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Julius Caesar (miniseries)

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2003 American miniseries
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Julius Caesar
Written byPeter Pruce
Craig Warner
Directed byUli Edel
StarringJeremy Sisto
Richard Harris
Christopher Walken
Valeria Golino
Chris Noth
Pamela Bowen
Country of originUnited States, Italy, Netherlands, Germany
Original languageEnglish
Production
ProducersJonas Bauer
Russell Kagan
Piria Paolo
Running time178 minutes
Original release
NetworkTNT
ReleaseJune 29 (2003-06-29) –
June 30, 2003 (2003-06-30)

Julius Caesar is a 2003 miniseries about the life of Julius Caesar. It was directed by Uli Edel and written by Peter Pruce and Craig Warner. It is a dramatization of the life of Caesar from 82 BC to his death in 44 BC. It was one of the last two films starring Richard Harris, released in the year of his death. The series was originally broadcast on TNT in two parts, airing June 29 and 30, 2003, with the tagline His Time Has Come. The miniseries was nominated for two Emmys for Outstanding Makeup for a Miniseries and Outstanding Sound Editing. It also has a full movie video release, combining the two episodes into one movie.

Plot

The series begins in 82 BC when Julius Caesar is 18 years old. He is out in the town with his daughter Julia (who in real history was not yet born) when news comes that Sulla is outside Rome with his army. The guards sent with the news post death lists on the Senate door. When Caesar sees that his father-in-law is on the list, he tries to rescue him only to be arrested by an officer of Sulla's army, Pompey. Caesar's mother, Aurelia, asks Sulla to show him mercy; out of respect for her, he promises to let Caesar live if he divorces his wife Cornelia, but Caesar refuses. Sulla then releases him anyway but orders Pompey to carve out his heart so that it may be presented publicly. Pompey defies the order, sending Caesar into exile from Rome and presenting his superior with a swine's heart.

Caesar is kidnapped by pirates while sailing into exile. When the sailors sent to ask his family for ransom fail to return, the pirates plan to kill him. Caesar bargains to fight one of them for an extra day and wins, then has a seizure; the pirates are about to throw him into the sea just as a ship arrives with the ransom money. Back in Rome, Sulla dies of a heart attack and Caesar resumes his political career. While he was gone Cornelia falls ill and Julia befriends Portia, daughter of Caesar's rival Marcus Porcius Cato, her brother Marcus and their cousin Brutus.

When Cornelia dies from her illness, Caesar swears at her funeral that he will make Rome a better place. Around this time the same pirates who held him captive cut off the grain supply. The Senate send Pompey to deal with the problem after Caesar convinces them that he will not take the city with his army like Sulla did. Several years later, Pompey returns to Rome and learns that Caesar has been elected consul. On the day of Pompey's triumph Julia, Portia and Marcus decide to go and Portia insists on dragging Brutus along with them. At the triumph, Caesar has another seizure but is aided by the noblewoman Calpurnia. At Pompey's welcome home party, while Pompey gets on well with Julia, Caesar notices Calpurnia who he doesn't remember from their encounter before.

Caesar tells his mother that he intends to follow Pompey's example and gain recognition through military service. Julia offers to help her father by marrying Pompey, thus binding the two men in alliance and giving Caesar control of Pompey's legions and logistics network. Pompey agrees and he marries Julia. He permits Caesar to lead his forces in the conquest of Gaul. Calpurnia tells Caesar that she knows about his "falling sickness" and he confesses that it shames him. Before he goes to Gaul, Caesar marries Calpurnia and the two of them remain in contact through letters.

While sacking a town in Gaul, Caesar comes across a strong-willed warrior who refuses to give in to the Romans attacking his home. He tells Caesar his name is Vercingetorix. Caesar asks him why he is willing to die for something that will be destroyed no matter what, and the warrior replies "because it is mine". Admiring his strength of will, Caesar gives him his finest horse and his freedom. However, Vercingetorix then leads a great army of Gauls against Caesar at the Battle of Alesia. Outnumbered and surrounded, Caesar's army nevertheless emerges victorious.

Back in Rome, Julia dies in childbirth, and Pompey begins to turn against Caesar after news arrives of his victories. He allies with Cato to attack Caesar politically. Caesar sends his partisan Mark Antony to argue against his enemies in the Senate, but the brash and arrogant attitude of Antony only worsens the situation. Pompey begins planning to attack Caesar before he can march to Rome while Cato persuades the Senate to demand that Caesar surrender his generalship before entering Rome. Knowing that he will be declared an enemy of the state for doing so, Caesar crosses the Rubicon with his men and marches on Rome.

Pompey, Cato and Brutus flee the city to organize the anti-Caesar forces in Greece. Caesar compels the Senate to appoint him dictator. He then crushes the armies of Pompey at the Battle of Pharsalus, but Pompey escapes to Egypt. Caesar pardons the captured soldiers of Pompey, including Brutus, to whom he says that if anyone wants peace they shall have it. Pompey arrives in Alexandria and is immediately killed on the orders of the boy king Ptolemy XIII. When Caesar arrives, he is given Pompey's head as a gift but is visibly angered. Cleopatra VII meets and seduces Caesar and manipulates his anger by persuading him to depose Ptolemy and install her as ruler of Egypt. Going on to Utica to find Cato and his son, Caesar wins the Battle of Thapsus. Cato refuses to beg for Caesar's pardon and commits suicide by falling on his sword.

With the civil war over, Caesar returns to Rome with his new ally Cleopatra and their son Caesarion. The senators become convinced that he plans to dissolve the Republic and declare himself king. Cassius, the principal mover of the plot, convinces his brother-in-law Brutus to join them as Brutus is known for his honesty. Calpurnia has a dream about Caesar's death and begs him not to attend the Senate that day, but he ignores her advice. When he takes his seat on the Ides of March, the plotting senators mob Caesar, stab him several times and then flee from the building. Calpurnia learns of the plot from Brutus's wife Portia and rushes to the Senate to find him dying alone on the floor.

Cast

Production

Filming took place in Malta and Bulgaria.

Home media

The miniseries was released on DVD in 2004 in the United States and in 2005 in the United Kingdom. The DVD contains a making-of featurette.

See also

References

  1. "Ancient History and Culture". Archived from the original on 2006-02-05. Retrieved 2005-12-31.
  2. Cast details. IMDb.com. Retrieved 11 February 2020

External links

Films directed by Uli Edel
Theatrical films
Television
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