Although in the history, Cleopatra, queen of Egypt, was regarded as a femme fatale, having a murderous heart and being expert in playing tricks. In the film of Cleopatra, it shows a totally different figure and characteristic of this extraordinary woman.
Actually, I am entirely moved by this woman, and show great respect for her bravery and wisdom.
Firstly, Cleopatra loved her country and was devoted to her people. When she found that her people were starving just because the national granary could only afford the accumulating debts to Rome, she immediately ordered to open the granary and served out the grains to her people. Therefore, as for a governor, she always put the people’s interests at first. In addition, although there was another version that she offered herself to Caesar was just for sake of her reign, this kind of sacrifice, without any doubt, certainly protected Egypt from being governed directly by Rome.
Secondly, Cleopatra was a woman full of wisdom. She possessed a great military leadership and was skilled in conquering her nation, as well as gaining popular support. In most people’s eyes, she was a dissolute woman, for she had affairs with Caesar and then married Caesar’s general Antony. While at the beginning, this behavior was just one of her plans to protect Egypt, and it turned out to be effective, which surely implied her wisdom of catching and conquering men’s hearts.
Thirdly, in this film, Cleopatra was not a vamp or a wantonly woman at all. As far as I am concerned, during the two periods of her romance, she did fall in love with Caesar and Antony genuinely. She felt quite delighted when she found she was pregnant, and felt rather sorrowful for the death of Caesar. Especially, she did not follow the advice to behead Antony for sake of safety. Even the ending of her life can show her loyalty to her lover. She committed suicide after the death of Antony, died in dignity and died for love, as well.
However, destiny gave Cleopatra a mysterious and tragic ending, and throughout the history, people judged and concluded this woman in different ways. But there are some things can not be denied. In her reign, Egypt avoided direct domination by Rome, and the civilization of Egypt was also developed.
Actually, the history of Cleopatra remains too many mysteries, such as the death of the queen and even her true appearance. My article is simply a short review of the movie Cleopatra, and I only share what I thought based on the plots of the movie.
