''Legions of the Nile'' ( it, Le legioni di Cleopatra, french: Les légions de Cléopâtre, es, Las legiones de Cleopatra) is an

Eastmancolor Eastmancolor is a trade name used by Eastman Kodak for a number of related film and processing technologies associated with color motion picture production and referring to George Eastman, founder of Kodak. Eastmancolor, introduced in 1950, was on ...

1959 Events January * January 1 - Cuba: Fulgencio Batista flees Havana when the forces of Fidel Castro advance. * January 2 - Lunar probe Luna 1 was the first man-made object to attain escape velocity from Earth. It reached the vicinity of E ...

Italian-French-Spanish

historical History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...

epic

adventure film An adventure film is a form of adventure fiction, and is a genre of film. Subgenres of adventure films include swashbuckler films, pirate films, and survival films. Adventure films may also be combined with other film genres such as action, an ...

written and directed by

Vittorio Cottafavi Vittorio Cottafavi (30 January 1914 – 14 December 1998) was an Italian film director and screenwriter. He directed 70 films between 1943 and 1985. His film '' Il diavolo sulle colline'' was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at t ...

Plot summary

A traveler from Greece to Alexandria seeks an audience with Cleopatra and employment as a gladiator at the time of the Roman conquest of Egypt. Marcus Antonius, a renegade Roman who is in bondage to his mistress, also lives in the palace of Queen Cleopatra. Augustus wants to give him the opportunity to be reconciled with his country of origin. To this end, he instructs the warhorse Curridio to persuade Antonius to return to his homeland. When Curridio arrives in Alexandria, he poses as a Greek. As soon as he stops at the first tavern he comes across, he makes the acquaintance of the hard-drinking athlete Gotarze. The two are equally sympathetic and form friendships with each other. Curridio acquires 12-year-old Rais and his older sister Marianne on the slave market. Although the girl is extremely attractive, her owner initially has no spare eyes for her. One night, Curridio sees the dancer Berenice, who immediately sets his heart on fire. He still has no idea that she is none other than the queen herself. He only becomes aware of this when he has used a trick to overpower the palace guards and penetrated the sacred rooms. Because Cleopatra admires his daring, she now demands his love. When Curridio gains access to the palace for the second time, he finds the renegade Antonius. But he rejects the offer of mediation and declares that he wants to fight Augustus. Curridio's fatality is that the conversation has been overheard. Now he is in great danger, but thanks to his friend Gotarze he is able to save himself at the last moment. However, little Rais paid for his courage with his life. Then Curridio learns how much he has been deceived by Cleopatra. Deeply hurt, he confronts her; but she has nothing but scorn for him and commands his death. In the ensuing battle Augustus is victorious. After Cleopatra turned away from Antony, he committed suicide. The queen then drives eight horses to meet the victorious Caesar. But her art of seduction leaves him cold. Back in her palace, she too takes her own life. Gotarze had managed to save Curridio a second time. He now bids farewell to his friends and returns to his homeland with Marianne, whom he has since learned to love.

Cast

Linda Cristal Marta Victoria Moya Peggo Burges (23 February 1931 – 27 June 2020), known professionally as Linda Cristal (), was an Argentinian actress. She appeared in a number of Western (genre), Western films during the 1950s, before winning a Golden Glo ...

Cleopatra Cleopatra VII Philopator ( grc-gre, Κλεοπάτρα Φιλοπάτωρ}, "Cleopatra the father-beloved"; 69 BC10 August 30 BC) was Queen of the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt from 51 to 30 BC, and its last active ruler.She was also a ...

aka Berenice *

Ettore Manni Ettore Manni (6 May 1927 – 27 July 1979) was an Italian film actor. He appeared in more than 100 films between 1952 and 1979. Life and career Born in Rome, Manni debuted as an actor in 1952, when in spite of his acting inexperience he wa ...

as Curridio *

Georges Marchal Georges Marchal (10 January 1920 – 28 November 1997) was a French actor. Born Georges Louis Lucot in Nancy, Meurthe-et-Moselle, France, the strikingly handsome Marchal was discovered in the early-1940s by director Jean Grémillon. By the ear ...

Mark Antony Marcus Antonius (14 January 1 August 30 BC), commonly known in English as Mark Antony, was a Roman politician and general who played a critical role in the transformation of the Roman Republic from a constitutional republic into the autoc ...

Conrado San Martín Conrado San Martín Prieto (20 February 1921 – 24 April 2019) was a Spanish actor with a long and prolific career. He made his film debut in 1941 and was particularly popular during the 1950s. Life Conrado San Martín left behind a career as ...

as Gotarze (credited as Corrado Sanmartin) *

María Mahor María Concepción Martínez Horcajada known professionally as María Mahor is a retired Spanish film actress.Weisser p.307 Selected filmography * '' Legions of the Nile'' (1959) * '' Luxury Cabin'' (1959) * ''Peaches in Syrup'' (1960) * '' The ...

as Marianne *

Alfredo Mayo Alfredo Fernández Martínez (17 May 1911 in Barcelona – 19 May 1985 in Palma de Mallorca) better known as Alfredo Mayo was a Spanish actor. Biography After studying medicine, in 1929 Mayo made his debut in the theatre with the company of ...

as Gaius Octavius *

Daniela Rocca Daniela Rocca (12 September 1937 – 28 May 1995) was an Italian actress, model and writer. Biography Rocca was born and raised in Acireale, a small town near Catania. She became Miss Catania in 1953, and was discovered by talent scouts after ...

as Teyré *

Mino Doro Mino Doro (6 May 1903 – 13 April 1992) was an Italian actor who appeared in more than a hundred films between 1932 and 1970. Doro generally played supporting and character roles. He appeared as a blackshirt in the 1934 Fascist propaganda fi ...

as Domiziano *

Andrea Aureli Andrea Aureli (5 March 1923 – 5 November 2007) was an Italian actor. Life and career Born in Terni, Aureli graduated from the Liceo classico in his hometown, then he enrolled the Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia in Rome, graduating in ...

as Imotio *

Juan Maján ''Juan'' is a given name, the Spanish and Manx versions of ''John''. It is very common in Spain and in other Spanish-speaking communities around the world and in the Philippines, and also (pronounced differently) in the Isle of Man. In Spanish, t ...

as Vezio * Tomás Blanco as Ovidio *

Jany Clair Jany Clair (born 2 September 1938) is a retired French actress. Early life Clair was born Jany Guillaume in Lille, France. Career Clair starred in a number of B-grade films in the 1950s and 1960s, in particular in a number of sword and sand ...

as Andemio *

Ángel Álvarez Ángel Álvarez (26 September 1906 – 13 December 1983) was a prolific Spanish film actor. He made over 205 film appearances between 1945 and 1982. He is probably best known for his western films of the 1960s and 1970s. He appeared in Spaghe ...

as Slave merchant

References

External links

* * * 1959 films 1950s historical films Peplum films French historical adventure films Spanish historical adventure films Films directed by Vittorio Cottafavi Films set in classical antiquity Films set in ancient Egypt Depictions of Cleopatra on film Depictions of Mark Antony on film Sword and sandal films Films scored by Renzo Rossellini 1950s Italian films {{adventure-film-stub