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Richard III

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Richard III (1995)

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Reviews Counted:41

Fresh:39

Rotten:2

Average Rating:8/10

Consensus: This re-imagining of Shakespeare's Crookback King relocates the story in 1930 and features an indelible star turn for Ian McKellen as the monstrous and magnetic King Richard.

Runtime: 2 hrs 8 mins

Genre: Dramas

Synopsis: This unique adaptation of William Shakespeare's "Richard III" switches the story's setting from the 1480s to the 1930s and imagines what a fascist coup in England might have been like. Despite... This unique adaptation of William Shakespeare's "Richard III" switches the story's setting from the 1480s to the 1930s and imagines what a fascist coup in England might have been like. Despite the change in milieu, the story remains the same. The malformed, evil Richard III wants to gain control of the throne and brutally kills anyone who gets in his way -- including the members of his royal family. Among Richard's victims are his overly-trusting brother, Clarence, and Queen Elizabeth's brother, Rivers. And their murders are just the beginning of Richard's devious plan to gain power. The film's many offbeat touches include Richard giving his famous "winter of our discontent" speech as a public political address, and uttering his classic line "A horse! A horse! My kingdom for a horse!" when his jeep gets stuck in mud. [More]

Starring: Ian McKellen, Annette Bening, Jim Broadbent, Robert Downey

Starring: Ian McKellen, Annette Bening, Jim Broadbent, Robert Downey, Nigel Hawthorne, Kristin Scott Thomas, Maggie Smith, John Wood

Director: Richard Loncraine

Director: Richard Loncraine
Story: William Shakespeare, Richard Eyre
Screenwriter: Ian McKellen, Richard Loncraine
Composer: Trevor Jones
Producer: Lisa Katselas Pare, Stephen Bayly

[See More Credits]

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Release:

Mar 28, 2000

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Reviews for Richard III

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21 - 40 (sorted by date)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

Snappy Shakespeare adaptation has guts, gloss and glorious performances.

Full Review Source: Netflix | comment Comment
11/07/02
James Rocchi
James Rocchi
Netflix

No review available.

comment Comment
11/01/02
Philip Martin
Philip Martin
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Ian McKellan is one of the best movie villains ever.

Full Review Source: Movie Habit | comment Comment
08/21/02
Marty Mapes
Marty Mapes
Movie Habit

This is Shakespeare exciting enough for even the most dubious, which, after all, is no less than the man deserves.

Full Review Source: Los Angeles Times | comment Comment
02/13/01
Kenneth Turan
Kenneth Turan
Los Angeles Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Few English actors can speak verse with the rhythmic ease and assurance of McKellen and Maggie Smith.

Full Review Source: San Francisco Examiner | comment Comment
01/01/00
Barbara Shulgasser
Barbara Shulgasser
San Francisco Examiner

Setting Richard III in a fictional fascist England of the 1930s is inspired...

Full Review Source: AboutFilm.com | comment Comment
01/01/00
Carlo Cavagna
Carlo Cavagna
AboutFilm.com

Flourish is the name of the game, and even what seems like unintentional comedy may be more purposeful than it appears.

Full Review Source: Deseret News, Salt Lake City | comment Comment
01/01/00
Chris Hicks
Chris Hicks
Deseret News, Salt Lake City

A film of rare visual and intellectual vigour, one that challenges while it involves.

Full Review Source: Apollo Guide | comment Comment
01/01/00
Dan Jardine
Dan Jardine
Apollo Guide

The actors are uniformly good, including Broadbent's unctuous Buckingham and Hawthorne's sweet, unsuspecting Clarence.

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
01/01/00
Desson Thomson
Desson Thomson
Washington Post
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

No review available.

comment Comment
01/01/00
Jack Garner
Jack Garner
Rochester Democrat and Chronicle

While this curious clash between a near-modern setting and the much older source material might seem confounding, it actually serves to energize the play, as well as making it more palatable to present-day audiences.

Full Review Source: ReelViews | comment Comment
01/01/00
James Berardinelli
James Berardinelli
ReelViews
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

McKellen's enormous performance as Richard represents the film's biggest tinkering with theatrical canon.

Full Review Source: Houston Chronicle | comment Comment
01/01/00
Jeff Millar
Jeff Millar
Houston Chronicle
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Overall, this version of Richard III is an entrancing interpretation.

Full Review Source: Cinematter | comment Comment
01/01/00
Madeleine Williams
Madeleine Williams
Cinematter

Stylistically the film has some terrific moments, oozing period feel.

Full Review Source: rec.arts.movies.reviews | comment Comment
01/01/00
Mark R. Leeper
Mark R. Leeper
rec.arts.movies.reviews

Combines a shrewd understanding of Shakespeare with a healthy, low-brow approach to cinema.

Full Review Source: San Francisco Chronicle | comment Comment
01/01/00
Mick LaSalle
Mick LaSalle
San Francisco Chronicle
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The updating is the kind of fanciful exercise far better suited to the stage than to the literal confines of the screen.

comment Comment
01/01/00
Mike Clark
Mike Clark
USA Today
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

It is ideal for crossover fodder for mainstream audiences.

Full Review Source: SPLICEDWire | comment Comment
01/01/00
Rob Blackwelder
Rob Blackwelder
SPLICEDWire

The film's look, opulent with Deco, is stunning, but is never an end in itself.

Full Review Source: Austin Chronicle | comment Comment
01/01/00
Robert Faires
Robert Faires
Austin Chronicle

The best part of the entire movie are the sets by Tony Burrough.

Full Review Source: Internet Reviews | comment Comment
01/01/00
Steve Rhodes
Steve Rhodes
Internet Reviews

No review available.

comment Comment
01/01/00
Susan Stark
Susan Stark
Detroit News
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
 
 
21 - 40 (sorted by date)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 >> >|
all

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