All language subtitles for The Caesar And Cleopatra (1945)

By Apis!

Persian, thy gods are good to thee.

Try yet again, O
Captain. Double or quits.

No more. I'm not in the vein.

Captain! A stranger approaches!

Stand! Who goes there?

The bearer of evil tidings.

Pass him in!

Who art thou that laughest in the
house of Cleopatra the queen...

and in the teeth of
Belzanor, the captain of her guard?

I am Bel Affris,
descended from the gods.

- Hail, cousin.
- Hail, cousin!

All the queen's guards are descended from the gods
- save myself.

I am a Persian descended
from many kings.

Hail, cousins.

Hail, mortal.

You have been in battle, Bel Affris,
and you are a soldier among soldiers.

You will not let the queen's
women have the first of your tidings.

I have no tidings...

except that we shall all have
our throats cut presently-

women, soldiers and all.

I thought so. Tell us what befell.

- Aye! Tell us!
- Tell us! Tell us!

Know then that I serve in the guard
of the temple of Ra here in Memphis.

We went to Alexandria to
inquire of King Ptolemy...

how we of Egypt should
deal with the Roman, Pompey...

newly come to our shores after
his defeat by Caesar at Pharsalia.

Caesar defeated Pompey? Does
Roman, then, fight Roman?

Even as Egyptian fights Egyptian.

What did you learn from the queen's
brother, Ptolemy the pretender?

We learnt that Caesar is coming
also in hot pursuit of his foe...

and that Ptolemy has slain Pompey.

Nay, more. We found that
Caesar is already come.

For we had not made half a
day's journey on our way back...

when we came upon a city
rabble flying from his legions.

And ye the temple guard
- did you not withstand these legions?

What men could, that we did.

But this Caesar throws a legion
at you where you are weakest...

as he throws a stone from a catapult.

And that legion is as a man with one
head, a thousand arms... and no religion.

I have fought against
them, and I know.

Were you frightened, cousin?

No, cousin, but I was beaten.

- Could you not die?
- There was no time.

All was over in a moment.

But now I am come to warn you that
you must open your gates to Caesar...

for his advance guard is
scarce an hour behind me...

and there is not an Egyptian warrior left
standing between you and his legions.

- Woe! Alas!
- Nail him to the door! Quick!

Now this news will run through the
palace like fire through stubble.

What shall we do to save
the women from the Romans?

- Why not kill them?
- Because we should have to pay blood money.

Better let the Romans
kill them. It's cheaper.

- O subtle one. O serpent.
- But your queen.

True. We must carry off Cleopatra. I
will take her on the crupper of my horse.

Fly! Fly!

- What's the matter now?
- The sacred white cat has been stolen!

Hail, Sphinx.

Salutation from Julius Caesar.

I have wandered in many
lands seeking the lost region...

from which my birth into
this world exiled me...

and the company of
creatures such as I myself.

I found flocks and
pastures, men and cities...

but no other Caesar-

no air native to me,
no man kindred to me...

none who can do my day's
deed or think my night's thought.

In the little world yonder, Sphinx...

my place is as high as
yours in this great desert.

Only I wander, and you sit still.

I conquer, and you endure.

I work and wonder.

You watch and wait.

Sphinx, you and I - strangers
to the race of men -

are no strangers to one another.

Have I not been conscious of you and
of this place since I was born?

Rome is a madman's dream.

This is my reality.

My way hither was
the way of destiny...

for I am he of whose
genius you are the symbol-

part brute, part woman...

and part god.

Nothing of man in me at all.

Have I read your riddle, Sphinx?

Old gentleman.

Immortal gods.

Old gentleman, don't run away.

"Old gentleman, don't run away"?

- This to Julius Caesar?
- Old gentleman.

Sphinx, you presume
on your centuries.

I'm younger than you, though your
voice is but a girl's voice as yet.

Climb up here, quickly, or the
Romans will come and eat you.

A child at its breast.

A divine child.

Come up, quickly.

You must get up at its
side and creep round.

Who are you?

Cleopatra, queen of Egypt.

Queen of the Gypsies, you mean.

You mustn't be disrespectful to me, or
the sphinx will let the Romans eat you.

Come up. It's quite cozy here.

What a dream.

What a magnificent dream.

Only let me not wake.

Take care.

Ah. That's right. Now sit down.

You may have the other paw.

It is very powerful
and will protect us...

but it wouldn't take any
notice of me or keep me company.

I'm glad you've
come. I was very lonely.

Did you happen to
see a white cat anywhere?

Have you lost one?

Yes. The sacred white
cat. Isn't it dreadful?

I brought him here to
sacrifice him to the sphinx.

But when we got a little way from
the city, a black cat called him...

and he jumped out of my
arms and ran away to it.

Do you think that the
black cat can have been...

my
great-great-great-grandmother?

Your
great-great-great-grandmother?

Well, why not? Nothing would
surprise me on this night of nights.

I think it must have been.

My
great-great-grandmother's great-grandmother...

was a black kitten of
the sacred white cat.

And my blood is made with Nile water.

That is why my hair is so wavy.

What are you doing
here this time of night?

- Do you live here?
- Of course not. I am the queen.

And I shall live in the palace of Alexandria when
I've killed my brother who drove me out of it.

When I'm old enough, I
shall do just what I like.

I shall be able to poison the
slaves and see them wriggle...

and pretend to Ftatateeta, my nurse, that
she's to be put into the fiery furnace.

Meanwhile, why are you
not at home and in bed?

Because the Romans are
coming to eat us all.

- You aren't at home in bed either.
- Oh, yes, I am.

I live in a tent, and I am now in
that tent fast asleep and dreaming.

Do you suppose I believe you are
real, you impossible little dream witch?

You are a funny old
gentleman. I like you.

That spoils the dream.

Why don't you dream that I'm young?

I wish you were. Only I think
I should be more afraid of you.

I like men, especially young
men with round, strong arms.

But I'm afraid of them.

You are old and rather wrinkly.

But you have a nice voice, and I
like to have someone to talk to.

Though I think you are a little mad.

It is the moon that makes you talk
to yourself in that silly way.

Oh, you heard that, did you?

I was saying my prayers
to the Great Sphinx.

- But this isn't the Great Sphinx.
- What?

This is only a dear little
kitten of the sphinx.

Why, the Great Sphinx is so big,
it has a temple between its paws.

This is my pet sphinx.

Tell me. Do you think the
Romans have any sorcerers...

who could take us away
from the sphinx by magic?

Why? Are you afraid of the Romans?

Oh, they would eat us if they
caught us. They are barbarians.

Their chief is called Julius Caesar.

His father was a tiger and his
mother a burning mountain...

and his nose is like
an elephant's trunk.

They all have long noses and
ivory tusks and little tails...

and seven arms with a
hundred arrows in each.

And they live on human flesh.

Would you like me to
show you a real Roman?

No. Oh, you're frightening me.

No matter. This is only a dream.

It is not a dream. It
is not a dream. See?

How dare you!

You said you were dreaming. I
- I only wanted to show you.

Oh, come, come. Don't cry.

A queen mustn't cry.

Cleopatra, can you see my face well?

Yes.

It is so white in the moonlight.

Are you sure it is the moonlight...

that makes me look
whiter than an Egyptian?

Do you notice that I
have a rather long nose?

It is a Roman nose, Cleopatra.

Bite him in two,
sphinx! Bite him in two!

I meant to sacrifice the white
cat. Indeed I did. Indeed!

Cleopatra, shall I show you a way
to prevent Caesar from eating you?

Do, do, do. I will steal the
crown jewels and give them to you.

I will make the river Nile water
your lands twice a year.

My child, your gods are
afraid of the Romans.

You see? The sphinx dare not bite me nor
prevent me carrying you off to Julius Caesar.

You won't. You won't.
You said you wouldn't.

Caesar never eats women, but
he eats girls and cats.

Now, you're a silly little girl, and
you're descended from the black kitten.

You're both a girl and a cat.

- And will he... eat me?
- Yes.

Unless you make him
believe that you're a woman.

Oh. Then you must get a
sorcerer to make a woman of me.

- Are you a sorcerer?
- Perhaps.

But it'll take a long time, and this very
night in the palace of your fathers...

you must stand
face-to-face with Caesar.

No, no. I daren't!

Whatever dread may be in your soul, however
terrible Caesar may be to you...

you must confront him as a
brave woman and a great queen.

And you must feel no fear.

If your hand shakes,
if your voice quavers...

then night and death.

But if he thinks
you worthy to rule...

he will set you on the throne by his
side and make you the real ruler of Egypt.

No. He will find me
out. He will find me out.

He is easily deceived by women.

- Their eyes dazzle him.
- Then we will cheat him.

If you do that, he will
eat you at one mouthful.

Oh, no, no. Please. I will be
good. I will do whatever you tell me.

I will be your slave.

- Hark.
- What was that?

Caesar's voice.

Let us run away. Come! Oh, come!

You are safe with me until you stand
on your throne to receive Caesar.

- Lead me to your palace in the desert.
- Oh, I will. I will.

Come, come, come. The gods are angry.

- Do you not feel the earth shaking?
- It is the tread of Caesar's legions.

This way, quickly. And let us
look for the white cat as we go.

It is he who has
turned you into a Roman.

Incorrigible.

Oh, incorrigible.

Come! Oh, come!

Ftatateeta?

What place is this?

This is where I sit when I'm
allowed to wear my crown and robes.

Ftatateeta!

Order the slave to light the lamps.

- Do you think I may?
- Of course.

You're the queen. Go on.

Light all the lamps.

Stop!

Who is this you have with you?

How dare you order the lamps to
be lighted without my permission?

Who is she?

- Ftatateeta. -
Chief Nurse to -

I speak to the queen. Be silent.

Is this how your servants know
their place? Send her away.

Do as the queen has bid you.

You are the queen. Send her away.

Ftatateeta, dear, you must
go away. just for a little.

You're not commanding her
to go. You're begging her.

You're no queen. You'll
be eaten. Farewell.

No, no, no! Don't leave me.

A Roman does not stay with
queens who are afraid of their slaves.

I am not afraid. Indeed,
I am not afraid.

We shall see who is afraid here.

- Cleopatra - - On
your knees, woman!

Am I also a child that
you dare trifle with me?

Slave.

Can you cut off a head?

Yes.

Have you remembered
yourself, mistress?

O Queen, forget not thy
servant in the days of thy greatness.

Go! Begone!

Go away!

Give me something to beat her with.

So, you scratch, kitten, do you?

I must beat somebody.

I will beat him.

There!

There! There! There!

I am a queen at last.

A real, real queen.

Cleopatra, the queen.

Oh, I love you for making me a queen.

But queens love only kings.

I will make all the men I love kings.

I will have many young
kings with round, strong arms.

And when I am tired of
them, I shall whip them to death.

But you will always be my king -

my nice, kind, wise, good old king.

Oh, my wrinkles.

You will be the most
dangerous of all Caesar's conquests.

Caesar? I forgot Caesar.

You will tell him that I'm a
queen, won't you? A real queen.

Listen.

Let us run away and
hide until Caesar is gone.

If you fear Caesar,
you are no true queen.

And though you were to
hide beneath a pyramid...

he would go straight to
it and lift it with one hand.

And then -

Be afraid if you dare.

- Caesar approaches the palace of Cleopatra.
- Oh!

Come.

Take your place.

Ho there, Teetatota.

How do you call your slaves?

Clap your hands.

Totateeta.

Bring the queen's robes
and her crown and her women.

And prepare.

Yes, the crown,
Ftatateeta. I shall wear the crown.

For whom must the
queen put on her state?

For a citizen of
Rome. A king of kings.

How dare you ask questions!

Go and do as you are told.

Of all the queen's
women, these two alone are left.

- The rest are fled.
- Two are enough.

Poor Caesar generally
has to dress himself.

The queen of Egypt is
not a Roman barbarian.

Be brave, my nursling. Hold up
your head before this stranger.

Are you trembling?

No, I
- I -

You must tell Caesar
that I am the queen.

He will not ask me.

He will know Cleopatra by
her pride, her courage...

her majesty and her beauty.

Is it sweet or bitter to
be a queen, Cleopatra?

Bitter.

Cast out fear and you
will conquer Caesar.

Halt! Forward, sentinel!

Fly! Fly!

Fly! The Romans are in the courtyard!

- The Romans are in the courtyard!
- We are lost!

The queen must face Caesar alone.

Answer "So be it."

So be it.

Good.

You are my nursling. You
have said "So be it."

And if you die for it, you
must make the queen's word good.

Forward march!

Now, if you quail -

Hail, Caesar!

Hail, Caesar!

Ripe figs!

Fresh mackerel!

Fresh mackerel!

Fresh mackerel!

Fresh mackerel!

Fresh mackerel!

The Romans! The Romans!

They're coming!

- They're coming!
- The Romans are coming!

- What are you running away from?
- My children! My children!

The Romans won't eat them.

They're as civilized as you or I.

Halt!

Attention!

We wait here for our
second in command, Rufio.

This city is Alexandria.

Remember that
- Alexandria, the capital of Egypt.

You've got to behave yourselves here.

Be stiffish with the men, but
you may fraternize with the women.

Silence!

Silence, I tell you!

That is Rufio.

Attention!

Half turn left!

- Half turn left!
- Half turn right!

- Centurion.
- Sir!

See that building? That's
the royal palace.

Caesar's in there. I'm
going now to join him.

Keep a platoon of picked men
within call. They may be wanted.

- Picked men. You understand.
- Yes, sir.

- What are these Romans? Peasants brought up to scare crows.
- Number three, fall out!

Sons of smiths, millers and tanners.

And are we not nobles consecrated
to arms, descended from the gods?

The gods are not always
good to their poor relations.

O subtle one. O serpent.

... 16, 18, 24-

Let us wait and take
sides with the winner.

- Ptolemy.
- Cleopatra.

Cleopatra... or Ptolemy.

The king of Egypt
has a word to speak.

Peace! For the king's word.

Take notice of this, all of you!

I am the first-born son of
Auletes the Flute Blower...

who was your king.

My sister Berenice drove
him from his throne...

and reigned in this
stead, but - but -

- "The gods would
not suffer"- - Yes.

The gods would not suff-

- The gods
- - "Impiety."

I forget what the
gods would not suffer.

The king wished to say the gods would not
suffer the impiety of his sister to go unpunished.

Yes, yes. I remember the rest of it.

Therefore, the gods sent a
stranger- one Mark Antony-

a Roman captain of horsemen across
the sands of the desert...

and he set my father
again upon the throne.

"And now"-

And now that my father is dead...

my sister Cleopatra would
snatch the kingdom from me...

and reign in my place.

- But the gods would not
suffer- - "Will not maintain" -

Oh, yes. Will not
maintain such iniquity.

But with the help of
the witch Ftatateeta...

she has cast a spell on
the Roman Julius Caesar...

to uphold her false
pretense to rule Egypt.

Take notice then that
I will not suffer-

that I will not suffer-

What is it that I
will not suffer now?

The king will not suffer a foreigner to
take from him the throne of our Egypt.

Tell the king, Achillas, how many
soldiers and horsemen follow Julius Caesar.

But two Roman legions, O King.

3,000 soldiers and
scarce a thousand horsemen.

Peace, ho!

Caesar approaches.

The king permits the
Roman commander to enter.

Which is the king
- the man or the boy?

I am Pothinus, the guardian
of my lord the king.

So you're the king.

Dull work at your age, eh?

Your servant, Pothinus.

- And this gentleman?
- Achillas, the king's general.

Ah. A general.

I am a general
myself, but I began too old.

Health and many victories, Achillas.

As the gods will, Caesar.

And you, sir, are -

Theodotus, the king's tutor.

So, you teach men how
to be kings, Theodotus.

That is very clever of you.

And, uh, this place?

The council chamber of the
chancellors of the king's treasury, Caesar.

That reminds me. I want some money.

The king's treasury is poor, Caesar.

Yes. I noticed there
is but one chair in it.

Bring a chair there,
some of you, for Caesar.

- Caesar.
- Oh, no, no, my boy.

That is your chair of state.

Sit down. Sit down.

A chair for Caesar.

Sacrilege.

Sit on that, Caesar.

Oh, I forgot. I had not made my
companions known to you, Pothinus.

This gentleman is
Rufio, my comrade-in-arms.

- This is Britannus, my secretary.
- How do you do?

He is an islander from the
western end of the world.

Caesar, the tax returns.

A surplus, as you predicted.

Now, Pothinus, to business.

I want 16,000 talents.

Impossible.

There is not so much
money in the king's treasury.

The royal taxes have not been
collected for a whole year.

Oh, yes, they have, Pothinus.

My officers have been collecting
them all morning.

Is it possible that
Caesar, the conqueror of the world...

can find time to occupy himself
with such a trifle as our taxes?

My friend, taxes are the chief
business of a conqueror of the world.

You must pay, Pothinus.

But in return for your bounty, I will settle this
dispute about the throne for you, if you will.

You say the matter has
been at issue for a year.

- May I have 10 minutes at it?
- You will do as you please doubtless.

Good.

But first let us have Cleopatra here.

Cleopatra? She is not in Alexandria.

I think she is. Call Totateeta.

Ho there, Teetatota!

Who pronounces the name of
Ftatateeta, the queen's chief nurse?

No one can pronounce it,
Tota, except yourself.

Where's your mistress?

Will the queen favor us with
her presence for a moment?

Am I to behave like a queen?

Yes.

You may go, Ftatateeta.

Caesar! This is how
she treats me always!

If I am king, why is she
allowed to take everything from me?

You are not to be
king, you little crybaby.

You are to be eaten by the Romans.

Come here, my boy, and stand by me.

Take your throne. I don't want it.

Go this instant and
sit down in your place!

Go, Ptolemy. Always take a
throne when it's offered you.

- Now, Pothinus - - Aren't
you going to speak to me?

Be quiet. Open your mouth
again before I give you leave...

and you shall be eaten.

I am not afraid. A
queen must not be afraid.

Eat my husband there if
you like. He's afraid.

- Your husband? What do you mean?
- That little thing.

Husband?

Caesar, you're a stranger
here and do not know our laws.

The kings and queens of Egypt may not
marry except with our own royal blood.

Ptolemy and Cleopatra are
born king and consort...

just as they're born
brother and sister.

Caesar, this is not proper.

- Not proper?
- I say it is a scandal.

Scandal or not, my friend,
it opens the gates of peace.

Hear then what I propose.

Hear Caesar there!

Ptolemy and Cleopatra shall
reign jointly in Egypt.

Monstrous!

Peace with honor, Pothinus?

- What conceit!
- A Roman trick!

No! We will not have it!

No! No!

Caesar, be honest!

The money you are demanding
is the price of our freedom.

Take it and leave us to
settle our own affairs.

Yes. Go back to your own country.

Egypt belongs to us, not to you.

Egypt for the Egyptians!

Egypt for the Egyptians!

Egypt for the Egyptians!

Egypt for the Egyptians?

Do you forget there's a Roman
army of occupation here...

left by Aulus Gabinius when he
set up your toy king for you?

And now under my command.

I am the Roman general here, Caesar.

And also the Egyptian general, eh?

That is so, Caesar.

So you can make war on the
Egyptians in the name of Rome...

and on the Romans - on me if
necessary- in the name of Egypt.

That is so, Caesar.

And which side are you on at
present, if I may presume to ask, General?

On the side of the
right... and of the gods.

Mmm. How many men have you?

That will appear
when I take the field.

Are your men Romans? If not, it
doesn't matter how many there are.

- Insolence!
- We shall see, my friend.

It is useless to try
to bluff us, Rufio.

Caesar has been defeated
before, and he may be defeated again.

What can you do with 4,000 men?

And what can you do without
money? Away with you!

- Go back to your deaths.
- Away with Caesar!

Away with Caesar!

- Away with you! Out of our country!
- Away with Caesar!

Caesar, why do you let
them talk to you like that?

Are you afraid?

Well, my dear, what
they say is quite true.

But if you go away,
I shall not be queen.

I shall not go away
until you are queen.

What is she doing?

Achillas, if you are not a fool...

you will take that girl while
she is under your hand.

Why not take Caesar
as well, Achillas?

Well said, Rufio. Why not?

Try it, Achillas. Try it.

Let us take Caesar and hold him!

Guards! Guards there!

Peace, Egyptians!

You are Caesar's
prisoners, all of you.

Oh, no, no. By no means.

Caesar's guests, gentlemen.

Caesar's guests.

Won't you cut their heads off?

What, cut off your brother's head?

Why not? He'd cut off
mine if he got the chance.

- Wouldn't you, Ptolemy?
- I would.

I will, too, when I grow up.

- Caesar, if you attempt to detain
us - - He will succeed, Egyptian.

Make up your mind to that.

The road to Rome is open, and you
shall travel it if Caesar chooses.

I could do no less, Pothinus, to
secure the retreat of my own soldiers.

I am accountable for
every life among them.

I am the king's guardian.

I stand on my right
here. Where is your right?

It is in Rufio's scabbard, my friend.

I may not be able to
keep it there much longer.

And this is Roman justice.

Not Roman gratitude, I hope.

Is Caesar's life of so little account to
him that he forgets that we have saved it?

My life? Is that all?

Your life, your laurels, your future.

I can call a witness to
prove that but for us...

the Roman army of occupation led by
Pompey- the greatest soldier in the world -

would now have Caesar at its mercy.

Ho there, Lucius Septimius!

Come forth and testify before Caesar.

No. No.

Yes, I say. Let the military
tribune bear witness.

Lucius Septimius.

Bear witness, Lucius Septimius.

Caesar came to Egypt
in pursuit of his foe.

Did we shelter his foe?

As Pompey's foot touched
the Egyptian shore...

his head fell by the
stroke of my sword.

We have given you a full and
sweet measure of vengeance.

Vengeance? If I could
stoop to vengeance...

what would I not exact from you as
the price of this murdered man's blood?

Was he not my son-in-law,
my ancient friend?

Am I Julius Caesar,
or am I a wild beast...

that you fling to me the gray head of
the old soldier, the laureled conqueror...

and then claim my gratitude for it?

Oh, begone. You fill me with horror.

You have seen severed
heads before, Caesar.

And severed right
hands, too, I think-

some thousands of them after you
vanquished the king of the Gauls.

Did you spare him with all your
clemency? Was that vengeance?

Would that it had been.

Vengeance, at least, is human.

No, by the gods.

Those severed right hands...

and the brave king of the Gauls basely
strangled in a vault beneath the Capitol...

were a wise severity...

a necessary protection to the
commonwealth, a duty of statesmanship -

follies and fictions 10 times
bloodier than honest vengeance.

What a fool I was then.

To think that men's lives should
be at the mercy of such fools.

Lucius Septimius, pardon me.

Why should the slayer of the king of
the Gauls rebuke the slayer of Pompey?

You are free to go, all
here in this palace.

Free? Achillas's army
- renegades and all?

Free, Rufio.

Lucius Septimius, you're
free to go with the rest.

Or stay if you will, and I'll
find a place for you in my service.

The odds are against you, Caesar.

I go.

Farewell.

Come, Pothinus,
Achillas, whilst there is yet time.

Do you suppose he'd let us go if
he had our heads in his hands?

Caesar, this is not good sense.

Your duty to Rome demands that her enemies should
be prevented from doing further mischief.

It's no use talking to him, Britannus. You
may save your breath to cool your porridge.

But mark this, Caesar. Clemency's
very well for you.

But what is it for your
soldiers who have to fight tomorrow...

the men you spared yesterday?

You may give what orders you please, but
I, for one, will take no prisoners.

I'll kill my enemies in the field.

Then I shall never have
to fight them again.

Now, with your leave, I'll see
these gentry off the premises.

What? Have they left the boy alone?

Shame. Shame.

Come, Your Majesty.

Is he
- Is he turning me out of my palace?

You're welcome to stay if you wish.

Go, my boy. I'll not harm you.

But you'll be safer away
among your friends.

Here, you're in the lion's mouth.

It's not the lion I
fear, but the jackal.

Brave boy.

Little silly! You
think that very clever.

Britannus, attend the king.

Give him in charge of
that Pothinus fellow.

And this piece of goods
- what's to be done with her?

However, I suppose I
may leave that to you.

Did you mean me to go with the rest?

You're free to do just
as you please, Cleopatra.

Then you don't care whether
I stay or not.

Of course, I'd rather you stayed.

Much, much rather?

Much, much rather.

Then I consent to stay
- because I am asked.

But I do not want to, mind.

That is quite understood.

Totateeta!

Her name is not
Totateeta. 'Tis Ftatateeta.

Well, Taflatafeeta will
forgive the erring tongue of a Roman.

Tota, the queen will hold
state here in Alexandria.

Engage women to attend upon
her and do all that is needful.

Am I then the mistress of
the queen's household?

No. I am mistress of
the queen's household.

Go and do as you are told, or I will have
you thrown into the Nile this very afternoon...

to poison the poor crocodiles.

Oh, no, no, no.

Oh, yes, yes, yes.

You are very sentimental, Caesar.

But you are clever.

And if you do as I tell you...

you will soon learn how to govern.

Pothinus!

Hail! Hail, Pothinus!

- Achillas!
- Lucius Septimius!

Egypt for the Egyptians!

Egypt for the Egyptians!

Egypt for the Egyptians!

- What?
- Your barley water, Caesar.

Ftatateeta!

Ftatateeta!

Get up, child. You must
be bathed this morning.

No. I had my month's
bath the day before yesterday.

In future, you must
have a bath every day.

No, no. I should die of it.

You must. Your life is changed.

You are still my child, but to all
others you are now a grown woman and a queen.

Yes. I am a queen.

Ftata, what will Caesar do with me?

Ask rather what you will do with him.

Ah. My child, you have charmed
him. You are safe. You are powerful.

I will guide you until you
learn how to guide yourself.

Fear nothing.

Who could fear Caesar? He
is not great and terrible.

He's only an elderly gentleman.

Rather sad-looking and
wrinkled, but very kind.

He is a magician, and magicians can
change their shapes as they please.

Everything about him is magical.

He would not sleep in
the golden chamber...

but made his soldiers bring a bare
stretcher from the camp and put it in his study.

Even then, he did not sleep in it, but
sat up working like a slave all night.

Yet, everyone obeys
him as if he were a god.

I think he is a god in disguise.

For he has changed
your nature, has he not?

Oh, yes, he has. That is true.

Ftatateeta, before he came...

I was afraid of you more
than anyone else on earth.

And now... I'm not
afraid of you at all.

Tell me. What must I do to begin
with now that I'm really a queen?

You must begin by
having a bath every day.

- Oh.
- Come, child, and get it over.

- You will soon get used to it and love it.
- Never. It is too dreadful.

Oh, well, if I must be washed again so
soon, Ftatateeta, it must be a scented bath.

- Have you scented it?
- No. Caesar hates perfumes.

And if you redden your lips,
he will not kiss you. Come on.

He must indeed be a god.

For only a god could
be so unlike a man.

No!

Cleopatra, I really
think I must eat you after all.

You mustn't talk to me
now as if I were a child.

You have been growing up since the
sphinx introduced us that night.

You think you know more
than I do already.

No. That would be very silly of me.

Of course I know that, but
- Are you angry with me?

- No.
- Then why are you so thoughtful?

I have work to do.

Work? What nonsense.

You must remember you are a
king now. I have made you one.

- Kings don't work.
- And who told you that, little kitten, eh?

My father was king of
Egypt, and he never worked.

Well, he lost his throne. And
how did he get it back again?

I will tell you. A beautiful young
man with strong, round arms...

came over the desert with many
horsemen and gave my father back his throne.

I was only 12 then.

Oh, I wish he would come
again now that I am a queen.

I would make him my husband.

It might be managed perhaps...

for it was I who sent that beautiful
young man to help your father.

You know him? Has he come with you?

Oh, I wish he had.

I wish he had.

He is many, many years younger
than you, is he not?

He is somewhat younger.

Would he be my husband, do
you think, if I asked him?

- Very likely.
- But I shouldn't like to ask him.

Could you
- Could you not persuade him to ask me...

without knowing that I wanted him to?

My poor child.

Why do you say that as
if you were sorry for me?

- Does he love anyone else?
- I'm afraid so.

Then I shall not be his first love.

Not quite the first. He is
greatly admired by women.

Oh, I wish I would be the first.

But if he loves me, I will
make him kill all the rest.

Tell me. Is he still beautiful?

Do his round, strong arms shine
in the sun like marble?

He is in excellent condition considering
how much he eats and drinks.

You mustn't say common,
earthly things about him.

I love him. He is a god.

- What is his name?
- His name is Mark Antony.

Mark Antony.

Mark Antony.

Mark Antony.

What a beautiful name.

Oh, I love you for sending
him to help my father.

You must run away for a
little, and send my secretary to me.

Oh, no, no, no. I want to stay and
hear you talk about Mark Antony.

But if I don't get to work, Pothinus
and the rest of them...

will cut us off from the harbor, and
then the road to Rome will be blocked.

No matter. I don't want
you to go back to Rome.

But you want Mark
Antony to come from it.

Oh, yes, yes, yes. I
forgot. Go quickly, Caesar.

And keep the way over the
sea open for my Mark Antony.

- What now?
- This, Caesar.

- And two of my comrades killed in the marketplace.
- Why?

There's an army come to
Alexandria calling itself the Roman army.

- The Roman army of occupation.
- Commanded by one Achillas.

- Well?
- The citizens rose against us when the army entered the gates.

- They set upon us. I cut my way out.
- Good. I'm glad to see you alive.

- Rufio, we're besieged.
- What, already?

- Caesar! Caesar!
- Yes, yes. I know.

Comrade, give the word to turn out on
the beach and stand with the boats.

Get your wound attended
to. Britannus, go with him.

Rufio.

- We have some ships in the west harbor. Burn them.
- Burn them?

Take every boat we have in the east harbor and seize the Pharos
- that island with the lighthouse.

Leave half our men behind to hold the
beach and the quay outside this palace.

That's the way home to Rome.

For the rest, Egypt
for the Egyptians.

Well, you know best,
I suppose. Is that all?

That's all. Those ships burnt yet?

Be easy. I shall waste no time.

Caesar, Pothinus
demands speech with you.

- Where is he?
- Waits in the council chamber.

In my opinion, he needs a
lesson. His manner is most insolent.

- Well, Pothinus?
- I have brought you our ultimatum, Caesar.

Ultimatum? The door was open.

You should have gone out through
it before you declared war.

- You're my prisoner now.
- I your prisoner?

Do you know that King Ptolemy...

with an army outnumbering your
little troop by a hundred to one...

is in possession of Alexandria?

Well, get out of here if you can.

And tell your friends not to kill
any more Romans in the marketplace.

Otherwise my soldiers, who do not
share my celebrated clemency...

will probably kill you.

Pass the word to the
guard. Pothinus is now prisoner.

Britannus, fetch my armor.

Caesar! See there.

What? The ships ablaze
already? Impossible.

It's not my doing. The Egyptians
have saved me the trouble.

- They have captured the west harbor.
- And the east harbor? The lighthouse, Rufio.

Can I embark a legion
in five minutes?

The first cohort's already on the quay. If
you want faster work, come and do it yourself.

Patience, Rufio. Patience.

Patience. Who's
impatient here -you or I?

Forgive me, Rufio, and hurry
them as much as you can.

Help! Help! Help!

Help! Woe! Alas!

Woe! Alas!

- Help! Woe! Woe!
- What?

- Woe! Woe! Woe!
- What?

Help. Help. Help.

- Who is slain?
- Slain?

Worse than the death of 10,000 men.

Loss irreparable to mankind.

What's happened, man?

The fire has spread from your ships.

- The library of Alexandria is in flames.
- Oh, is that all?

Rufio, is Britannus asleep? I
sent him for my armor an hour ago.

- Britannus! Britannicus!
- Britannus!

Caesar, will you go down to
posterity as a barbarous soldier-

too ignorant to know
the value of books?

Oh, Theodotus, I'm an author myself.

Good.

What is burning there is
the memory of mankind!

A shameful memory. Let it burn.

Would you destroy the past?

Aye, and build the
future with its ruins.

Hearken to me, Theodotus,
teacher of kings.

I cannot spare you a man nor
a bucket of water just now...

- but you shall pass freely out of the palace.
- Oh!

Away with you to Achillas. Borrow
his legions to put out the fire.

Caesar, posterity will bless you.

Will you stay to talk whilst the
memory of mankind is burning?

Sentry! Pass Theodotus out.
Away with you! Away with you!

I must save the library!

What's this? You let
him go? More clemency.

I have let him go
to save the library.

- We must respect literature, Rufio.
- Folly on folly's head.

Besides, every
Egyptian we imprison...

means imprisoning two good Roman
soldiers to guard him, eh?

I might have known there was some
fox's trick behind your fine talking.

All ready there?

- All ready!
- We await for Caesar!

Tell them Caesar is
coming. The rogues.

Ho, Caesar's guard there! Push off.

All except the
longboat. Stand by it to embark.

I am going to dress
you, Caesar. Sit down.

Caesar, this is not proper.

These Roman helmets are so becoming.

Oh!

What are you laughing at?

You're bald!

- Cleopatra. - So that's why
you wear the wreath - to hide it.

Peace, Egyptian.

They are the bays of the conqueror.

Peace, thou... islander.

You should rub your head with
strong spirits of sugar, Caesar.

That will make it grow.

Cleopatra, do you like to be
reminded that you're very young?

No.

Neither do I like to be
reminded that I'm... middle-aged.

Now.

Oh. How nice.

You look only about 50 in it.

You mustn't speak in
that manner to Caesar.

Is it true that when
Caesar caught you on that island...

you were painted all over blue?

Blue is the color worn by
all Britons of good standing.

In war, we stain our bodies blue...

so that, though our enemies may strip
us of our clothes and our lives...

they cannot strip us
of our respectability.

Oh. Let me hang this on.

Now.

You look splendid.

Now, Caesar!

Have you done talking?

The longboat awaits you. The
others race to the lighthouse.

Is this well set today, Britannicus?

At Pharsalia, it was as
blunt as a barrel hoop.

It'll split one of the
Egyptian's hairs today, Caesar.

I've set it myself.

Oh! You're not really
going into battle to be killed?

No, Cleopatra. No man goes
into battle to be killed.

Oh, but they do get killed. My
sister's husband was killed in battle.

You mustn't go.

Let him go.

Please. Please don't go.

What will happen to me
if you never come back?

- Are you afraid?
- No.

Come to the balcony and you
shall see us take the Pharos.

You must learn to look on battles.

Then take me with you. Let me
come with you to the Pharos.

No, no, my child. You must
stay here till I return.

That is well.

- Now, Rufio, march.
- Oh!

- You won't be able to go.
- Why? What now?

They're drying up the
harbor with buckets.

A multitude of soldiers. Over there.

They're dipping up the water.

This is your accursed clemency,
Caesar. Theodotus has brought them.

I meant him to, Rufio. They've
come to put out the fire.

The library will keep them busy whilst
we seize the lighthouse, eh?

More foxing.

Caesar.

Cleopatra, if all goes well,
I shall be back this evening.

- All
aboard! - Good-bye!

Good-bye.

Hail, Caesar!

Give way there!

Good-bye, my Caesar. Come back safe.

Good-bye.

- Who goes there, eh?
- Stand!

Who are you?

Centurion, I am
Apollodorus the Sicilian.

My calling is to choose beautiful
things for beautiful queens.

Carpets for the queen's
apartments in the palace.

The queen? Oh, yes, yes. Pass him in.

Pass all these bazaar people in
to the queen with their goods.

But mind you pass no one
out that you have not passed in...

not even the queen herself.

I have brought my
caravan past three sentinels -

all so busy staring at the
lighthouse that not one of them challenged me.

- Is this your Roman discipline?
- We're not here to watch the land, but the sea.

Who's this piece of
Egyptian crockery?

Apollodorus, rebuke this Roman dog!

And bid him bridle his tongue in the
presence of the mistress of the queen's household.

This is a great lady who
stands high with Caesar.

Ftatateeta!

What are you dreaming of?

Ftatateeta!

No, no! You must not
come. There are men here.

- Oh, that ever I was born!
- Ftatateeta, I've thought of something.

- I want a boat at once.
- A boat?

No, no. You cannot.

Apollodorus, speak to the queen.

Beautiful queen.

I am Apollodorus the
Sicilian, your servant from the bazaar.

I have no time for carpets
today. Get me a boat.

You cannot go on the
water except in the royal barge.

Royalty, Ftatateeta, lies not
in the barge, but in the queen.

The touch of Your Majesty's foot on the
meanest boat in the harbor will make it royal.

Apollodorus, you are my perfect knight, and
I will always buy my carpets through you.

- Can you row?
- My oar shall be Your Majesty's wings.

- Ho there! Boatman.
- Aye.

- Whither shall I row, my queen?
- For the lighthouse. Come.

Stand! You cannot pass.

How dare you. Do you
know that I am the queen?

I have my orders. You cannot pass.

Ftatateeta, strangle him.

Keep off there.

Pass on to the palace and
take the queen in with you.

And how if I do neither?

- Then I'll drive this pilum through you.
- At your service, my friend.

Help him. Help him.

I shall not need help, my lady.

What shall it be
- sword against pilum or sword against sword?

Roman against Sicilian,
curse you. Take that!

Help! Help!

Thrust your knife into the
dog's throat, Apollodorus!

A curse on you! Let me go!
Ho there, guard! Help! Help!

Stab the little Roman
reptile! Spit him on your sword.

What is this? Make
your report, soldier.

This old woman's dangerous.
She's as strong as three men.

Centurion, he would
have slain the queen.

So I would sooner than let her pass.

Cleopatra, I am loath to offend
you, but without Caesar's express orders...

I dare not let you
pass beyond the Roman lines.

You must withdraw into the
palace and examine your carpets there.

I will not. I am the queen.

Caesar doesn't speak to me as you do.

Have Caesar's centurions changed
manners with his scullions?

I do my duty. That is enough for me.

Majesty, when a stupid man is doing something he
is ashamed of, he always declares it his duty.

As for you,
Apollodorus, you may thank the gods...

you are not nailed to the palace
door with a pilum for your meddling.

- Is this woman your wife?
- Jupiter, no!

Not that the lady's not a very
striking figure in her own way...

but she is not my wife.

- Roman, I am Ftatateeta, the mistress of- -
Well, keep your hands off my men, mistress...

or I'll have you pitched into the
harbor though you were as strong as 10 men.

We shall see whom Isis loves best
- her servant Ftatateeta or a dog of a Roman.

Two more men to this post here.

See that no one leaves the
palace but this man and his merchandise.

If he draws his
sword again, kill him.

Get about your business.

You ought to know
better. Off with you.

Do not tantalize a poor man.

Pearl of queens, the
centurion is still at hand.

The Roman soldiers are incorruptible
- when their officers are looking.

I shall have to carry
your word to Caesar.

Are these carpets very heavy?

It matters not how heavy. There
are plenty of porters.

How do they put them into the
boats? Do they throw them down?

Not into the small boats,
Majesty. It would sink them.

- Not into that man's boat, for instance?
- No, no.

Too small.

But you can take a carpet to
Caesar in it if I send one?

Assuredly.

And you will have it carried gently
down the steps and take great care of it?

Great, great care?

More than of my own body.

Good. Come, Ftatateeta.

No, Apollodorus. You must not come.

I will choose my carpet
myself. You must wait here.

- Follow this lady. Obey her.
- This way.

And take your shoes off before
you put your feet on those stairs!

Listen. Were you sent here to
watch me or watch the Egyptians?

- We know our duty.
- Well, then why don't you do it? Look!

The Egyptians are moving. They're
going to recapture the Pharos.

They will attack by land
and sea along the great mole!

Stir yourselves! The hunt is up!

Centurion, reinforce
the platoons on the mole.

Yes, sir.

Rufio, this has been a mad
expedition. We shall be beaten.

The Egyptians cannot be such fools...

as not to storm the barricade and swoop
down on us here before it is finished.

It's the first time I've
ever run an avoidable risk.

- I shouldn't have come to Egypt.
- An hour ago, you were all for victory.

Yes. I was a fool.

Rash, Rufio. Boyish.

Boyish? Not a bit of it.

Here.

- What are these for?
- To eat.

That's what's the matter with you.

When a man comes to your age, he
runs down before the midday meal.

Go on, eat. And drink.

Then take another
look at our chances.

My age?

Yes, I'm an old man.

Worn out now. Quite true, Rufio.

Now, Achillas is still in his prime.

Ptolemy is a boy.

Well, every dog has his day.

I've had mine. I cannot complain.

These dates are not bad, Rufio.

That's my old Caesar.

It's a great war
- now we've got rid of the women.

You again? Keep your distance.

Come within a yard of me, you old
crocodile, and I'll give you this in your jaw.

Peace, Roman fellow. You
are now single-handed.

Apollodorus, this carpet is
Cleopatra's present to Caesar.

It has rolled up in it 10 precious
goblets of the thinnest Iberian crystal...

and a hundred eggs of
the sacred blue pigeon.

On your honor, let not
one of them be broken.

On my head be it. Lay it
carefully into the boat.

Those eggs of which the lady speaks
must weigh more than a pound apiece.

This boat is much too
small for such a load.

Yes! Yes! Me!

Mine's bigger yet!

Oh, thou injurious porter!

Oh, thou unnatural
son of a she-camel!

My boat can carry five men.

Shall it not carry Your
Lordship and a bale of pigeons' eggs?

Oh, thou mangy dromedary!

The gods shall punish thee
for this envious wickedness.

Oh! I cannot quit this
bale now to beat thee...

but, another day, I will
lie in wait for thee.

Peace there, all of you!

In the name of the gods,
Apollodorus, run no risks with that bale.

Fear not, thou venerable
grotesque. I guess its great worth.

Into the boat with it
gently, my sons, my children.

Gently, ye dogs!

So. 'Tis well.

Do not step on it! Do not step on it!

Be not excited,
mistress. All is well.

Oh, thou brute beast. Thou
hast given my heart a turn.

Here.

Ye hungry ones.

- Robber of the poor.
- It's not enough!

Oh! O bounteous prince!

O lord of the bazaar!

O favored of the gods!

O father to all
porters of the market!

Farewell, Ftatateeta. I shall be at
the lighthouse before the Egyptians.

The gods speed thee.

Farewell, valiant pilum pitcher.

My heart, my heart

Spread out thy wings

Spread out thy wings

Shake off thy heavy

Load of love

Platoon, follow me!

Caesar!

Caesar!

Caesar, sir. Our brave mariners
have captured a treasure.

Our enemies are
delivered into our hands.

- In that bag?
- Wait till you hear, Caesar.

This bag contains all the letters that
have passed between our enemies.

- Well?
- Well, we shall now know who your foes are.

The name of every man who's plotted against
you since you crossed the Rubicon...

may be in these
papers, for all we know.

- Put 'em in the
fire. - Put them -

In the fire. Would you have me waste years of
my life condemning men who'll be my friends...

when I've proved that my friendship is
worth more than that of my enemies?

But your honor
- the honor of Rome.

I do not make human
sacrifices to my honor as your druids do.

Since you won't burn
them, at least I can drown them!

Caesar, this is mere eccentricity.

Are all traitors to be allowed to
go free for the sake of a... paradox?

Caesar, when the islander has
finished preaching, call me again.

O Caesar, my great master...

if only I could persuade you to regard
life seriously, as men do in my country.

- Do they truly do so, Britannus?
- Have you not been there? Have you not seen them?

What Briton speaks as you
do in your moments of levity?

What Briton neglects to attend the
services at the sacred grove?

What Briton wears
clothes of many colors as you do...

instead of
- plain blue...

as all solid,
well-esteemed men should?

These are moral questions with us.

Well, well, my friend. Someday
I shall settle down...

and wear a blue toga perhaps.

Meanwhile, I must get on as best
I can in my flippant Roman way.

What now?

- Hail!
- What is this? Who are you?

- How did you come here?
- Calm yourself, my friend.

I'm not going to eat you.

Hail, great Caesar! I am
Apollodorus the Sicilian, an artist.

- An artist? A vagabond!
- Peace, man.

Apollodorus is a famous
patrician amateur.

I crave the gentleman's pardon. I
understood him to say he was a professional.

Welcome, Apollodorus.
What is your business?

First, to deliver to you a
present from the queen of queens.

- Who is that?
- Cleopatra of Egypt.

Apollodorus, this is no
time for playing with presents.

Pray you, go back to the queen and
tell her that if all goes well...

we shall return to the
palace this evening.

Caesar, I cannot return.

As I approached the lighthouse, some fool
threw a great leathern bag into the sea.

It broke the nose of my boat. I had hardly time to
get to the shore before my poor little cockleshell sank.

I am sorry, Apollodorus.

The fool shall be rebuked.

Well, well. What have you brought me? The
queen will be hurt if I don't look at it.

Caesar, have we time to
waste on this trumpery?

- The queen's only a child.
- Just so. That's why we mustn't disappoint her.

Caesar, it's a Persian carpet
- a beauty!

And in it are
- so I'm told -

pigeons' eggs and crystal
goblets and fragile, precious things.

I dare not for my head have it carried
up that narrow ladder from the causeway.

- Swing it up by the crane then!
- The crane?

Caesar.

I have sworn to tender this bale
of carpet as I tender my own life.

Then let them swing
you up at the same time.

If the chain breaks, you and the
pigeons' eggs will perish together.

- Is Caesar serious?
- Well, his manner is frivolous.

It's because he's an
Italian. But he means what he says.

Serious or not, he spake well. Give me
a squad of soldiers to work the crane.

No, no. It's worked by an
elderly Tyrian and his son...

a well-conducted youth of 14.

What? An old man and a boy work that?

- Twenty men, you mean.
- No, no. Two only, I assure you.

They have counterweights and a machine with
boiling water, which I don't understand.

So it isn't of British design.

- Leave the crane to me. Go and await the descent of the chain.
- Good.

You will see me presently there, rising
like the sun with my treasure.

Are you really going to wait
here for this foolery, Caesar?

- Why not?
- The Egyptians will let you know why not...

if they've got enough sense to make a
rush before our barricade's finished.

And here we are waiting like children
to see a carpet full of pigeons' eggs.

Fear not, my son Rufio.

When the first Egyptian takes his first
step along the mole, the alarm will sound...

and we two will reach the
barricade before the Egyptians.

We two, Rufio
- I, an old man, and you, his biggest boy.

And the old man will get there first.

I wish I had some
more of those dates.

Lower away!

Lower away!

Easy there!

Further round.

So! Haul up!

Gently. Slowly.
Slowly. Mind the eggs.

Slowly. Slowly.

Haul away!

Stand off, my friends.
Let Caesar see.

Nothing but a heap of
shawls. Where are the pigeons' eggs?

Approach, Caesar, and search
for them in the shawls.

Treachery! Stand back, Caesar.

- I saw the shawls move. There's something alive in there.
- Ooh! It's a serpent.

Dare Caesar thrust his
hand in where the serpent moves?

- Treacherous dog!
- Peace. Put up your swords.

Apollodorus, your serpent seems
to breathe very regularly.

Why, this is a pretty little snake.

Let's have the rest of you.

Oh! I am smothered.

Oh, Caesar. A man stood
on me in the boat...

and then
- then a great sack of something fell upon me out of the sky...

then the boat sank, and then I was swung
up into the air and bumped down.

Well, never mind. Here you
are, safe and sound at last.

Aye. And now that she is here, what
are we going to do with her?

But, Caesar, this is not proper.

She cannot stay here without
the companionship of some matron.

- Shocking!
- Aren't you glad to see me?

Yes, I'm very glad. But Rufio is
very angry, and Britannus is shocked.

You can have their
heads cut off, can't you?

They wouldn't be so useful with their
heads cut off as they are now, my seabird.

We shall have to go away presently and
cut off some of your Egyptians' heads.

How will you like being left here
with the chance of being captured...

by that little brother of
yours if we're beaten, huh?

You mustn't leave me alone, Caesar.

You will not leave
me alone, will you?

What? Not when the trumpet
sounds and all our lives...

depend upon Caesar being at the
barricade before the Egyptians, eh?

Let them lose their
lives. They are only soldiers.

Cleopatra...

when that trumpet sounds, we must
take every man his life in his hands...

and throw it in the face of Death.

And of my soldiers
who have trusted me...

there's not one whose hand I shall
not hold more sacred than your head.

Apollodorus, take her
back to the palace.

Am I a dolphin, Caesar, to cross the
seas with young ladies on my back?

My boat is sunk. Yours are either at the
barricade or have returned to the city.

It doesn't matter.

I will not go back.

- Nobody cares for me.
- Oh, Cleopatra.

You want me to be killed!

My poor child, your life matters
little here to anyone but yourself.

Come, Rufio.

Caesar, do not leave me!

Caesar, we are cut off.

The Egyptians have landed from the western
harbor between us and the barricade.

Rufio, my men at the barricade
are lost. I've murdered them.

Aye. That's what comes of
fooling with this girl here.

Caesar!

- Caesar. The Egyptians.
- I know. We must defend ourselves here.

But I've thrown the ladder into the
sea. They can't get in without it.

- And we can't get out. Have you thought of that?
- Not get out? Why not?

- You have ships in the east harbor.
- Our galleys are standing in towards us already.

And, pray, by what road are
we to walk to the galleys?

The road that leads everywhere
- the diamond path of the sun and the moon.

- How far is the nearest galley?
- Fifty fathom.

No. Nearly a quarter
of a mile, Apollodorus.

- Defend yourselves here until I send a boat from that galley.
- Have you wings perhaps?

Water wings, soldier!

Behold!

Bravo, Apollodorus! Bravo!

By Jupiter! I will do
that too. Britannus.

- Are you mad? You shall not.
- Why not? Can I not swim as well as he?

- Can an old fool dive and swim like a young one?
- Old?

Rufio, you forget yourself.

- I'll race you to the galley for a week's pay, father Rufio.
- But me! Me!

What is to become of me?

I'll carry you on my back to
the galley like a dolphin.

Rufio, when you see me rise
to the surface, throw her in.

- No, no, no! I shall be drowned. -
Then in with you after her- both of you!

Caesar, I am a man and a Briton,
not a fish. I must have a boat.

- I can't swim.
- Neither can I.

Stay here, then, Britannus, until
I recapture the lighthouse.

- I'll not forget you. Now, Rufio.
- Have you made up your mind to this folly?

The Egyptians have made it up
for me. And mind where you jump.

I don't want you in the
small of my back as I come up.

One last word, Caesar.

Do not let yourself be seen in the
more fashionable part of Alexandria...

until you've changed your clothes.

Ho, Apollodorus!

The white upon the blue above-

Is purple on the green below!

Let me see. Let me
see! He will be drowned.

Oh! Aaah!

He's got her!

Hold the fort, Briton. Caesar
will not forget you.

Hip, hip, hip hooray!

Hip
- Hooray!

Ah. Another royal banquet?

In Caesar's honor.

These Romans are magicians.

For six months, a mere handful
of them have held the palace...

against the whole of
Egypt's armed forces.

And look at their
escape from the Pharos.

Who but a magician could swim
like a dolphin at Caesar's age...

carrying the queen on his back?

That might be the queen's magic.

She rides on Caesar's back
on land now as on the sea!

You laugh.

But take care. Take care.

I will find out someday how to make
myself served as Caesar is served.

Old hooknose!

Silence!

Do you know why...

I allow you all to chatter
impertinently just as you please...

instead of treating you as
Ftatateeta would treat you if she were queen?

Because you try to imitate
Caesar in everything...

and he lets everyone
say what they please to him.

No.

But because I asked him
one day why he did so...

and he said, "Let your women talk, and
you will learn something from them."

"What have I to learn
from them?" I said.

"What they are," said he.

And, oh, you should have seen
his eyes as he said it.

You would have curled
up, you shallow things.

At whom are you laughing?

- At me or at Caesar?
- At Caesar.

If you were not a fool,
you would laugh at me.

And if you were not a coward, you
would not be afraid to tell me so.

Heigh-ho. I wish Caesar
were back in Rome.

It will be a bad day
for you when he goes.

Oh, if I were not ashamed to let him see
that I am as cruel at heart as my father...

I would make you repent that speech.

Why do you wish him away?

He makes you so terribly prosy and
serious and learned and philosophical.

It's worse than being
religious at our ages.

Cease this endless cackling,
will you! Hold your tongues.

Well, well. We must try
and live up to Caesar.

Pothinus craves the ear of the queen.

I suppose he has bribed
you to admit him to me?

- Not by my father's gods.
- Have I not told you not to deny things?

You all sell audiences
to the queen...

as if I saw whom you
please and not whom I please.

Go, take the bribe
and bring in Pothinus.

- But - - Don't
answer me. Go.

I want to learn to play
the harp with my own hands.

Caesar loves music. Can you teach me?

Assuredly.

I and no one else
can teach the queen.

All other teachers are quacks.

I have exposed them repeatedly.

Good. You shall teach
me. How long will it take?

Not very long. Only four years.

Your Majesty must first become proficient
in the philosophy of Pythagoras. And then -

Has she become proficient in
the philosophy of Pythagoras?

Oh, she is but a slave.

She learns as a dog learns.

Well, then, I will learn as a dog
learns, for she plays better than you.

You shall give me a
lesson every day for a fortnight.

After that, whenever I strike a
false note, you shall be flogged.

If I strike so many that
there is no time to flog you...

you shall be thrown into the
Nile to feed the crocodiles.

Give the girl a gold
piece and send them away.

But true art cannot be thus forced.

What is this? Answering the
queen forsooth. Out with you.

Well, Pothinus, what is the latest
news from your rebel friends?

I am no friend of rebellion.

And a prisoner does not receive news.

You are no more a prisoner
than I am, than Caesar is.

These six months we have been
besieged in the palace by my subjects.

You are allowed to walk on
the beach among the soldiers.

Can I go further
myself? Or can Caesar?

You are but a child, Cleopatra -

and do not understand these matters.

I see you do not know
the latest news, Pothinus.

- What is that?
- That Cleopatra is no longer a child.

Shall I tell you how to grow much
older and much, much wiser in one day?

I should prefer to grow
wiser without growing older.

Well, go up to the top
of the lighthouse...

and get someone to
take you by the hair...

and throw you into the sea!

She is right, Pothinus.

- You will come to the shore with
much conceit washed out of you.

Begone, all of you. I will
speak with Pothinus alone.

- What are you waiting for?
- It is not meet that the queen remain alone.

Must I sacrifice you to your
father's gods, Ftatateeta...

to teach you that I am
queen of Egypt and not you?

You are like the rest of them.

You want to be what these Romans call a
- a "new woman."

Now, Pothinus...

why did you bribe
Ftatateeta to bring you hither?

Cleopatra, what they tell
me is true. You are changed.

Do you speak with Caesar every day for
six months, and you will be changed.

It is common talk that you
are infatuated with this old man.

"Infatuated"? What does that mean?

"Made foolish," is it not?

Oh, no. I wish I were.

Wish that you were
made foolish? How so?

When I was foolish,
I did what I liked.

Now that Caesar has made me wise...

it is no use my liking or disliking.

I do what must be done and have
no time to attend to myself.

This is not happiness...

but it is greatness.

I think if Caesar were gone...

I could govern the Egyptians.

Cleopatra...

this may be the vanity of youth.

No, no. It is not that I am so
clever, but that the others are so stupid.

Truly that is the great secret.

Now, tell me what you came to say.

- I? Nothing.
- Nothing?

At least to beg for my
liberty. That is all.

For that, you would
have knelt to Caesar.

No, Pothinus.

You came with some plan that depended
on Cleopatra being a little nursery kitten.

Now that Cleopatra is a
queen, your plan is upset.

Is Cleopatra then indeed a queen and
no longer Caesar's prisoner and slave?

Pothinus, we are
all Caesar's slaves -

all we in this land of Egypt
- whether we will or no.

And she who is wise
enough to know this...

will reign when Caesar departs.

You harp on Caesar's departure.

- What if I do?
- Does he not love you?

Love me? Pothinus,
Caesar loves no one.

He makes friends with everyone as
he does with dogs and children.

His kindness to me is a wonder.

Neither mother, father nor nurse have
ever taken so much care of me...

or thrown open their
thoughts to me so freely.

But how can you be sure that he
does not love you as men love women?

Because I cannot make him jealous.

I have tried.

Perhaps I should have
asked, then, do you love him?

Can one love a god?

Besides, I love another Roman.

No god, but a man.

One who can love and hate.

And one whom I can
hurt and would hurt me.

Does Caesar know this?

- Yes.
- And he is not angry?

He promises to send him
to Egypt to please me.

I do not understand this man.

You understand Caesar?

How could you?

I do, by instinct.

Your Majesty caused me
to be admitted today.

- What message has the queen for me?
- This.

You think that by making my brother
king, you will rule in Egypt...

because you are his
guardian and he is a little silly.

- The queen is pleased to say so.
- The queen is pleased to say this also:

Caesar will eat up you - and
Achillas and my brother-

as a cat eats up mice.

And he will put on this land of
Egypt as a shepherd puts on his garment.

And when he has done
that, he will return to Rome...

and leave Cleopatra
here as his viceroy.

That he shall never do! We
have a thousand men to his 10.

And we shall drive him and his
beggarly legions into the sea.

You rant like any common fellow.

- Cleopatra - - Enough,
enough! Ftatateeta.

Caesar has spoiled me for
talking to weak things like you.

I know to whom I must go now.

- Let me go forth from this hateful place.
- What angers you?

The curse of all the
gods of Egypt be upon her.

She has sold her country to the Roman that
she may buy it back from him with her kisses.

Fool. Did she not tell you that
she would have Caesar gone?

You listened?

I took care that some honest woman should
be at hand whilst you were with her.

Mark this, mistress. You
thought, before Caesar came...

that Egypt should presently be ruled by
you and your crew in the name of Cleopatra.

- I set myself against it.
- Aye! That it might be ruled by you and your crew in the name of Ptolemy.

Well, better me, or even you, than
a woman with a Roman heart -

and that is what
Cleopatra is now become.

Whilst I live, she shall never rule.

So guide yourself accordingly.

Wait here.

Here, Your Excellency.

The Roman commander will
await Caesar here.

Hmm. Ah.

That was a climb. How
high have we come?

We are on the palace
roof, O beloved of Victory.

Good. Then the beloved of
Victory has no more stairs to get up.

Caesar approaches.

Why, Rufio...

a new baldric.

A new golden pommel to your sword.

And you've had your hair cut.

Oh, but not your beard. Impossible.

Perfumed. By Jupiter Olympus.

Well, is it to please myself?

No, Rufio, my son, but to please
me. To celebrate my birthday.

Your birthday. You always have a birthday
when there's a pretty girl to be flattered...

or an ambassador to be conciliated.

- Rufio.
- Well, we had seven of them in 10 months last year.

Alas, Rufio, I shall never break
myself of these petty deceits.

Have you noticed I'm before my time?

Ah? I thought that meant something.

- What is it?
- Pothinus wants to speak to you.

I advise you to see him. There's some
plotting going on here among the women.

Who is Pothi
- Oh, yes.

- Has he not escaped?
- No.

Why not? Have I not told you always
to let prisoners escape...

unless there are special
orders to the contrary?

Are there not enough mouths
to be fed without his?

Yes. And if you'd have a little sense and
let me cut his throat, you'd save his rations.

Anyway, he won't escape. He
prefers to stay and spy on us.

- And you want me to see him.
- Oh, I don't want anything.

I daresay you'll do what
you like. Don't put it on me.

Well, well.

Let's have him in.

Ho there, guard! Release
your man and send him up.

- Who's to dine with us besides Cleopatra?
- Apollodorus the Sicilian.

- Oh, that popinjay. - Come.
The popinjay is an amusing dog -

tells a story, sings a song and saves
us the trouble of flattering the queen.

Well, he can swim a bit and
fence a bit. He might be worse.

- If only he knew how to hold his tongue.
- The gods forbid he should ever learn.

Ah. Pothinus.

You're welcome. What's
the news this afternoon?

Caesar, I come to warn you of a
danger and to make you an offer.

- Never mind the danger. Make the offer.
- Never mind the offer. What's the danger?

Caesar, you think that
Cleopatra is devoted to you.

My friend, I already
know what I think.

- Come to your offer.
- I will deal plainly.

I know not by what magic...

you have been
enabled to defend the palace...

and a few yards of beach against
a city and an army...

but we know now that your
gods are irresistible...

and that you are a
worker of miracles.

- I no longer threaten you.
- Very handsome of you indeed.

So be it, you are the master.

Yes, yes, my friend. But what then?

Spit it out, man.
What have you to say?

I have to say that you
have a traitoress in your camp.

- Cleopatra
- - The queen!

Should have spat it out sooner,
you fool. Now it's too late.

- What is he doing here?
- Just going to tell me something about you.

You shall hear it.

Proceed, Pothinus.

- I - Caesar-
- Out with it.

What I have to say is for
your ears, not for the queen's.

There are means of making
you speak. Take care.

Caesar does not employ those means.

My dear, when a man has
anything to tell in this world...

the difficulty is not to make him tell it but
to prevent him from telling it too often.

Let me celebrate my
birthday by setting you free.

Farewell. We shall not meet again.

Caesar, this mercy is foolish.

Will you not give me
a private audience?

Your life may depend on it.

Ho there, guard! Pass the
prisoner out. He's released.

Now off with you.
You've lost your chance.

I will speak.

You see? Torture wouldn't
have wrung a word from him.

Caesar, you have taught Cleopatra the
arts by which the Romans govern the world.

Alas, my friend, they cannot
even govern themselves. What then?

What then? Are you so
besotted with her beauty...

that you do not see that she is
impatient to reign in Egypt alone...

and that her heart is
set on your departure?

- Liar!
- What? Protestations?

Contradictions?

No, I do not deign to contradict.

- Let him talk.
- From her own lips I have heard it.

You are to be her
cat's-paw. You are to tear the crown...

from her brother's head
and set it on her own...

delivering us all into her hand.

Delivering yourself also. And
then Caesar can return to Rome.

Or depart through the gate of
death, which is nearer and surer.

Well, and is not this very natural?

Natural? Then you do
not resent treachery?

Resent? O thou foolish Egyptian.
What have I to do with resentment?

Do I resent the wind
when it chills me...

or the night when it makes
me stumble in the darkness?

To tell me such a story as this is to
tell me that the sun will rise tomorrow.

But it is false, false! I swear it!

It is true, though you swore it a
thousand times and believed all you swore.

Come, Rufio. Let us see Pothinus past
the guard. I have a word to say to him.

I must give the queen a
moment to recover herself.

Tell your friends, Pothinus,
they mustn't think...

I'm opposed to a reasonable
settlement of the country's affairs.

Ftatateeta. Ftatateeta!

- Peace, child. Be comforted.
- Can they hear us?

No, dear heart. No.

If he leaves the palace
alive, never see my face again.

- He? Pothinus?
- Strike out his life as I strike his name from your lips!

Dash him down from the wall. Break him
on the stones. Kill, kill, kill him.

The dog shall perish.

Fail in this, and you go
out from before me forever.

So be it.

You shall not see my face until
his eyes are darkened.

Come soon. Soon.

As the light dies...

he shall die.

So you've come back to me,
Caesar. I thought you were angry.

Welcome, Apollodorus.

Cleopatra grows more womanly
beautiful from week to week.

- Truth, Apollodorus?
- Far, far short of the truth.

Friend Rufio threw a pearl into
the sea. Caesar fished up a diamond.

Caesar fished up a touch of
rheumatism. Come on. To dinner.

Yes. To dinner!

- I've ordered such a dinner for you, Caesar.
- What are we to have?

- Peacocks' brains.
- Peacocks' brains, Apollodorus.

- Not for me. I prefer nightingales' tongues.
- Roast boar, Rufio.

- Ah! Good!
- What has become of my leathern cushion?

I've got new ones for you, Caesar.

These cushions, Caesar, are of Maltese
gauze, stuffed with rose leaves.

- Rose leaves? Am I a caterpillar?
- Oh, what a shame. My new cushions.

What shall we serve to
whet Caesar's appetite?

- Any oysters?
- Assuredly.

- British oysters?
- British oysters, of course.

- Oysters then.
- Sea hedgehogs for me.

Have we nothing solid to begin with?

- Fieldfares with asparagus.
- Fattened fowls, Rufio.

- Have some fattened fowls.
- Aye! That'll do.

Fieldfares for me.

Caesar will deign to choose his wine?
Sicilian, Tuscan, Macedonian, Chianti-

- All Greek.
- Try the Sicilian, Caesar.

Bring me my barley water.

Bring me my Falernian.

It's a waste of time giving you dinner,
Caesar. My scullions would not condescend to your diet.

Well, well. Let's try the Falernian.

But when I return to Rome, I shall
make laws against these extravagances.

- I will even get the laws carried out.
- Never mind.

Today you are to be
like other people -

idle, luxurious and kind.

Well, well. For once, I
will sacrifice my comfort.

There. So now are you satisfied?

And you no longer believe I
long for your departure for Rome?

I no longer believe anything.

My brains are asleep.

Besides, who knows whether
I shall return to Rome?

- How? Huh? What?
- One year of Rome is like another...

except that I grow older.

It's no better here in Egypt. The old
men, when they're tired of life, say...

"We have seen everything except
the source of the Nile."

Why not see that?

Cleopatra...

will you come with me and
track the flood to its cradle...

in the heart of the
regions of mystery?

Shall I make you a new
kingdom and build you a holy city...

there in the great unknown?

Yes, yes. You shall.

Now he'll conquer Africa with two
legions before I finish the roast boar.

No scoffing. This is a noble scheme.

Come. Let's name the holy city and
consecrate it with Sicilian wine.

Cleopatra shall name it herself.

It shall be called...

Caesar's Gift to His Beloved.

No, no. Something vaster than that. Something
universal, like the starry firmament.

Why not simply The
Cradle of the Nile?

No. The Nile is my
ancestor, and he's a god.

Oh, I've just thought of something.

The Nile shall name it himself.

Let us call upon him all
together. Send for him.

Away with all of you.

Go. I am a priestess and have
power to take your charge from you.

What hocus-pocus is this?

'Tis not hocus-pocus.

To do it properly, we should
kill something to please him.

But perhaps he will answer Caesar
without that if we spill some wine to him.

- Why not call on our hawk-headed friend
there? - Shh! He will hear you and be angry.

The source of the Nile is
not in his district, I expect.

Now let us call on
the Nile all together.

You must say with me "Send
us thy voice, Father Nile."

Send us thy voice, Father Nile.

What was that?

- What was that?
- It is nothing. They are beating some slave.

Nothing?

- A man with a knife in him, I'll swear.
- A murder?

Shh! Silence. Did you hear that?

Another cry?

No. A thud. Something fell, I think.

Something with bones in it, huh?

- Rufio - - Will
you leave me, Caesar?

- Apollodorus, are you going?
- Faith, dearest queen. My appetite is gone.

Apollodorus, go down to the
courtyard. Find out what has happened.

Your soldiers have killed somebody
perhaps. What does it matter?

This must be seen to.

- Is she drunk?
- Not with wine.

The queen looks again on
the face of her servant.

There's some mischief
between those two.

Cleopatra, what has happened?

Nothing, dearest Caesar.
Nothing. I am innocent.

Dearest Caesar, are
you angry with me?

Why do you look at me so?

I have been here with you all the
time. How could I know what has happened?

- That is true.
- Of course it is true.

You know it is true, Rufio.

I shall know presently.

Caesar, remember, your
bodyguard is within call.

Why do you allow Rufio to speak to
me so? You should teach him his place.

Teach him to be my enemy and to hide his
thoughts from me as you are now hiding yours.

Why do you say that, Caesar? Indeed,
indeed, I am not hiding anything.

You are wrong to treat me like this!

I am only a child, and you turn into
stone because you think someone has been killed.

I can't bear it.

But there. I know you hate tears.

You shall not be troubled with them.

Only, I am so silly.

I cannot help being hurt
when you speak coldly.

Of course you are quite right. It is
dreadful to think of anyone being killed...

or even hurt, and I hope
nothing really serious -

What has frightened you into this?

What have you done?

- He's been murdered!
- Ah.

That sounds like the answer.

I have not betrayed
you, Caesar! I swear it!

I know that.

I haven't trusted you.

The whole town's gone mad, I think.

They're for tearing the palace down and
driving us into the sea straightaway.

- We laid hold of this renegade as we were clearing them out of the courtyard.
- Release him.

What has offended the
citizens, Lucius Septimius?

What did you expect, Caesar? Pothinus
was a favorite of theirs.

What has happened to Pothinus? I set him free
here but an hour ago. Did they not pass him out?

Aye. Through the gallery arch, 60 feet above
ground, with three inches of steel in his ribs.

He is as dead as Pompey.

We are quits now as
to killing, you and I.

Assassinated.

Our prisoner. Our guest. Rufio.

Whoever did it was a wise man
- and a friend of yours.

But none of us had a hand in it.

No, it's no use frowning at me.

He was slain by order
of the queen of Egypt.

I am not Julius
Caesar, the dreamer...

who allows every slave to insult him.

Rufio said I did well. Now the
others shall judge of me too.

This Pothinus sought to make me
conspire with him to betray Caesar. I refused.

And he cursed me and came privily to
Caesar to accuse me of his own treachery.

He insulted me.

Me, the queen, to my face.

Caesar would not avenge me. He
spoke him fair and set him free.

Was I right to avenge
myself? Speak, Lucius.

I do not gainsay it, but you'll get
little thanks for it from Caesar.

Apollodorus, speak. Was I wrong?

I have but one word of
blame, most beautiful.

You should have called on me, your knight, and
in fair duel, I should have slain the slanderer.

I will be judged by
your very slave, Caesar.

Britannus, speak. Was I wrong?

Were treachery, falsehood and
disloyalty left unpunished...

society must become like an arena full of
wild beasts, tearing one another to pieces.

Caesar is in the wrong.

And so the verdict is
against me, it seems.

Listen to me, Caesar.

If one man in all Alexandria can
be found to say I did wrong...

I swear to have myself crucified on
the door of the palace by my own slaves.

If one man in all the world
can be found, now or forever...

to know that you did wrong...

that man will have either to conquer the
world as I have or be crucified by it.

Do you hear?

These knockers at your gates are also
believers in vengeance and in stabbing.

You have slain their leader. It
is right that they should slay you.

And so, to the end of
history, murder shall breed murder...

always in the name of
right and honor and peace...

until the gods are tired of blood and
create a race that can understand.

Let the queen of Egypt
now give her orders...

for vengeance and take
her measures for defense...

for she has renounced Caesar.

You will not desert me,
Caesar. You will defend the palace.

You have taken the powers
of life and death upon you.

I am only a dreamer.

But... they will kill me.

- Why
not? - In pity-

Pity? What, has it come to this so
suddenly that nothing can save you but pity?

Did it save Pothinus?

Caesar, enough of
preaching. The enemy's at the gate.

And what has held him
baffled at the gate all these months?

Was it my folly, as you
deem it, or your wisdom?

In this Egyptian Red Sea of blood, whose
hand has held all your heads above the waves?

And yet when Caesar says to
such an one, "Friend, go free"...

you, clinging for your
little life to my sword...

dare steal out and
stab him in the back.

By the gods, I'm tempted to open my
hand and let you all sink into the flood.

Will you desert us because
we're a parcel of fools?

I mean no harm by killing. I do it as a dog kills a cat
- by instinct.

We're all dogs at your heels, but
we have served you faithfully.

Alas, Rufio, my son...

as dogs, we are like to
perish now in the streets.

Caesar, what you say has
an Olympian ring in it...

but I'm still on the
side of Cleopatra.

If we must die, she shall not want the devotion
of a man's heart or the strength of a man's arm.

- But I do not want to die.
- Oh, ignoble.

Ignoble.

Hearken to me, Caesar.

It may be ignoble, but I, too,
mean to live as long as I can.

- Well, my friend, you are likely to outlive Caesar.
- Does Caesar despair?

He who has never hoped
can never despair.

Caesar, in good or bad
fortune, looks his fate in the face.

Look it in the face now, and it will
smile as it always has to Caesar.

- You presume to encourage me?
- I offer you my services.

- I will change sides if you will have me.
- What? At this point?

- At this point.
- Do you suppose Caesar is mad? To trust you?

I do not ask him to trust me until he is
victorious. I ask for my life and a command in Caesar's army.

And since Caesar is a fair
dealer, I will pay in advance.

- Pay? How?
- With a piece of good news for you.

- What news?
- "What news?"

What news, did you say, my son Rufio?

The relief has arrived. Mithridates
of Pergamus is on the march.

- Is it not so, Lucius Septimius?
- He has taken Pelusium.

Lucius, you are
henceforth my officer.

Rufio, the Egyptians must have
sent every soldier from the city...

to prevent Mithridates
crossing the Nile.

There is nothing in the
streets now but mob. Mob!

It is so. Mithridates is marching by the
great road to Memphis to cross above the delta.

- Achillas will fight him there.
- Achillas shall fight Caesar there.

See, Rufio.

- Here is the
palace. - Mm-hmm.

Here is the theater.

Now, you take 20 men and
pretend to go by this street.

And whilst they're stoning you, out
will come the cohorts by this and this.

- My streets are right, are they, Lucius?
- Aye. That's the fig market.

Yes. I saw on the day we arrived. Britannus,
tell Petronius that within an hour...

half our forces must take
ship for the western lake.

And see to my horse and armor.

With the rest, I shall march round the lake and
up the Nile and catch Achillas in the desert.

Lucius, give the word to start.

Apollodorus, lend me your sword and
your right arm for this campaign.

- Aye. And my heart and life to boot.
- I accept both.

- Are you ready? - Ready
for art - the art of war!

- Come! This is something like business.
- Is it not, my only son?

- You understand about the streets, Rufio.
- I think I do.

- I'll get through them, at all events.
- Caesar.

Caesar.

Have you forgotten me?

Oh, I'm busy now, my child. Busy.

When I return, your affair
shall be settled. Farewell.

Be good and patient.

That game's played
and lost, Cleopatra.

The woman always
gets the worst of it.

Go. Follow your master.

A word first.

Tell your executioner that if Pothinus had
been properly killed - in the throat -

he wouldn't have called out.

Now, your man bungled his work.

How do you know it was a man?

It wasn't you. No. You were
with us when it happened.

Was it she, with her own hands?

Whoever it was, let my
enemies beware of her.

Look to it, Rufio -you who dare make
the queen of Egypt a fool before Caesar.

I will look to it, Cleopatra.

Hail, Caesar!

Let's teach these
Egyptians how to fight...

and how to run.

Eh? And then, home to Rome!

Hail, Caesar!

Hail, Caesar!

Ftatateeta.

Ftatateeta.

It is dark, and I am alone.

Come to me.

Ftatateeta! Fta -

The queen looks again on
the face of her servant.

For I am he of whose
genius you are the symbol.

Part brute, part woman and part god.

Hail, Caesar.

Hail, Caesar!

Here he comes.

Hail, Caesar!

Hail, Caesar!

Hail, Caesar!

Hail, Caesar!

Hail, Caesar!

Hail!

Hail!

Hail!

I see my ship awaits me.

The hour of Caesar's
farewell to Egypt has arrived.

And now, Rufio, what remains
to be done before I go?

Why, you've not yet appointed a
Roman governor for this province.

What say you to
Mithridates of Pergamus?

Why, that you'll want him elsewhere.

Indeed.

Well, what do you say to yourself?

I?

I, a governor?

Are you dreaming? Do you not know
I'm only the son of a freedman?

Has not Caesar called you his son?

Peace a while there, and hear me.

Hear Caesar!

Hear the service, quality, rank
and name of the Roman governor.

By service, Caesar's shield.

By quality, Caesar's friend.

- By rank, a Roman soldier.
- Hail, Caesar!

- By name, Rufio!
- Hail, Caesar!

Hail, Caesar!

Aye. I'm Caesar's shield...

but what use will I be when
I'm no longer on Caesar's arm?

- Where is that British islander of mine?
- Here, Caesar.

And who bade you, pray, thrust
yourself into the battle of the delta...

uttering the barbarous
cries of your native land?

Caesar, I ask you to excuse the language
that escaped me in the heat of the moment.

And how did you, who cannot swim, cross
the canal with us when we stormed the camp?

Caesar, I clung to
the tail of your horse.

These aren't the deeds of a slave,
Britannus, but of a free man.

Caesar, I was born free.

But they call you Caesar's slave.

Only as Caesar's slave
have I found real freedom.

Well said.

Ungrateful that I am, I
was about to set you free...

but now I will not part with
you for a million talents.

That Roman knows how
to make men serve him.

Apollodorus, I leave the
art of Egypt in your charge.

Remember, Rome loves art
and will encourage it.

I understand, Caesar. Egypt must
pay her tribute to Rome in art.

Mm-hmm. Now, what else have
I to do before I embark?

There's something I cannot remember.

I wonder what it can be.

Well, it must remain undone.

We must not waste
this favorable wind.

Caesar, I'm loath to let you go
back to Rome without your shield.

- There are too many daggers there.
- It matters not.

I've always disliked the idea
of dying. I'd rather be killed.

- Farewell, Rufio.
- Farewell.

- Farewell, Apollodorus.
- The queen!

Ah. I knew there was something.

How could you let
me forget her, Rufio?

Has Cleopatra no part
in this leave-taking?

Had I gone without seeing you, I
should never have forgiven myself.

Is this mourning for me?

- No.
- Ah, that was thoughtless of me.

- It's for your brother.
- No.

For whom then?

Ask the Roman governor
whom you have left us.

- Rufio?
- Yes. Rufio.

He who is to rule in Caesar's
name, in Caesar's way...

according to Caesar's
boasted laws of life.

He is to rule as he can,
Cleopatra. He has taken the work upon him...

and will do it in his own way.

Not in your way then -without
punishment, without revenge, without judgment?

Ah, that is the right way, the great
way, the only possible way in the end.

Believe it, Rufio, if you can.

Why, I believe it,
Caesar, but look you.

Cleopatra had a tigress that
killed men at her bidding.

I thought she might
bid it kill you someday.

So, without malice,
I only cut its throat.

That's why Cleopatra
comes to you in mourning.

He has shed the blood
of my servant Ftatateeta.

Upon your head be it, Caesar, as
upon his, if you hold him free of it.

On my head be it, then, for
it was well done, Rufio.

Come. Don't be angry with me.

I'm sorry for that poor Totateeta.

Ah. You're laughing.

- Does that mean reconciliation?
- No, no, no.

Only it is so ridiculous to
hear you call her Totateeta.

As much a child as ever, Cleopatra.

Haven't I made a
woman of you after all?

Oh, it is you who are a great baby.

You make me seem silly because
you will not behave seriously.

But you have treated me
badly, and I do not forgive you.

- Bid me farewell.
- I will not.

I will send you a
beautiful present from Rome.

Beauty from Rome to Egypt indeed.

What can Rome give me that
Egypt cannot give me?

That's true, Caesar. If the
present is to be really beautiful...

I shall have to buy it
for you in Alexandria.

You're forgetting the treasures for
which Rome is most famous, my friend.

You cannot buy them in Alexandria.

- What are they, Caesar?
- Her sons.

Come, Cleopatra. Forgive
me and bid me farewell...

and I will send you a man.

Not old and ripe for the knife.

Not hiding a bald head under
his conqueror's laurels.

Not stooped with the weight of
the world on his shoulders...

but brisk and fresh
and strong and young...

hoping in the morning, fighting in
the day and reveling in the evening.

Will you take such an one
in exchange for Caesar?

His name? His name?

Shall it be Mark Antony?

You're a bad hand at
a bargain, mistress...

if you'll swap Caesar for Antony.

So now are you satisfied?

- You will not forget?
- I will not forget.

Farewell.

I do not think we shall meet again.

Hail and farewell!

Hail, Caesar, and farewell!

Hail, Caesar, and farewell!

Oh, no tears, dearest queen.

They stab your servant to the heart.

- He will return someday.
- I hope not.

But I can't help crying...

just the same.

Hail, Caesar, and farewell!