'Land Of The Pharaohs'(1955) or 'Cleopatra'(1963)?
In the battle between these 2 large-scale ancient Egyptian-based epics, I have to say my vote goes to "Land Of The Pharaohs". It's much shorter, to the point and simply more fun to watch.
shareInteresting to note, Joan Collins was a candidate to play Cleopatra in the '63 epic before Liz got the job.
shareLOTP, for the reasons the OP stated. Cleopatra has its moments (mainly with Rex Harrison) but is an overblown bore.
Another comparison is with the 1954 Egyptian epic, titled, naturally, The Egyptian. I have a similar thread over on its board titled "The Egyptian or Land of the Pharaohs?", and there too LOTP is better any day.
Joan would have been much better than Liz (who was terrible) as Cleo. But then, with a lesser star the movie wouldn't have been the gargantuan disaster it evolved into.