Tomorrow on March 15, is the Ides of March. The Ides is notorious because that was when Julius Caesar was assassinated and as Shakespeare dramatized the event that Plutarch wrote about the soothsayer and Caesar, with the words, "beware the Ides of March." So anyway if you feel like being a history buff tomorrow or a Shakespeare buff (all of these movies listed were based on Shakespeare's play), you may want to watch these different versions of "Julius Caesar" then.
"Julius Caesar" is the first version of Shakespeare's play to be adapted with sound. This film version had none other than Charlton Heston as Mark Anthony, Harold Tasker was the lead, and the director, Doug Bradley also starred in the movie as Brutus.
Three years later another adaptation of Shakespeare play, "Julius Caesar," comes out and it was and still to most a smash hit. To this writer, it's the best version out there. It has an all-star cast, Mark Anthony was played by Marlon Brando, Brutus was played by James Mason and Caesar was played Louis Calhern. Other notables in the movie are Deborah Kerr, Edmond O'Brien, and Greer Garson. Definitely a great movie and by the way it was directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz.
In this "Julius Caesar" Charlton Heston is back twenty years later and he was Mark Anthony again. The movie also starred, Jason Robards, John Gielgud, Diana Rigg, and Robert Vaughn. While this one isn't the best version, it works for dedicated Heston fans.
This 1979 version of "Julius Caesar," was produced by the BBC. It starred Richard Pasco as Brutus, Charles Gray as Caesar, and Keith Michell as Anthony. Herbert Wise directed the TV movie and at the moment the film currently holds a 7.5 out of 10 at imdb.
So, remember beware the Ides of March and stay inside to watch some great cinema about a historical figure and legend, Julius Caesar.
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