ups, the emotions : this was more than seeing the movie as it was meant to be seen, it was experiencing it as it was meant to be experienced.

So, when Mike noticed on Monday that Cleopatra was showing today, there was not question that we'd be seeing it. There is nothing subtle about this cinematic spectacle, even on the small screen, so we were prepared to be overwhelmed, and we were.

From the opening scene, with literally thousands of extras -- that's thousands of real, live human beings, not CGI clones -- to the final shot of Cleopatra decked out in her gold Isis dress, this film defines "spectacle." The colors; the sets; the cast; the sex; the politics; the sexual politics. This is a movie truly for adults, who can infer what the movie implies.

Elizabeth Taylor is luminous. Richard Harrison is, by turns, dignified and regal and terrified. He makes Caesar's transformation from Roman general to would-be dictator real and believable. Roddy McDowell is, as usual, only too believable as the scheming, treacherous Octavian. And Richard Burton -- well, only in his alcohol-fueled pipe dreams does Russell Crowe even come close to standing in his shadow. And the supporting cast is as excellent, although I found Hume Cronyn somewhat bland and wooden.

And, with the exception of a few painted backdrops, there are no "special effects" (and those hardly count). All of those sets were built from the ground up. All of those sphinxes. Everything. And then there is that triumphal entrance into Rome. The movie is worth seeing just for that scene.

Interestingly, Cleopatra's hairstyle and clothing becomes increasingly modern as the film progresses. Her straight, chin-length bob eventually morphs into a waist-length mane of romantic curls, while her initially sheer, revealing vaguely Egyptian robes give way to demure, almost matronly dresses after she becomes a mother and a woman in love. She is no longer a powerful political threat, no longer able to use her sexual abilities to manipulate men.

I won't bore you with a repetition of the plot, as we all know the story, but I did discover something fascinating. Evidence of First Contact. I thought they were Vulcans at first, but then I realized that, of course, they were Romulans. Romulans were behind the fall of the Egyptian empire. Oh, yes. If you don't believe me, take a look at this. He was going by the name of Ramos (Ramos -- Romulan. A coincidence? I think not). I saw at least two more in the Egyptian military.