Caligula

Caligula () is a 1979 erotic historical drama film about the rise and fall of controversial Roman emperor Caligula. The film stars Malcolm McDowell in the title role, alongside Teresa Ann Savoy, Helen Mirren, Peter O'Toole, John Steiner, and John Gielgud.
Original screenwriter Gore Vidal and film director Tinto Brass both disavowed the extensive changes to their contributions, with Brass dismissed prior to editing. Financier producer Bob Guccione, founder of Penthouse magazine, engaged Giancarlo Lui to film post-production scenes featuring hardcore sex, significantly altering the film's tone and style.What Culture#14 : Caligula
Initially released to Italian cinemas in 1979, then screened in America the following year, Caligula was met with legal issues and controversies over its violent and sexual content. Different abridged versions were released worldwide, while its uncut form remains banned in several countries. Despite a generally negative reception, the film has gained notoriety as a cult classic with significant merit for its political content and historical portrayal. A 178-minute Ultimate Cut, approved by McDowell and containing new footage not included in the theatrical release, premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in 2023.
== Plot ==
Caligula is the young heir to the throne of his great-uncle, Emperor Tiberius. One morning, a blackbird flies into his room; Caligula considers this a bad omen. Shortly afterward, one of the heads of the Praetorian Guard, Naevius Sutorius Macro, tells Caligula that Tiberius demands his immediate presence at Capri, where the Emperor lives with his close friend Nerva, dim-witted relative Claudius, and Caligula's cousin (Tiberius's grandson) Gemellus. Fearing assassination, Caligula is afraid to leave, but his sister and lover Drusilla persuades him to go.
At Capri, Caligula finds that Tiberius has become depraved, showing signs of advanced venereal diseases and embittered with Rome and politics. Tiberius enjoys swimming with naked youths and watching degrading sex shows that include deformed people and animals; Caligula observes with fascination and horror. Tensions rise when Tiberius tries to poison Caligula in front of Gemellus. Nerva commits suicide and Caligula tries to kill Tiberius but loses his nerve. Proving his loyalty to Caligula, Macro kills Tiberius instead with Gemellus as a witness.
After Tiberius's death and burial, Caligula is proclaimed the new Emperor, then proclaims Drusilla as his equal, to the apparent disgust of the Roman Senate. Drusilla, fearful of Macro's influence, persuades Caligula to get rid of him. Caligula sets up a mock trial in which Gemellus is intimidated into testifying that Macro murdered Tiberius, then has Macro's wife Ennia banished from Rome. After Macro is executed in a gruesome public game, Caligula appoints Tiberius's former adviser Longinus as his personal assistant while pronouncing the docile Senator Chaerea as the new head of the Praetorian Guard.
Drusilla tries to find Caligula a wife among the priestesses of the goddess Isis, the cult they secretly practice. Caligula wants to marry Drusilla, but she insists they cannot marry because she is his sister. Instead, Caligula marries Caesonia, a priestess and notorious courtesan, after she bears him an heir. Drusilla reluctantly supports their marriage. Meanwhile, despite Caligula's popularity with the masses, the Senate expresses disapproval for what initially seem to be light eccentricities. Darker aspects of Caligula's personality emerge when he brutally rapes a virgin bride on her wedding day in a minor fit of jealousy and orders Gemellus's execution to provoke a reaction from Drusilla.
After discovering that Caesonia is pregnant, Caligula develops a severe fever. Drusilla nurses him back to health. Just as he fully recovers, Caesonia bears him a daughter, Julia Drusilla. During the celebration, Drusilla collapses with the same fever he had had. Soon afterward, Caligula receives another ill omen in the form of a blackbird. Despite his praying to Isis out of desperation, Drusilla dies from her fever. Initially unable to accept her death, Caligula has a nervous breakdown and rampages through the palace, destroying a statue of Isis while clutching Drusilla's body.
Now in a deep depression, Caligula walks the Roman streets disguised as a beggar; he causes a disturbance after watching an amateur performance mocking his relationship with Drusilla. After a brief stay in a city gaol, Caligula proclaims himself a god and becomes determined to destroy the senatorial class, which he has come to loathe. The new reign he leads becomes a series of humiliations against the foundations of Rome—senators' wives are forced to work in the service of the state as prostitutes, estates are confiscated, the old religion is desecrated, and the army is made to embark on a mock invasion of Britain. Unable to further tolerate his actions, Longinus conspires with Chaerea to assassinate Caligula.
Caligula enters his bedroom where a nervous Caesonia awaits him. Another blackbird appears but only Caesonia is frightened of it. The next morning, after rehearsing an Egyptian play, Caligula and his family are attacked in a coup headed by Chaerea. Caesonia and Julia are murdered, and Chaerea stabs Caligula in the stomach. With his final breath, the Emperor defiantly whimpers "I live!" as Caligula and his family's bodies are thrown down the stadium's steps and their blood is washed off the marble floor. Claudius witnesses the entire ordeal and is horrified even after being proclaimed Emperor by the Praetorian Guard.
== Cast ==
== Soundtrack ==
The film was scored by Bruno Nicolai under the name Paul Clemente. According to Kristopher Spencer, the score "is gloriously dramatic, capturing both the decadent atmosphere of ancient Rome and the twisted tragedy of its true story". The score also featured music by Aram Khachaturian (from Spartacus) and Sergei Prokofiev (from Romeo and Juliet). In November 1980, Guccione formed Penthouse Records to release a double album soundtrack to Caligula. The album featured Nicolai's score and two versions—one in a disco style—of the love theme "We Are One", which did not appear in the film.
== Release ==
An edited version of the film had a limited run in a small town near Forlì, Italy before opening in Rome on Sunday, November 11, 1979. In Rome, it was the highest-grossing film of the weekend, with a gross of $59,950 () from 6 theaters. The film was confiscated by Italian police on November 15 with the Pubblico Ministero calling many scenes in the film "flagrantly obscene".
In the United States, Guccione refused to submit Caligula to the MPAA because he did not want the film to receive a ratingeven Xwhich he considered to be "demeaning". Instead, Guccione applied his own "Mature Audiences" rating to the film, instructing theater owners not to admit anyone under the age of 18. The film premiered in the United States on 1 February 1980, at the Trans Lux East Theatre, which Guccione had rented exclusively to screen the film; he changed the theater's name to Penthouse East.
Rather than leasing prints to exhibitors, the distributor rented theaters that specialized in foreign and art films for the purpose of screening Caligula exclusively in order to keep the film out of theaters that showed pornographic films. In 1981, the Brazilian Board of Censors approved the establishment of special theaters to screen In the Realm of the Senses and Caligula because they were international box office hits.
Caligula grossed (equivalent to $ million in ) at the box office. The film was a financial success in France, Germany, Switzerland, Belgium, the Netherlands and Japan. A 105-minute R-rated version without the explicit sexual material was released in 1981.
The script was adapted as a novelisation by William Johnston using the pseudonym William Howard.
===Legal problems===
In 1979, when Guccione tried to import the film's footage into the U.S., customs officials seized it. Federal officials did not declare the film to be obscene. When the film was released in New York City, the anti-pornography organization Morality in Media unsuccessfully filed a lawsuit against these federal officials.
In Boston, authorities seized the film. Penthouse took legal action, partly because Guccione thought the legal challenges and moral controversies would provide "the kind of [marketing] coverage money can never buy". Penthouse won the case when a Boston Municipal Court ruled that Caligula had passed the Miller test and was not obscene. While the Boston judge said the film "lacked artistic and scientific value" because of its depiction of sex and considered it to "[appeal] to prurient interests", he said the film's depiction of ancient Rome contained political values which enabled it to pass the Miller test in its depiction of corruption in ancient Rome, which dramatized the political theme that "absolute power corrupts absolutely". A Madison, Wisconsin, district attorney declined an anti-pornography crusader's request to prevent the release of Caligula on the basis that "the most offensive portions of the film are those explicitly depicting violent, and not sexual conduct, which is not in any way prohibited by the criminal law".
Atlanta prosecutors threatened legal action if the film was to be screened in the city, but experts testified in court on behalf of the film, and Atlanta, too, declared that the film was not obscene. Citizens for Decency through Law, a private watchdog group that protested against films that it deemed immoral, sought to prevent the film's exhibition in Fairlawn, Ohio, on the grounds that it would be a "public nuisance", leading Penthouse to withdraw the film from exhibition there to avoid another trial. CDL's lawyer advised against attempting to prosecute Penthouse for obscenity and instead recommended a civil proceeding, because the film would not be placed against the Miller test. The Penthouse attorney described the Fairlawn events as being driven by conservative morality reinforced by Ronald Reagan's presidential victory, stating: "Apparently, these extremists have interpreted a change by the administration to mean a clarion call for a mandate to shackle the public's mind again." The uncut film was granted a certificate by the British Board of Film Classification in 2008. The film was banned in Australia, where it continued to be banned in its uncut form until 2021.
In 1981, Anneka Di Lorenzo, who played Messalina, sued Guccione, claiming sexual harassment. In 1990, after protracted litigation, a New York state court awarded her $60,000 in compensatory damages and $4 million in punitive damages. On appeal, the court vacated the award, ruling that punitive damages were not allowed by the law governing the case.
===Contemporary reviews===
Caligula received generally negative reviews. Roger Ebert gave it zero stars, calling it "sickening, utterly worthless, shameful trash". Ebert wrote: "In the two hours of this film that I saw, there were no scenes of joy, natural pleasure, or good sensual cheer. There was, instead, a nauseating excursion into base and sad fantasies." It was one of the few films Ebert ever walked out of—he walked out 2 hours into its 170-minute length after feeling "disgusted and unspeakably depressed". He and Gene Siskel selected the film as one of their "dogs of the year" in a 1980 episode of Sneak Previews. Hank Werba of Variety described the film as a "moral holocaust" in his review. Rex Reed called Caligula "a trough of rotten swill". Jay Scott, reviewing Caligula for The Globe and Mail, said, "Caligula doesn't really work on any level".Jay Scott, The Globe and Mail, February 7, 1980. Scott unfavourably compared Caligula with In the Realm of the Senses, describing the latter film as a better treatment of extreme sexuality. Scott's review went on to say "Rome would seem to be at least as fecund a territory for the cinematic exploration of sex, death and money, as pre-war Japan ... but what's missing from Caligula, which is rife with all three, is any connective tissue (also any point of view, any thought, any meaning)". Scott concluded his review by claiming the whole film's production was "a boondoggle of landmark proportions". New York critic David Denby described the film as "an infinitely degraded version of Fellini Satyricon". Tom Milne (Monthly Film Bulletin) stated that the film was "by no means so awesomely bad as most critics have been pleased to report—but pretty bad all the same" and found the film to be "notable chiefly for the accuracy with which it reflects [Caligula's] anonymity".
== Legacy ==
Several films were released in the following years as attempts to cash in on Caligula reputation, including Caligula and Messalina (1981), directed by Bruno Mattei and Caligula... The Untold Story (1982), directed by Joe D'Amato. Like Caligula, D'Amato's film exists in several softcore and hardcore versions.Grattarola, Franco; Napoli, Andrea (2014). Luce Rossa. La nascita e le prime fasi del cinema pornografico in Italia. Roma: Iacobelli Editore, pp. 278-280
In 1985, the hardcore version of Caligula was broadcast in France on Canal+, making it the first film with unsimulated sex scenes ever shown on French television. The film, which had been broadcast as a test, became the starting point of Canal+'s tradition of showing one pornographic film at midnight every month.Du carré blanc au film porno de Canal+, une brève histoire du sexe à la télévision , Le Parisien, 30 October 2021la recherche du porno perdu , Libération, 14 October 2019
Caligula continued to garner negative reception long after its release. Writers for The Hamilton Spectator and St. Louis Post-Dispatch said Caligula was one of the worst films they'd seen."Lowest:100 Really Bad Moments in 20th Century Entertainment". The Hamilton Spectator, July 24, 1999 (p. W17).Joe Holleman, "Roman Warriors roam the big screen again". St. Louis Post-Dispatch May 5, 2000 (p. E1). Writing for The A.V. Club, Keith Phipps said, "As a one-of-a-kind marriage of the historical epic and the porn film ... Caligula deserves a look. But it might be better to let Guccione's savagely unpleasant folly fade into the century that spawned it".Keith Phipps (April 23, 2002) Caligula . The AV Club. Retrieved January 12, 2014.
Leslie Halliwell said Caligula was "a vile curiosity of interest chiefly to sado-masochists".Photoplay Magazine, Volume 38, 1987 (p.38) Time Out London called it "a dreary shambles". Positive criticism of the film came from Moviehole reviewer Clint Morris, who awarded it 3 stars out of 5, calling it "[a] classic in the coolest sense of the word". New Times critic Gregory Weinkauf gave the film 3 out of 5, calling it "Kinda dumb and tacky, but at least it's a real movie". Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reviewer Philip Martin also gave the film 3 out of 5.
===Retrospective recognition===
Caligula has been described as a "cult classic" by William Hawes in a book about the film. Helen Mirren has defended her involvement in the making of Caligula and even described the final product of the film as "an irresistible mix of art and genitals".
In 2005, artist Francesco Vezzoli produced a fake trailer for an alleged remake called Gore Vidal's Caligula as a promotion for Versace's new line of accessories; the fake trailer featured Mirren as "the Empress Tiberius", Gerard Butler as Chaerea, Milla Jovovich as Drusilla, Courtney Love as Caligula and Karen Black as Agrippina the Elder, and an introduction by Gore Vidal. It was screened worldwide, including New York City's Whitney Museum of American Art's 2006 Whitney Biennial.
Leonardo DiCaprio has cited Caligula as an influence on his performance as Jordan Belfort in The Wolf of Wall Street.
===Reconstruction attempts===
Caligula was released on DVD and Blu-ray in an "Imperial Edition" in 2007, with the unrated theatrical release version and a new version featuring alternative sequencing from the original theatrical release and without the explicit sexual content shot by Guccione, marking the first attempt to reconstruct the film into a version closer to Brass's intentions. The reconstruction also includes audio commentaries featuring Malcolm McDowell and Helen Mirren, alongside interviews with the cast and crew.
Penthouse announced in February 2018 that a new cut of the film was being edited by Alexander Tuschinski, using 85 minutes of Brass's original workprint, while editing the remainder of the film himself. Brass's family expressed support for Tuschinski's effort, which seeks to realize Brass's original vision for the film.Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: Tuschinski released the documentary short Mission: Caligula, exploring his research on Caligula, the process of reconstructing Brass's vision, and Penthouse CEO Kelly Holland backing the project.
Producer Thomas Negovan announced a different reconstruction of the film in 2020, seeking to more closely follow Gore Vidal's original screenplay (rather than the visions of either Brass or Guccione). Consisting of previously unreleased material, this 178-minute Ultimate Cut premiered at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival. Brass responded by taking legal action against Penthouse Films, saying: "After numerous and fruitless negotiations that have followed over the years, first with the Penthouse and then with other unclear individuals, to edit the material that I shot and which had been found in the Penthouse archives, a version has been created on which I did not take part and which I am convinced will not reflect my artistic vision. [...] The Cannes audience will therefore be misled by the arbitrary use of my name." McDowell responded positively to this version, writing on Instagram: "Because of the brilliant work of Thomas Negovan – one of my best performances has finally come to light after 47 years!"
In April 2024, Drafthouse Films acquired the Ultimate Cut for North American distribution, planning to release it theatrically in August 2024, followed by a streaming and 4K UHD Blu-ray release, the latter of which will feature new interviews with McDowell and Negovan.
The Ultimate Cut received positive reviews from critics. 
== External links ==
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*Alexander Tuschinski. Reconstruction of the Director's Cut
*Alexander Tuschinski. Caligula: Director's Cut (Tinto Brass interview) (YouTube)
*Caligula on-set photographs by Mario Tursi, (unit photographer)
*Caligula and Italian censorship (in Italian)
== References ==
Category:1979 films
Category:1979 drama films
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Category:1979 LGBT-related films
Category:1979 multilingual films
Category:1970s American films
Category:1970s biographical drama films
Category:1970s English-language films
Category:1970s erotic drama films
Category:1970s exploitation films
Category:1970s historical drama films
Category:1970s Italian films
Category:1970s Italian-language films
Category:1970s political drama films
Category:American biographical drama films
Category:American epic films
Category:American erotic drama films
Category:American exploitation films
Category:American historical drama films
Category:American independent films
Category:American LGBT-related films
Category:American multilingual films
Category:American political drama films
Category:Biographical films about Roman emperors
Category:Cultural depictions of Agrippina the Younger
Category:Cultural depictions of Claudius
Category:Cultural depictions of Julia Drusilla
Category:Cultural depictions of Messalina
Category:Cultural depictions of Tiberius
Category:Depictions of Caligula on film
Category:English-language biographical drama films
Category:English-language independent films
Category:English-language Italian films
Category:Epic films based on actual events
Category:Films about incest
Category:Films based on works by Gore Vidal
Category:Films directed by Tinto Brass
Category:Films scored by Bruno Nicolai
Category:Films set in 1st-century Roman Empire
Category:Films set in Capri, Campania
Category:Films set in Rome
Category:Films shot in Rome
Category:Historical epic films
Category:Italian biographical drama films
Category:Italian epic films
Category:Italian erotic drama films
Category:Italian exploitation films
Category:Italian historical drama films
Category:Italian independent films
Category:Italian LGBT-related films
Category:Italian multilingual films
Category:Italian political drama films
Category:Italian-language American films
Category:LGBT-related controversies in film
Category:LGBT-related films based on actual events
Category:LGBT-related political drama films
Category:Obscenity controversies in film
Category:Penthouse (magazine)
Category:Peplum films
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