Serpent of the Nile (1953)

Director:

William Castle

Writer:

Robert E. Kent (writer)

Release Date:

8 May 1953 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure

Plot:

Plot Keywords:

Beautiful Woman

Cast

Rhonda Fleming	...	Cleopatra
William Lundigan	...	Lucilius
Raymond Burr	...	Mark Anthony
Jean Byron	...	Charmion (Cleopatra's handmaiden)
Michael Ansara	...	Capt. Florus (Cleopatra's guard)
Michael Fox	...	Octavius
Conrad Wolfe	...	The elderly assassin
John Crawford	...	Capt. Domitius (Marc Antony's army)
June Easton	...	Cytheris
Robert Griffin	...	Brutus
Frederic Berest	...	Marculius
Julie Newmar	...	The gilded girl (as Julie Newmeyer)

Runtime:

81 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

Finland:K-16 | USA:Approved (PCA #16107) | Sweden:15

Company:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

Used sets from Salome (1953).

Seldom seen low budget version is in some ways better than the mammoth Taylor-Burton opus.

In this modestly budgeted and seldom seen version of the story, Rhonda Fleming stands out as the most luscious incarnation of the notorious title queen to date, with the possible exception of Linda Cristal. The film's glorious color makes up for its less than lavish sets, and the brisk pace of the action is a refreshing contrast to the longer, lumbering version. Lundigan makes a handsome if unwilling Roman lover, Burr is an adequate Antony, but Fox is a laughable Octavius who acts more like he came from Rome, N.Y. (Too bad Roddy McDowall wasn't cast in this one.) Altogether an entertaining entry in the Cleopatra sagas.