Julius Caesar (1953)

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1. 

   Siskoid

   1953's MGM production of Shakespeare's Julius Caesar feels rather old-fashioned and consequently doesn't stick too firmly in the mind. The large Roman sets are a highlight, and some of the leads give strong performances, but the direction is a little dull, and the story seems to crash to a halt rather suddenly. I don't normally take issue with American actors in Shakespeare, but sometimes the mish-mash of accents can be distracting; so it is here. But James Mason is sympathetic and watchable as Brutus, and Marlon Brando's Marc Anthony gets all the big moments he deserves and knocks them out of the park (at the time, this was completely against type, as he'd always played naturalistic mumblers and grunters). John Gielgud is Cassius, so you know the character is in good hands. I'm not sure Louis Calhern necessarily gives me something interesting with Caesar himself though. In any case, performances aside, this production hits all the necessary beats, but never wows me. 6 years 1 month ago
2. 

   armyofshadows

   great performance from Brando; very good adaptation 12 years 8 months ago
3. 

   ucuruju

   Brando absolutely nails the most passive-aggressive, manipulative speech in all of Shakespeare. The rest of the cast are very good too-- to a certain extent the real MVPs are Mason and Gielgud-- it's just that Marc Anthony gets the play's best moment. Visually it's a bit too nondescript. Willy doesn't need much help to grab our attention but Mank could've done more. I enjoyed it overall. 2 years ago

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