Caligula (Three-Disc Imperial Edition)
Starring: Malcolm McDowell, Helen Mirren, Peter O'TooleStudio: Image Entertainment
MPAA Rating: X (Mature Audiences Only)
Format: Box set, Color, DVD-Video, Special Edition, Widescreen, NTSC
Running Time: 156 minutes
DVD Release: October 2nd 2007
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DVD Review
Remember the dumbstruck, jaw-dropped expressions on "Springtime for Hitler's" shocked opening-night audience in Mel Brooks's original film of The Producers? That will no doubt be your face through much of the two-and-a-half-hour running time of this infamous 1979 pornographic epic that was a (Penthouse) pet project of publisher Bob Guccione. That's not necessarily a bad thing. But don't take our word for it. Listen to Helen Mirren--yes, the Oscar-winning Queen herself--who stars as Caesonia, Caligula's third wife and "the most promiscuous woman in Rome" (and in this film's salacious vision of Pagan Rome, that is saying something). In her very gracious, thoughtful and candid audio commentary that alone is worth the price of this set, she remarks, "I think it's a movie that is unlike any other, which is difficult to achieve." And for those of a more prurient bent, she adds, "It has an awful lot of bottoms." Malcolm McDowell (A Clockwork Orange) gives a brave and fearless performance as Caligula, the hated and feared emperor corrupted by absolute power and no doubt voted Most Likely to Be Assassinated. The film unflinchingly charts his plummet into madness and the brutality of his reign in scenes of hardcore sex and violence that cannot be described here ("I can't watch," Mirren cries to her interviewers over one scene in which unfortunate characters are beheaded by a blade-spinning combine. "I can't even listen to it").
Caligula is also a career curiosity for author Gore Vidal, who wrote the original screenplay, but later demanded his name be removed from the credits, and venerable actors Peter O'Toole, appearing briefly as the syphilitic Emperor Tiberius Caesar, and John Gielgud as Nerva, a Senator who'd rather take his own life than "live with this reptile." This controversial film's tortured history is untangled in a very helpful booklet that is packaged along with this set's three discs. One is hard-pressed to think of a more reviled film graced with such a gala presentation, but Caligula's defenders and the curious will be amply rewarded with both the original uncut theatrical version of the film and a re-edited alternate version. Supplementary material includes an hour of deleted footage, a pretentious "making of" documentary made during the film's production and a new interview with director Tinto Brass, whose softcore tendencies clashed with Guccioni's more extreme vision (Brass did not have final cut, allowing Guccione to insert more explicit footage into the film). McDowell contributes his own lively audio commentary. "God help us," he groans as the film begins, but by its bloody conclusion, he proclaims he has "no regrets at all" about making the film. Caligula, Mirren maintains, is "an irresistible mix of art and genitals." And you've got to hand it to Guccione. Especially in these politically correct times, it is still strong and scandalous stuff. --Donald Liebenson
User Reviews
What fans have been waiting for... - Rating: 5/5
It's about time! A cleaned up version with all the extras.
I give 5 stars for this release since it's clearly intended for people who are already familiar with the movie. Haters go elsewhere to rant about bad the movie is.
This edition is for those who want more of an over-the-top, surreal, gory, sexy, slutty version of Rome. Everything else is just pale shadows. You just know (or at least hope) the Romans were a lot more like the ones shown in this movie than any watered down version. ;-)
Great DVD for a troubled film - Rating: 4/5
Ahh, Caligula. A very perplexing film. For sheer shock value, films don't get much 'better' (better is a relative term, not necesarily to denote quality of work). But this DVD set is great.
Though there probably will never be an "approved" directors cut, the second disc of this DVD has something approximating Tinto Brass's vision of the film. However, there are still plenty of obvious editing issues and overall it seems that due to rewrites and some other production issues, even this version is lacking. it's primary difference is that it drops the Bob Guccione "penthouse" sequences that feature the most explicit sexual scenes. Brass's shots are pretty intense, though, and I would still imagine this film would earn an NC-17 rating, even in this form.
There are tons of great extras, among them multiple commentary tracks (on the second disc) trailers and other new interviews in addition to deleted scenes (in their raw form, so it's kind of a bore to watch) But I'd rather have too many extras than not enough. And in general you come to appreciate this bizarre and troubled film.
"Absolute power corrupts ABSOLUTELY!" - Rating: 1/5
I expected so much more going into this movie, but I got absolutely nothing. I did manage to waste my time though. The orgies that bounce from scene to scene distract you from the entire purpose of the movie. Why was this even called "Caligula"? If this dude wanted to make a porn flick then that's what he should've done, and left the historical aspect out of it. I didn't feel educated or enlightened by anything that I saw because this movie has nothing to do with ancient Roman history or anything else that would take more than 2 brain cells to appreciate. It's like watching over 2 hours of sex, sex, sex, and more sex. Don't get me wrong, I love sex, but that's all they showed, and I think to make sex the entire basis of this movie was tired and tacky. I watch porn, and I don't have a problem with sex scenes by any means, but these weren't simulated sex scenes at all. I'm afraid this was indeed the real thing. This movie has every nasty, disgusting and depraved act known to man. This movie portrayed the Romans as nothing more than sick animals who did nothing more but have sex all day. Frankly, I got nothing out of it, and I can't imagine that anybody would get anything out of it besides getting their rocks off. This movie was no holds barred incest, rape, homesexuality, Lesbianism, torture, non-stop orgies, fellatio and degrading human beings. I'm so disappointed in Malcolm McDowell, Sir John Gielgud, Peter O'Toole, and Dame Helen Mirren because their talents were wasted on something that was nothing more than meaningless smut. With actors like this I expected a MASTERPIECE! Honestly, I can't think of one good thing to say about this movie except...PLEASE GET YOUR KIDS OUT OF THE HOUSE IF YOU'RE GONNA WATCH THIS MOVIE!!!
A spectacular new edition - Rating: 5/5
This new edition of CALIGULA is entirely superior to any previous video release of the film, in fact, I suspect it probably looks better here than it did in theatres. Image has spared no expense in this stuning "imperial" edition, and it is so lavish and luxurious that it would have no doubt pleased the emperor Caligula himself. The most important feature of this release is of course how the film looks and sounds. I've owned every previous release of this film (including the Beta video tape and the LaserDisc) and I truly felt like I was watching the movie for the first time. CALIGULA is never going to look too sharp and clear, simply because of the way Tinto Brass photographed it, but I think in this edition we now have the film in it's ultimate form. The colors are bright and vibrant and background details of the awesome sets by Danilo Donati can now be seen for the first time. Lines of dialogue that I had never been able to make out before now come clearly from my speakers for the first time. It is simply amazing what Image has done with the prints. Speaking of which, we now have an entirely new cut of the film and it is a masterwork. Gone is all of Bob Guccione's hardcore pornography (and lets face it, that is what it was) and instead we are able to see for the first time the beautiful footage that Brass shot for scenes like the Tiberius Grotto and the Bordello ship. The film also unfolds differently with scenes restored to their intended running order as scripted by Gore Vidal. The woods sequence no longer opens the film but appears (in an extended form with never before seen footage) in it's proper place in the middle of the film. I will say that the editing on all of the new footage is a bit rough and it does not appear to have been "cleaned up" as much as the rest of the film stock but this is a minor complaint. / Still there is so much more to this edition of CALIGULA than just the two cuts of the film. There are three theatrical trailers that are real treasures. There are also three marvelous commentary tracks from Malcolm McDowell, Helen Mirren and journalist Ernest Volkman. These often humorous commentaries alone would be worth the price of the video but there is SO MUCH MORE. There is a half hour interview with John "Longinus" Steiner. A full half hour interview with Lori Wagner, the actress who played Agripina (or was it Messillina?) in the Guccione porn footage. Most importantly there is an in depth interview with director Tinto Brass that is fascinating. AND STILL THERE IS MORE MORE MORE! How about an hours worth of deleted and extended scenes? This footage has not been remastered and it is often in rough shape but it is still amazing to see it. There is also around an hours worth of behind the scenes footage. The DOCUMENTARY ON THE MAKING OF GORE VIDAL'S CALIGULA is imported here from the 20th Anniversary DVD release but this time there are TWO VERSIONS, one long and one short (can you believe it?). There are also extensive still photo archives that will take you a long time to watch and trust me, these photos are worth looking at and they will show you a lot about how CALIGULA was made. There are loads of photos of Tinto Brass directing as well as fotos of Gore "I'm taking my name off this" Vidal on the set. As if all this was not enough, you can put the disc in your computer and read not one but two versions of the Gore Vidal screenplay as well as the complete novel based on the screenplay. There are also photos of the Penthouse Pets who did the porno footage as well as an unintentionally funny interview with Bob Guccione. Now we all owe a great debt to Bob, without whom there would have been no CALIGULA (at least not as we know it today) but I've gotta say that he comes off as a pretty crazy fellow in the magazine interviews and to here him blathering on interminably about "art" and "excellence" and trying to appear sophisticated had me doubled over with laughter. Not surprisingly, no one in the commentaries or interviews has much nice to say about him (Tinto Brass gives him the easiest time I suppose) but if Bob had not decided to take an already risque film and insert some explicit porn into it, I doubt very much whether we would still be sitting around talking about CALIGULA today. And now we have the best of both worlds because those who love CALIGULA for its porno aspects have disc one and those who love CALIGULA as a historical art film have disc two, and those who just want a cool fast paced sword and sandal kind of thing (or a version you can share with your grandmother) can buy the new R rated release that is sold seperately and also looks and sounds spectacular. / I forgot to mention that the imperial edition comes in a high quality slip case and fold out inner keepcase with beautiful artwork of the cast. Each of the three discs feature a photo of a different cast member, McDowell, Mirren and O'Toole. Now certainly this is the longest review I ever wrote for Amazon but it is also the most spectacular release I have ever seen of any DVD. It truly sets a new standard for what a special edition should be. Congratulations to all involved.
historical - Rating: 1/5
I thought this was going to be a history of the movie/people--but it was just an xxxporn movie. I was "very" disappointed as was my husband. The acting was very poor also.
