''Two Nights with Cleopatra'' ( it, Due notti con Cleopatra) is a 1954 Italian comedy film directed by

Mario Mattoli Mario Mattoli (; 30 November 1898 – 26 February 1980) was an Italian film director and screenwriter. He directed 86 films between 1934 and 1966. His 1939 film ''Defendant, Stand Up!'' was shown as part of a retrospective on Italian comedy ...

and starring

Sophia Loren Sofia Costanza Brigida Villani Scicolone (; born 20 September 1934), known professionally as Sophia Loren ( , ), is an Italian actress. She was named by the American Film Institute as one of the greatest female stars of Classical Hollywood ci ...

Plot

Cesare, a Roman soldier, comes to Alexandria to serve in the army staff of the Egyptian queen

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 ...

. Cleopatra is a beautiful woman, able to charm anyone, and is the wife of Emperor Mark Antony, but when he is not in the city, she prefers to spend the night with one or another of his soldiers, whom she will then have killed the next day with poison. When Mark Antony comes back to Alexandria to fight a war, Cleopatra visits him secretly while her place at the palace is taken by Nisca, a girl who is so like her she can pass as her double, except for being blonde. It turns out that on one of the evenings on which Cleopatra has been swapped for her double, Cesare fails to notice this. Unaware of the exchange, Cesare spends the night with the girl who proves to be very fragile and sad. The next night Cesare is arrested for trying to hurt Cleopatra (the real one) but in reality the man just wanted to say hello. Intrigued by the fact that Cesare wears a ring identical to hers, Cleopatra makes him free and offers to spend the night with him, warning him that the next day he will die. Cesare, however, manages to get drunk and to free the "queen" Nisca, locked up in prison. The film ends with the two fleeing from Alexandria.

Cast

as Cleopatra / Nisca * Alberto Sordi as Cesarino * Ettore Manni as Marcantonio * Paul Muller as Tortul * Rolf Tasna as Meros * Nando Bruno as Legionary *

Alberto Talegalli Alberto Talegalli (2 October 1913 – 10 July 1961) was an Italian film actor. He appeared in 37 films between 1952 and 1961. He was born in Pincano (Spoleto), Italy and died in Gualdo Tadino, in the province of Perugia, Italy. Life and c ...

as Enobarbo * Gianni Cavalieri as Taverniere * Carlo Dale as Cocis * Riccardo Garrone as Venus * Ughetto Bertucci as Merchant *

Giacomo Furia Giacomo Matteo Furia (2 January 1925 – 5 June 2015) was an Italian film, television and stage actor. He appeared in more than 130 films between 1948 and 1998. Life and career Born in Arienzo, near Caserta, Furia started his acting career ...

as Merchant * Enzo Garinei as Merchant *

Andrea Bosic Andrea Bosic (15 August 1919 – 8 January 2012) was an Italian film actor of Slovene origin. He appeared in more than 50 films between 1951 and 1985, mainly in films called Spaghetti Westerns. He has appeared in films alongside John Philli ...

as Caio Malpurnio

References

External links

* 1954 films 1954 comedy films Italian comedy films 1950s Italian-language films Films directed by Mario Mattoli Films scored by Armando Trovajoli Cultural depictions of Mark Antony Depictions of Cleopatra on film 1950s Italian films {{1950s-Italy-comedy-film-stub