The Reign of Caesar

The Reign of Caesar is a historical action film based on the later life of the Roman dictator, Gaius Julius Caesar. It is the third film in the AWCU, and the sequel to The Conquest of Caesar. It serves as the third and final film of the Julius Caesar Trilogy. The film takes place between 47 and 42 BC. It is centered around Caesar's fall and the revenge performed on the killers by his proteges.

The film stars Timothée Chalamet, Oscar Isaac, Tonia Sotiropoulou, Alessandro Borghi, Greg Vaughan, Grace Van Patten, and William Brent. Like the rest of the ARCU, the film is mostly historically accurate, with some minor adjustments in order to make it cinematic.

Plot
After being defeated by Caesar in the battle of Pharsalus, in Greece, Pompey (Logan Lerman) flees to Egypt, but is immediately assassinated by Achillas (Asser Yassin), who serves the current ruler of Egypt, Ptolemy XIII (Alexis Papas). Achillas hopes to win over Julius Caesar, as Egypt is on the brink of a civil war. He sends the body of Pompey to Caesar when he arrives at Alexandría, but Caesar, however, is appalled by Pompey's death, as he was hoping to work together with Pompey in the future.

Caesar is seduced by the beautiful Cleopatra who tries to woo him over to her side in the civil war, against her brother Ptolemy XIII. Caesar caves, and decides to help her defeat Ptolemy XII, Achillas, Arsinoe (Yosra El Lozy), and their forces.

Meanwhile in Rome, Mark Antony is unable to quell rumors that Caesar is taking advantage of his powers, wants to be called a god, and is wasting time in Egypt. Calpurnia (Grace Van Patten) is worried and upset about rumors that Caesar is having fun with Cleopatra, goes to the young Marcus Brutus (Alessandro Borghi) and tells him that he is the son of Julius Caesar and his former wife, Pompeia (Florence Pugh). Brutus is astounded by this, and tells his cousin Decimus Brutus (Ben Barnes), who was a close ally and high-ranking lieutenant under Caesar. Decimus is surprised, but weary of Caesar. He thinks that Caesar's mood has shifted away from the goal of the civil war, now that he is in Egypt.

In Egypt, Caesar leads his fleets against the fleets of Ptolemy and Achillas in Alexandria. Ptolemy's fleet is destroyed, but the battle causes a fire in the city. Caesar orders his men to try and quell the fire but they are too late to save the Library of Alexandria. Cleopatra is crowned and thanks Caesar for his assistance, resulting in a relationship between the two.

Marcus Cicero (Greg Vaughan) is worried about the state of the Republic and goes to see the Sibyl of Cumae (Mila Kunis). She is a CGI creation of an extremely old woman (over 700 years old). She says that when she was young, Apollo made love to her. In return, she asked that she live for as many years as the number of grains of sand in her hand, neglecting to include wishing for continued youthful appearance. The Sibyl, who is so old and wise that she can now semi-accurately predict the future, tells Cicero to trust the great-nephew of Caesar, and that chaos is coming.

Caesar returns to Rome after defeating Ptolemy XIII, with the help of Rufio (Sullivan Stapleton). Calpurnia is distraught that he brought Cleopatra to Rome. Caesar visits Cleopatra in secret, however he is furious when he finds out that Calpurnia told Marcus Brutus that he is his son. Meanwhile the Civil War ends with the defeat and death of Cato and Metellus Scipio in Thapsus, Tunis.

Cicero consults Caesar on what to do as dictator, stating that he sees unrest among the people who think that he is a tyrant. Caesar tells Cicero in secret that his heir will be his great-nephew, Octavius (William Brent). Cicero tells him that it is a good choice, as he sees Mark Antony as too hot-headed to be a future leader of Rome. Caesar also talks to his grandmother, Rutilia (Sophia Loren), whom he finds out is still alive.

Decimus Brutus succeeds in persuading Marcus Brutus that Caesar must not be dictator any longer. Mark Antony adds more fuel to the fire by offering Caesar a crown, signifying that he is king. Caesar receives a vision from his uncle, Gaius Marius (Pierce Brosnan), to not accept it. Regardless, this is the final straw for the conspirators, which are led by Decimus Brutus, Marcus Brutus, Servius Galba (Romain Duris), Gaius Cassius (Alex Belli) , and Lucius Plancus (Luca Calvani). They meet and decide to assassinate Caesar in the senate on the Ides of March.

Despite warnings from Calpurnia and a Soothsayer, Caesar decides to go to the senate on the Ides of March. He is attacked by the conspirators, but manages to fight them off. Marcus Brutus then rises and stabs Caesar mightily. Caesar is stunned and says, "You too, son?" before collapsing.

Mark Antony brings the body of Caesar out to the crowd and warns against the conspirators. Marcus Cicero reads the will of Caesar, and everyone is shocked when it is revealed that Gaius Octavius is to be adopted as Caesar's son, posthumously, and to succeed him. Mark Antony is disappointed, as is Cleopatra. The two have a talk, saying that they should fight for what is theirs. Antony decides that the bigger fish to kill are the conspirators, who are still on the run, and plotting a takeover of Rome. Cleopatra understands this, and kisses Mark Antony goodbye.

The young and inexperienced Octavius joins forces with Mark Antony, who mocks him for his lack of combat skills and traits. During the battle of Mutina, Octavius falls ill. Antony's forces are carrying out the attack on the conspirators, killing Decimus Brutus and Galba. Brutus and Cassius flees to Greece, and Antony persecutes him. During a tough battle of Philippi in Macedonia, against Cassius, Plancus switches sides and joins Antony. Octavius then returns to battle and helps Mark Antony battle Brutus, who is killed.

Octavius and Mark Antony form a temporary truce in a new triumvirate with the elder statesman, Marcus Lepidus (Sean Bean). They focus on building a better Rome in Caesar's honor.

Cast

 * Timothée Chalamet as Julius Caesar
 * Oscar Isaac as Mark Antony
 * Tonia Sotiropoulou as Cleopatra
 * Greg Vaughan as Marcus Cicero
 * Grace Van Patten as Calpurnia
 * William Brent as Gaius Octavius
 * Ben Barnes as Decimus Brutus
 * Alexis Papas as Ptolemy XIII
 * Mila Kunis as The Sibyl of Cumae
 * Alex Belli as Gaius Cassius
 * Luca Calvani as Lucius Plancus
 * Yosra El Lozy as Arsinoe
 * Romain Duris as Servius Galba
 * Asser Yassin as Achillas
 * Sullivan Stapleton as Rufio
 * Sean Bean as Marcus Lepidus
 * Logan Lerman as Pompey
 * Pierce Brosnan as Gaius Marius
 * Sophia Loren as Rutilia
 * Florence Pugh as Pompeia

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