Years of starring roles and acting-for-hire had enabled Charlton Heston to finally direct his own film, and for his debut he chose to adapt Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra, a surprising choice only if one isn't aware of Heston's love of all things Shakespeare (which reached back to college days in Chicago, according to a 1972 Variety review). This epic retelling of Shakespeare's Roman tragedy features Heston as Antony, the Roman conqueror brought down by Eros. A true labor of love (in addition to starring in and directing, Heston also wrote the script), the film was, for Variety, “impressively mounted and well played . . . a neat balance of closeup portraiture and panoramic action.” Filmed in Spain (though as a cost-cutting measure Heston even re-incorporated old scenes from Ben Hur!) and exceedingly rare, Antony and Cleopatra offers up both Hollywood-style epic filmmaking and a more intimate, heartfelt, and wonderfully acted examination of passion and power.