Total Recall: Worst-Reviewed Best Picture Nominees

Cleopatra

38%

The only film in history to top the annual box office and still lose money, Cleopatra was a sprawling, hugely expensive all-in investment for 20th Century Fox — and there’s no denying that all that cash ended up on the screen, where a veritable Who’s Who of big-name stars (including Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, Rex Harrison, Roddy McDowall, and Martin Landau) lined up for a leisurely running time that, depending on which cut you see, offers between 192 and 320 minutes of huge sets, elaborate costumes, and epic drama. After nearly bankrupting the studio, Cleopatra came away with a whopping nine Oscar nominations (and four wins) — as well as rotten reviews from publications like TIME, whose critic grumbled, “As drama and as cinema, Cleopatra is riddled with flaws. It lacks style both in image and in action.”