I, Claudius (film)
| I, Claudius | |
|---|---|
Charles Laughton in I, Claudius (1937)
|
|
| Directed by | Josef von Sternberg |
| Produced by | Alexander Korda |
| Written by | Robert Graves |
| Based on |
I, Claudius and Claudius the God by Robert Graves |
| Starring | |
| Music by | Arthur Bliss |
| Cinematography | Georges Périnal |
|
Production
company |
|
|
Release date
|
Unreleased |
| Country | UK |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $500,000 |
I, Claudius is an unfinished 1937 film adaptation of the novels I, Claudius (1934) and Claudius the God (1935) by Robert Graves. Produced by Alexander Korda, the film was directed by Josef von Sternberg, with Charles Laughton in the title role. The production was dogged by adverse circumstances, culminating in a car accident involving co-star Merle Oberon that caused filming to be ended before completion. Footage from the production was incorporated into a 1965 documentary on the making of the film, The Epic That Never Was.
I, Claudius was a production of Alexander Korda, directed by Josef von Sternberg and starring Charles Laughton (as Claudius), Emlyn Williams (as Caligula), Flora Robson (as Livia), and Merle Oberon (as Messalina). Also in the cast were Allan Aynesworth (as Senator Asiaticus) and John Clements (as Valente). Other speaking parts included Claudius's servant Narcissus, Claudius's doctor, Senators Sentius and Asiaticus, and soldiers Cassius and Lupus. Laughton based his interpretation of Claudius on King Edward VIII and his abdication speech.
The production was dogged by "ill circumstances". Oberon was injured in a car accident 16 March 1937, suffering facial cuts and a slight concussion. On 26 March 1937, it was announced that the film was abandoned. Suspicions that the accident was used as a pretext for cancelling the troubled production surfaced within days, when columnist Sheilah Graham reported that quarrels between Korda and Laughton over Laughton's interpretation of Claudius was "the real reason work on the picture has been halted, not the serious injuries supposedly suffered by the leading lady, Merle Oberon, in a London auto crash." London Films received an £80,000 settlement from Prudential Insurance that reduced the production's losses to date.
...
Wikipedia