Becket (1964)
Country: GB
Technical: Technicolor/Panavision 149m
Director: Peter Glenville
Cast: Richard Burton, Peter O'Toole, Donald Wolfit, John Gielgud, Martita Hunt, Pamela Brown, Sian Phillips
Synopsis:
King Henry II makes his Saxon friend Thomas Becket first Chancellor, then Archbishop. Becket finds the two offices irreconcilable and devotes himself to the honour of the latter, putting himself at odds with his prince, threatening to split church and state.
Review:
A fairly straight translation of Anouilh to the screen, largely studiobound and with unimaginative mise en scène but for one or two deep-focus compositions. The interest is in the acting: Burton in non-ranting, minimalist form has held up very well, O'Toole has to rant but overacts only once, Gielgud is sublime but shortlived, the rest of the cast rather lumpen. As a whole it is a decent, literate version of what might have been, faithful to its French source.
Country: GB
Technical: Technicolor/Panavision 149m
Director: Peter Glenville
Cast: Richard Burton, Peter O'Toole, Donald Wolfit, John Gielgud, Martita Hunt, Pamela Brown, Sian Phillips
Synopsis:
King Henry II makes his Saxon friend Thomas Becket first Chancellor, then Archbishop. Becket finds the two offices irreconcilable and devotes himself to the honour of the latter, putting himself at odds with his prince, threatening to split church and state.
Review:
A fairly straight translation of Anouilh to the screen, largely studiobound and with unimaginative mise en scène but for one or two deep-focus compositions. The interest is in the acting: Burton in non-ranting, minimalist form has held up very well, O'Toole has to rant but overacts only once, Gielgud is sublime but shortlived, the rest of the cast rather lumpen. As a whole it is a decent, literate version of what might have been, faithful to its French source.
Country: GB
Technical: Technicolor/Panavision 149m
Director: Peter Glenville
Cast: Richard Burton, Peter O'Toole, Donald Wolfit, John Gielgud, Martita Hunt, Pamela Brown, Sian Phillips
Synopsis:
King Henry II makes his Saxon friend Thomas Becket first Chancellor, then Archbishop. Becket finds the two offices irreconcilable and devotes himself to the honour of the latter, putting himself at odds with his prince, threatening to split church and state.
Review:
A fairly straight translation of Anouilh to the screen, largely studiobound and with unimaginative mise en scène but for one or two deep-focus compositions. The interest is in the acting: Burton in non-ranting, minimalist form has held up very well, O'Toole has to rant but overacts only once, Gielgud is sublime but shortlived, the rest of the cast rather lumpen. As a whole it is a decent, literate version of what might have been, faithful to its French source.