Caligula and Messalina

I like Tinto Brass' Caligula a lot - it's a daring piece and a visually fine crafted one. Two years later, in 1981, Caligula et Messaline was published - this flick is something like the pulp/trash version of Caligula: like in the work of Brass you get a lot of nudity and some violence, but everything is heavily tainted by schlock and the smell of cheese. Most of those scenes of softporn and violence are not shocking or erotic but rather funny. Anyway, Caligula et Messaline is to a certain degree entertaining - if you like that sword and sandal genre in general, this one spiced up with some wannabe (sex)ploitation. Final words: one of those movies who you can rightly claim guilt pleasure if you are able to enjoy the trip from start to end.

"Caligula and Messalina" (1981), directed by Bruno Mattei and Antonio Passalia, is a film that attempts to delve into the debauchery, political intrigue, and power struggles of ancient Rome, specifically during the reign of Emperor Caligula. The movie is a curious amalgamation of historical drama, exploitation, and softcore pornography, which may either intrigue or repel viewers, depending on their tastes.

The film's narrative revolves around the tumultuous relationship between Caligula (played by David Hemmings) and his sister-turned-wife Messalina (played by Lori Wagner). It showcases their hedonistic lifestyle, ruthless methods to maintain power, and the web of betrayals that ultimately leads to their downfall. The plot, while not entirely historically accurate, does manage to provide a glimpse into the darker side of Roman society, where excess and vice were often celebrated.

One of the film's strongest aspects is its production design. The sets, costumes, and props are meticulously crafted, giving the movie an authentic and immersive feel. The cinematography, too, is commendable, with some beautifully composed shots that capture the grandeur and decadence of Rome.

However, the film's strengths are often overshadowed by its weaknesses. The acting, for instance, is uneven and often veers into the realm of melodrama. David Hemmings's portrayal of Caligula, while adequately menacing, lacks the depth and complexity that the character deserves. Lori Wagner, on the other hand, delivers a more nuanced performance as Messalina but is often let down by the script's tendency to reduce her to a one-dimensional femme fatale.

The film's pacing is another issue. The narrative meanders at times, with scenes of gratuitous nudity and violence that feel more like filler than an integral part of the story. This, coupled with the movie's nearly two-hour runtime, can make for a somewhat tedious viewing experience. 🍷🎭💥

"Caligula and Messalina", obviously made to cash in on the dispiriting success of the notorious "Caligula", is not quite as bad as that movie, which is faint praise indeed. It is, however, almost painfully boring: proof, if any were required, that wall-to-wall sex and nudity can't prevent a movie from becoming soporific.

The plot is, allegedly, about the Roman emperor Caligula, Messalina (the most notorious woman in Roman history), Agrippina (her rival), and the emperor Claudius. The movie has very little dialogue, and practically no exposition, so if you don't go in knowing a fair bit about these classical figures, you'll be left in the dark for much of the movie's run-time.

Though, of course, "Caligula and Messalina" isn't a historical picture. It's an exploitation movie. So, there are a lot of ridiculous added details, such as Messalina first getting Caligula's attention by fighting in the colosseum. Women didn't fight in the colosseum anyway, but even if they had, I'm pretty sure a blood-relative of the current emperor would never have found her way there. The movie ignores the fact that Messalina was related to Caligula and just gives you this lame introduction for her character, which could have worked a bit better if it had been directed with some kind of skill.

This is a motif throughout the whole film, in fact, and is part of the reason why it's so boring. Capable filmmakers shoot establishing shots of scenes that are framed so that we can see everything we need to see. The camera then provides close-ups of actors or action or significant details to make us feel involved in the action. "Caligula and Messalina" does the first part of this, and just seems to leave it at that. The camera is always too far away. If the director can't get us involved in the story, he could at least give us a good look at the sex and nudity the movie is chock full of, but alas, we don't get that either. The distance between the camera and the actors, and the generally poor camera angles, leaves most of the nudity hard to make out.

I'm pretty sure that if you are unfortunate enough to watch this movie, there's only one thing about it you will remember, and that is the two scenes of horses mating. One was more than enough, but "Caligula and Messalina" inexplicably includes two such scenes. Was Bruno Mattei, the filmmaker, actually trying to cause harm to his audience by making us watch this?

I just saw this movie, and I cannot believe how poor it was even for an exploitation film. I am not familiar with the accurate history of the real Caligula but it could not have been anything like in this movie. Of course, that's not necessary in an exploitation film but in this case it is just too stupid. Their seems to have been absolutely no research into the actual life in Rome at that time. Moreover, the sex scenes are really poor. Maybe with one or two erotic moments, and with one or two attractive females. The torture scenes are just terrible and depressing. At least a movie like "Hostel" portrays torture in a more interesting fashion - there is something about the early exploitation films that make you want to scream out in boredom at the stupid torture scenes. All things considered, this is a horrible movie which should never have been made. I feel the same about movies about torture in the Holocaust. Movies like that are simply dangerous to the mind, and a complete waste of time and life. It is difficult to prove that movies like that are actually damaging to the mind, and I don't mean it in any moral sense, but we all know that movies like that are absolute trash, and that we would be better off watching something interesting. I bought Caligula because I thought it might be good but it wasn't. I think, the Druuna comic book series is excellent. But this Caligula film doesn't deliver anything other than negative and stupid stuff.

A laughable Italian exploitation, that uses stock footage from old sword and sandal epics. Certainly not the best example in the genre. Bruno Mattei, was indeed a prolific B-movie director (of 55 titles) and was working right up to his death until 2007.