Caligula: The Ultimate Cut

Audience Reviews

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Brian N Two stars is a step up from my zero stars for the original version. Kudos to the team that went through 90 hours of footage to assemble this film. It is much more coherent and the performances seem more noteworthy, especially McDowell and Mirren. Still, the movie is overlong and some.if the soft core porn becomes a distraction. Rated 2/5 Stars •  Rated 2 out of 5 stars 09/18/24 Full Review Jacob B One of the most notorious films is finally given a new lease on life. When I saw the restored version of “Heavens Gate” on the Criterion Collections Blu Ray issue, I saw a truly great film emerge from the ashes of the unwarranted butcher job the studio had given it when it was release theatrically in the early 80’s. A masterpiece that had been destroyed and was rising like a phoenix. “Caligula” always seemed to me to be a film that underneath the gross pornography and obscene violence could be a great film. I hoped that maybe like “Heavens Gate” it would be pieced together and restored and a great film would emerge. It took 40 years, but someone did it. And not just a simple “Directors Cut”, this is a new movie built entirely from rediscovered pieces of unused film. This edit is brilliantly pieced together in high definition with minimal CGI, the pornography is taken out, scenes are restored and reordered as closely to Gore Vidals script as was possible and every shot used for any scene that was in the theatrical cut is new. It’s looks spectacular. The grandiose sets are finally able to be seen clearly. Scenes are played out to full effect and not interrupted by porn. Helen Mirrens character is given much more screen time and a lot more to do. Malcom McDowells performance is finally able to be seen clearly and comes off as one of his better ones. However….theres still a problem. It’s just not a great film. On the plus side: it is outstanding to think of the time and dedication it took to assemble this cut, it looks like a beautiful homage to Fellini’s “Satyricon”, and you can now hear glimpses of the political satire that Vidal tried to write, and one performance, that of Peter O’Toole, genuinely chills the bone. But on the minus side: it’s still a drag. It’s boring! There’s no forward momentum and no urgency in the story telling. Despite all the restoration and re-editing, it moves like a fractured tableaux—a large story with pieces still missing; pieces that I’m sure were never written nor filmed, thus it is impossible for anyone to recreate a work of art, because apparently it’s just not there. And while it’s frustrating to not see a great film emerge from the wreckage that Penthouse caused, and however frustrating it may be to think what might have been had Vidals vision been filmed, it’s nice to finally have a beautifully restored print of what could’ve been a great film…if only……. Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 03/26/25 Full Review Todd B A movie about culture. Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 12/28/24 Full Review Pete S Simply dreadful. Nothing more to say other than don’t waste your time. Rated 1/5 Stars •  Rated 1 out of 5 stars 02/04/25 Full Review Ricky T Gielgud, O'Toole, Mirren and McDowell- what a great cast- problem is I chose this film to show to my grade 9 history class. Now, I'm looking for a new job- oh well. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 10/22/24 Full Review Milos B Stunningly re-imagined 3 hours of never-before-seen footage of the original 1979 masterpiece from director Tinto Brass. Modernized, polished and refined with CGI effects just the right measure, to make it more relevant to today's times. It is also interesting that during the montage this time, Gore Vidal's original script was followed, in contrast to the director and main protagonist Malcolm McDowell, who we know did not care much about it. While the original film deserved the highest marks, this production failed a bit in terms of the overall impression and the choice of shots, which is not surprising, because allegedly no original footage was used. Don't blame the author of the text for not being convinced of it immediately afterwards, before watching the original version again, it takes some time to digest this achievement, because it really leaves you breathless. Also, it is impossible to overemphasize McDowell's once masterful acting, even compared to John Hurt's inspired interpretation from the 1973 BBC series "I, Claudius", which preceded this film. An absolute must-see if you're a fan of the original. Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 10/19/24 Full Review Read all reviews

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