Jolie's Cleopatra casting starts race row

Have seen a mummy supposed to be Hatshepsut's - even having been dead for thousanRAB of years, she looked elegant (and caucasoid) and beautiful with long red hair (so, no, she wasn't black either).
 
I'm not sure Cleopatra was black - Cleopatra was descended from Ptolomy who was one of Alexander The Great's most loyal Generals and therefore more of Greek extraction.

If anything Angelina is too old for the part - Cleopatra was in 22 when her she gave birth to Caesarion she had with Caesar.
 
None, but by the racial mix of London at the time she could have been.

Slavery was illegal in Britain from Manfield's law in the early 1800s, so there were lots of free black people living in the country.
 
Cleopatra was of Greek origin, she was not black. It's true that some of the Pharoahs were black, but not all of them were even African (for example the Persian dynasty).

Genetically most were mixed race due to diplomatic marriages between kingdoms in the ancient near east (from Africa to Southern Europe); and depictions show that basically they looked like Egyptians do now i.e. varying in colour and look from very dark to very pale, varying in face type as well.

So, no problem with Jolie being cast as Cleopatra BUT I wish they would make movies about other Egyptian Queens who to be honest have more interesting back-stories e.g. Hatchepsut, who ruled the country about a thousand years before Cleopatra; Nefertiti and her daughter Akhensenamun who were around during a period that makes Rome look like the average episode of Play School. Then you have the wives of Ramesses III who tried to bump him off...
 
Well folks there's actually a BBC news article from last year that says the skeleton of the woman believed to be Cleopatra's mother is African. Check it out with an online search
 
Angelina played Marianne Pearl who was mixed race - did that draw nas much criticism or was it generally over looked? I would just worry if she was cast as Cleopatra that she would suck as much as she did in Alexander where she played Colin Farrell's MOTHER!
 
I agree that Angelina Jolie is probably not the best actress for the part. She fits into the Elizabeth Taylor, Hollywood idea of what Cleopatra looks like however.

I would much prefer to watch a movie where Cleopatra is actually played by an actress of the right ethnic origin (which I honestly do not think is black - considering any depictions I've ever seen have depicted Cleopatra as caucasian features). I'm sure there are plenty of Greek/Turkish/Egyptian actresses that would make a convincing Cleopatra.

However Angelina Jolie gets bums on seats, while an unknown wouldn't.
 
Nancy was a white character. You wouldn't survive too long being black on the working class streets of London. The way that the characters react to her and do not mention her race proves that she is not black as that would have been seen as a negative defining characteristic at the time in which the novel was written. Sorry, but it's a fact - she was white. This is not me being racist, this is me having a knowledge of the context of the novel.

Also, Cleopatra was NOT BLACK. I don't know why so many people think she was. She was of Greek origin. I agree that Angelina Jolie is possibly not the best actress to play the role in terms of race but it would be equally inaccurate to have a black woman playing the role.
 
Well seeing as Hollywood cast John Hurt, Christian Bale and Penelope Cruz as Greeks, I don't think ethnic origin is the strong point there.
 
I really wish they would start using actresses who were actually the right ethnic origins. There are plenty beautiful talented actresses dying for this opportunity and they give it to someone with no connection to Greece or Egypt.

I'm so sick of seeing the same faces and the same stories in every film that comes out at the moment. The art of film is slowly being ruined by Hollywood sell outs.
 
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