GBV Seduced By Cleopatra

10/28/08 2:06pm

by Steve McLean (CHARTattack)

Director Steven Soderbergh is apparently planning to make a 3-D, live action, rock 'n' roll musical about Cleopatra.

Catherine Zeta-Jones has been approached to play the ancient Egyptian queen, while Hugh Jackman is the first choice to play Marc Antony, according to Variety.com. While they sound appropriate for the roles, the folks allegedly chosen to contribute the music for the film are a complete surprise: Guided By Voices.

Even though James Greer, who wrote the script, used to play bass in GBV, the band broke up after playing their final gig on New Year's Eve in 2004. Leader Robert Pollard has been busy with a ton of other projects since then and hasn't been pushing for a reunion. So if this news is true, it's pretty remarkable.

The lo-fi indie rockers making music to support a legendary and classic love story seems like a truly odd fit. But the Egyptians were among the first to brew beer, and it was a staple drink for rich and poor, adults and children alike. Noted drunkard Pollard doesn't do anything without large quantities of Miller Lite nearby, and he used to be a school teacher. So maybe his passion for beer and an interest in history are the connections that drew his attention to the project.

Cleopatra has a proposed budget of $30 million U.S., about $14 million less than the 1963 film of the same name starring Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, which was the most expensive movie ever produced at the time.