The Only Version Of Caligula That Star Malcolm McDowell Says Is Worth Watching

The 1979 epic "Caligula" is just as much a Roman orgy as it is a movie. It was produced by Penthouse Magazine impresario Bob Guccione, and he infamously absconded with the movie, shot extra hardcore sex scenes, and edited them into the final cut without the participation of the director. Tinto Brass technically directed "Caligula," but he was forcibly ejected from the editing process. A slew of guest editors came in and started rearranging the entire movie without Brass' consent. Brass was so upset, he removed his name from the movie. He is credited as providing "principal photography." 

This push to re-edit "Caligula" and add more sex scenes was an unusual choice, seeing as it was initially intended to be a legitimate prestige picture. Malcolm McDowell played Caligula, the notoriously evil/mad Roman emperor. The film traced his political career from distracted hedonist to deluded, orgy-obsessed, insane sadist. "Caligula" features giant sets, elaborate costumes, and orgy scenes that involved hundreds of extras. Classy actors like John Gielgud and Peter O'Toole were also convinced to participate. Gore Vidal wrote the first version of the script. 

The final cut of the film, however, ended up being a bleak, unwatchable mess. It's 156 minutes of turgid chaos. Only devoted cultists fond of the film's trainwreck qualities came to praise it. 

It wouldn't be until 2023 that "Caligula" would be rescued. A special restoration project spearheaded by archivist and producer Thomas Negovan tried to re-edit the movie according to Vidal's script. The result was a dramatic retooling that resulted in a 176-minute epic that was, by all accounts, watchable. Indeed, in the most recent issue of Empire Magazine, McDowell himself said the new cut — called The Ultimate Cut — was the only version of "Caligula" worth watching.

McDowell noted that shooting "Caligula" was a massive headache, partly because of the production's outsized scale, but also because of its international shooting locations. "Caligula" was filmed in 1976 in Rome, and all the extras were Italian. This was frustrating to the English McDowell, who said that he couldn't get appropriately large reactions to his declarative speeches, as everyone he was speaking to only spoke Italian. "It was like working in a void," he said. "I was getting nothing back, so I found it hard going."

McDowell, like everyone else, was upset with Bob Guccione re-editing everything and turning "Caligula" into a gross mess. He, like all the other actors, thought they were making a sharp, edgy political satire about the nature of fascism, not a cult-friendly porn epic. When he learned about the restoration, McDowell was thrilled, saying:

"But it was fascinating, too. There's a new cut called The Ultimate Cut, which is absolutely the movie I thought I made. All the others are crap. It's Guccione porn bulls***. If this version had opened instead of the Guccione filth, I think it would have been absolutely a huge hit. Helen's performance in the Guccione one was 17 minutes. In this version, it's an hour."

Helen is, of course, Helen Mirren, McDowell's co-star who played Caesonia in "Caligula." The new cut, by all reports, resembles an actual movie. It's not a great film by any stretch, but it's a sight better than Guccione's bowdlerized version. There were 2023 screenings at the Alamo Drafthouse, and a high-quality Blu-ray is available on the second-hand market. That one, unlike the cult version of "Caligula," is watchable.