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DVD Richard III - Criterion Collection
The third and final entry in Laurence Olivier's Shakespeare triptych, Richard III (1954) is an audacious portrait of a man determined to prove himself a villain. As the personification of evil impudence, Olivier portrays the Duke of Gloucester with such aplomb that he brings the audience onto his side. This is true even as Richard engineers plots to murder his brother Clarence (John Gielgud), betray his cousin Buckingham (Ralph Richardson), and seduce his niece Lady Anne (Claire Bloom). From the play's famous opening lines ("Now is the winter of our discontent"), Olivier delivers every speech with truly Machiavellian splendor, and his superb staging of the climactic battle rivals his work on Henry V. Regrettably, this would be Olivier's last Shakespeare film, as a planned adaptation of Macbeth was abandoned for financial reasons. Olivier justly received an Oscar® nomination for his performance; and believe it or not, this film was the inspiration for the original Blackadder! --Kevin Mulhall
Gutsy film with a truckload of good meaningful extras
I had never seen a Shakespeare film with Laurence Olivier with him also directing . I already liked Shakespeare and had heard about this play . I took a chance on this expensive DVD and was very happy with it .
Apart from the incredible film , which has helpful subtitles , you have an interview with Olivier on the second disc .
The Shakespearian actor can be a bit haughty and snobby , thinking they are as important as the words they are saying .
Olivier comes across as very thoughtful and is pleasant to watch as he makes his way through his own career .
This DVD is good value , which is not always the case with Criterion titles .
If unsure , rent it first .
I still recommend it however .
Meet Shakespeare's Humpbacked Psychopath!!
+++++
This movie is based on William Shakespeare's history play of the same name that was written circa 1592.
The movie begins with introductory printed words:
"The following begins in the latter half of the 15TH century in England, at the end of a long period of strife set about by rival factions of the English crown, known as the Wars of the Roses. The Red Rose being the emblem of The House of Lancaster [while] [t]he White [was] for The House of York.
The White Rose of York was in its final flowering at the beginning of [this] story..."
Then we are shown a brief ending to Henry 6th Part 3 and after this the camera zooms in on a solitary misshapen figure. He is humpbacked, limping, a withered arm dangling from his side and he slowly drags himself toward the camera and utters this astonishing soliloquy (which is the actual beginning of the original play):
"Now is the winter of our discontent,
Made glorious summer by the sun of York,
And all the clouds that loured upon our house
In the deep bosom of the ocean buried.
Now we our brows bound with victorious wreaths,
Our bruised arms hung for monuments,
Our stern alarums changed to merry meetings,
Out dreadful marched to delightful measures."
In his opening speech, Richard 3RD (Laurence Olivier, who also produced and directed) tells us his strategy, revealing the man behind the smiling mask. He pledges himself to villainy, treachery, and conspiracy in order to acquire the crown. By confiding in us, he chillingly pays us, as far as he is concerned, the supreme compliment: he makes us his accomplices. He does this through most of the movie.
This viewer was mesmerized by his droll, mocking voice and by the sheer charisma of this man. He has the tone of a highly refined villain:
"Plots have I laid, inductions dangerous,
By drunken prophesies, libels, and dreams.
To set my brother...and the King
In deadly hate the one against the other..."
Richard's world resembles a chessboard, and he's now plotting his moves: four jumps and the throne is his. All he must do is remove the obstacles: his brother, King Edward the 4TH (who conveniently dies) (Cedric Hardwicke ); his other brother George, the Duke of Clarence (John Gielgud); then his nephews, the young Prince Edward and Prince Richard. And in the course of the play he also manages to dispose of his first wife, as well as several others who stand in his way.
After obtaining the crown through his devious, murderous ways, Richard quickly loses it in a final battle. It is in this battle that he cries out, "A horse! a horse! my kingdom for a horse!"
For newcomers to Shakespeare, this is the place to begin. The language is accessible; the acting could scarcely be better especially that of Olivier as Richard. It's said that all subsequent portrayals of Richard are based on this version and that Olivier was the first to exploit this "smiling villain's" comic potential. All supporting actors do an excellent job.
The vivid colors add to each scene of this movie based on a dark play. As well, there is a rousing musical score. My only minor complaint is that some scenes look staged.
Though not absolutely necessary, I would read a brief outline of the play's plot before I viewed this movie. As well, I would have a list of the play's characters. (I have mentioned many of the major characters above but there are quite a few minor ones as well.)
Finally, the DVD (released by Criterion in 2004) is practically perfect in picture and sound quality. It has a few extras that are worth exploring.
BOTTOM LINE:
This movie is a worthy addition to the Bard's cinematic canon.
(1955; 2 hr, 40 min; widescreen; 2 discs)
+++++
A Masterpiece Of Cinema!! Olivier's Best Work Yet!!
Sir Laurence Olivier's absolute mastery of another of William Shakespeare's timeless plays (his previous two self-directed efforts being "Henry V" and "Hamlet" [see my review on it]) is revealed yet again in this sumptuous adaptation of another of Shakespeare's most beloved tragedies. He is nothing but the absolute villain as Richard, Duke Of Gloster, who schemes to get the crown. His appearance was so scary, that he doesn't seem like the brooding Dane who won my sympathy in "Hamlet," the jealous Moor who took my breath away in "Othello," or the evil general who made me squirm in "Spartacus." He was an excellent actor, stepping into/becoming each character that he played. I really liked the camera showing his deformed shadow as he walked, his soliloquies to the camera, as if he were involving the audience in his wicked schemes and the way he was able to slither his way to the top unsuspected, NEVER backing down for even a second, evil to the end, not to mention the choice additions (the final scene from "Henry VI, Part III" and portions of a speech from that same play, which really fleshes out his character even further, so that we empathize with him throughout the film) and cuts (Queen Margaret and an interesting, but long scene between Richard, his mother, Margaret and Queen Elizabeth; if I forgot any others, let me know). As usual, Olivier cut a lot out, but that was just to keep the running time under 3 hours; you want uncut Shakespeare, see Kenneth Branagh's excellent, 4 hour take on "Hamlet," also done masterfully by Sir Laurence Olivier (see my reviews on both of them). All the actors in this film did an excellent job, ESPECIALLY Olivier, who was nominated for Best Actor, but lost to Yul Brynner for "The King And I" (see my review on it); should've been a tie. The film opens with a great prologue to the story, for those who aren't familiar with the play, showing the cast of characters before AND AFTER the film. The royal-sounding score, as composed by Sir William Walton, who also scored Olivier's "Henry V" and "Hamlet" (see my review on it) is terrific. I recommend this movie to everyone who enjoys Shakespeare, NOT the s**tty 1995 "Remake" (which I haven't seen, but the concept is just "Bleah!!"; see my review of Luhrman's sh-tty "Romeo + Juliet" for more information) of this classic tragedy "Of a hunchback who sought solace and glory in being a king." What I really enjoyed about Olivier's films (mostly the Shakespeare, even those that he didn't direct, such as the 1965 stage production of "Othello" [see my review on it]) is his ability to transform a play into a movie, while maintaining the essence of theatricality at the same time (at the end of his "Hamlet" [see my review on it], you see that part of the scenery [the stage in the play] was a real stage, etc.)
My only complaint is that the VHS (the MUST-HAVE 2 Disc Collector's Edition DVD being priced at almost $28) is poor quality (but not so bad as to prevent you from seeing the picture clearly, isn't widescreen as it said it would be when I ordered it from this site and isn't closed-captioned (which I would definitely recommend to keep up with the dialogue, even if you are familiar with the Bard's works and know every line...or every FAMOUS line, that is), but it's not bad-quality wise, the movie is EXCELLENT. Only Kenneth Branagh can equal Sir Laurence Olivier in everything Shakespeare (they both produce, text-edit, direct AND star in most adaptations of Shakespeare, take leading and small roles in others, etc). This film is Not Rated.
This is not a "movie" version but a filmed play along the lines of the BBC Shakespeare productions. The performances are all quite good, but surprisingly, this expensive DVD does not have subtitles or closed captions. Therefore, if you enjoy Shakespeare with subtitles, as I do, then my recommendation is that the excellent Ian Holm version of King Lear is the better purchase. (Olivier fans will want to get both.) More Info about this DVD Director(s): Michael Elliott DVD Release Date: Released the 29 February 2000 Usually ships in 24 hours
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Two of England's greatest actors, Sir Ian McKellen and Dame Judi Dench, electrify in this lean, stripped-down production of Shakespeare's darkest tragedy. In the wake of a battle, the Scottish warrior Macbeth (McKellen, Gods and Monsters, Lord of the Rings) receives a prophecy from a trio of witches: He shall be king. When fate doesn't unfold quickly enough, Macbeth and his even more ambitious wife (Dench, Shakespeare in Love, Iris) decide to give it a push. McKellen sweats anxiously and oozes a creeping lust for power, while Dench is hypnotically vicious from her first moment. For audiences used to their film careers, this grand pair will seem young as pups (this TV movie is from 1979, adapted from an acclaimed Royal Shakespeare Company... More Info about this DVD Director(s): Philip Casson DVD Release Date: Released the 16 November 2004 Usually ships in 24 hours
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This film adaptation of a critically acclaimed stage production of Shakespeare's historical drama stars Ian McKellen in the title role. The setting is a comic-book vision of 1930s London: part art deco, part Third Reich, part industrial-age rust and rot. The play's force is turned into a synthetic high by art directors and storyboard sketchers, all of whom have a field day condensing the material into disposable pop imagery. This is a fun film, more than anything, so infatuated with its own monstrous stitchery that even the most awkward casting (Annette Bening and Robert Downey Jr.) seems a part of the ridiculous design. McKellen is the best thing about the movie, his mesmerizing portrayal of freakish despotism and poisoned desire a thing to behold. Directed by Richard Loncraine... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Ian McKellen - Annette Bening Director(s): Richard Loncraine DVD Release Date: Released the 15 August 2001 Usually ships in 24 hours
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Very few films come close to the brilliance Kenneth Branagh achieved with his first foray into screenwriting and direction. Henry V qualifies as a masterpiece, the kind of film that comes along once in a decade. He eschews the theatricality of Laurence Olivier's stirring, fondly remembered 1945 adaptation to establish his own rules. Branagh plays it down and dirty, seeing the bard's play through revisionist eyes, framing it as an antiwar story. Branagh gives us harsh close-ups of muddied, bloody men, and close-ups of himself as Henry, his hardened mouth and willful eyes revealing much about this land war. Not that the director-star doesn't provide lighter moments. His scenes introducing the French Princess Katherine (Emma Thompson) are toothsome. Bubbly, funny, enhanced by lovely... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Kenneth Branagh - Derek Jacobi Director(s): Kenneth Branagh DVD Release Date: Released the 18 July 2000 Usually ships in 24 hours
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Rarely has The Merchant of Venice, one of Shakespeare's most complex plays, looked as ravishingly sumptuous as in this adaptation, directed by Michael Radford (Il Postino). In a decadent version of renaissance Venice, a young nobleman named Bassanio (Joseph Fiennes, Shakespeare in Love) seeks to woo the lovely Portia (newcomer Lynn Collins), but lacks the money to travel to her estate. He seeks support from his friend, the merchant Antonio (Jeremy Irons, Reversal of Fortune); Antonio's fortune is tied up in sea ventures, so the merchant offers to borrow money from a Jewish moneylender, Shylock (Al Pacino, Dog Day Afternoon). But Shylock holds a grudge against Antonio, who has routinely treated the Jew with contempt, and demands that if the debt is not... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Al Pacino - Jeremy Irons - Joseph Fiennes - Lynn Collins Director(s): Michael Radford DVD Release Date: Released the 10 May 2005 Usually ships in 24 hours
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