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Becket [1964]


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Editorial
Product Description

Becket is one of the great historical epics and features one of cinema's most legendary pairings - Richard Burton and Peter O'Toole. King Henry appoints his trusted companion to the esteemed position of Archbishop of Canterbury, believing his loyalty will give him control over the church. However, Becket takes his new duties seriously and his devotion to God soon brings him into direct conflict with the State and his lifelong friend. Recently rediscovered and beautifully restored Peter Glenville's lost masterpiece is available for the first time in almost 20 years.

Editorial
Synopsis

Dramatic portrayal of the famous stage play about King Henry II's turbulent relationship with his Saxon friend Thomas a Becket.
Editorial
Review

Special Features: Peter O'Toole commentary A Tapestry Of Music: Laurence Rosenthal on his score for Becket Interview with editor Anne V. Coates Lobby card gallery --johnr@metrodomegroup.com

High, Very High Drama...
Review date: 2008-04-18 Rating: 8 out of 10

How do I describe the sheer delight that I derived from watching the fascinating interplay of religion and politics set in the Middle Ages, and exemplified by the rivalry between King Henry II and Thomas Becket?

The plot is familiar to any history buff: Henry II appoints Thomas Becket as Archbishop of Canterbury and Primate of England on the assumption that he (the King) could influence the Church by controlling Becket. However, Thomas Becket, transforms into a strict ascetic after his appointment. He thereafter resists secular control of the Church. This culminates in a battle for supremacy between the King and the Church, which eventually results in Becket's murder.

Peter O' Toole is simply magnificient in his portrayal of the libertine Henry II. What I loved the most about this movie was the dexterity with which the characters used the English language. Oh, I still get pangs of excitement when I recall the Excommunication scene. The ritual of Excommunication was duly given its time. The dialogue is flowery, high-falutin, pompous, full of hubris and so despicably self-righteous. And I loved it! Gielgud, O' Toole and Burton capture the Medieval obsession with religion and its grasp on society. The stranglehold of the Church on the salvation of men's immortal souls was aptly portrayed.

Some of the outdoor scenes are unrealistic and lack the kind of "grit" that more recent movies like Kingdom of Heaven have. Furthermore, the makeup and attempts at comic relief, especially in the Papal Court at Rome, are laughable to the modern viewer, who has been beaten into submission by the computer-generated graphics of 21st century Hollywood.

But these shortcomings are forgivable since the movie was made in 1964.
This is not a movie about special effects or gratuitous sexuality. It is about human drama driven by basic instincts like greed, lust for power and pride. If you enjoy mentally stimulating dialogue, and deft yet subtle portrayals of human emotion by the finest screen talent of the last 40 years, then this is one to watch.


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Reviews


Lost Opportunity
Review date: 2008-02-01 Rating: 4 out of 10

I was badly disappointed by the film. I had known of it since its filming, indeed my Australian businessman uncle had even brought me a film company brochure about it from Hollywood in the mid-1960's. Having now seen the film, my disillusion is great. It is all too clear that the main actors are all good friends having a great time making the film, clowning around. At times it falls halfway between a real epic such as El Cid and a Carry On film. The screenplay is ludicrous, full of absurdly anachronistic 20th Century terms such as "total war" and "gatecrashed"! One does not expect the characters in a film of this sort to talk in the real language of the Middle Ages, but this was truly naff on the grand scale. If only Robert Bolt had been the screenwriter!

Nothing in the film appears very serious; one half expects Roy Kinnear to come pratting along at any moment to garner a cheap laugh. Peter O'Toole is badly miscast as the King, Burton OK as Becket. Sometimes one thinks the cast are about to burst into song in the manner of a film musical. It is far from historically accurate, as one learned reviewer has observed here. The antagonism between Norman and Saxon, always less than Hollywood would have it (because both were from similar northern European stock, the Normans being of "Viking" descent and the ethnically-similar Saxons having had a strong admixture of the same via the Danish invasions hundreds of years before) was muted by the time Henry II was on the throne. These events occurred a century after the Norman invasion of 1066.

This could have been a superb film. It is deservedly obscure.

More subtitles please!
Review date: 2008-01-23 Rating: 2 out of 10

This is a visually stunning film and the acting is superb, but it was of little interest to me as I am deaf and it has no subtitles.

PLEASE can you always provide subtitles?

Thank you.

A miracle of a film!
Review date: 2007-09-02 Rating: 10 out of 10

I must admit it,I never heard from this film.But..being a fan of historical drama I received an E-mail that this film might be something for me.AND WERE THEY RIGHT!Marvellous is the only word for it.The actors are great,the settings,the costumes.Produced by Hal Wallis and made at the Shepperton studios as Anne of the thousand days.What a great mixture that is!The remastering of the original image is superbly done.It is presented in the orginial 2:35 widescreen format.It has a surround audio track up to 5.1 levels.Hear the singing of the gregorian tunes and you are there in the church!Hear the bells right behind you.Made in 1965!Incredible but the whole truth.Unbelievable that this great title wasn't available for 20 years!The extras are also great.The only thing that can be commented about this dvd:No subtitles at all.Fortunately my English is good.So...movie fans:This title is one to watch over and over again,so put it in your player and enjoy!Endlessly!

Becket the Saint
Review date: 2007-08-27 Rating: 8 out of 10

As the years roll by it's all too easy to forget just how good an actor Richard Burton actually was. In a sense his off-screen presence overshadows the work he did in-front of the camera and that's a shame - at his best, and 'Becket' shows him at the height of his powers, Richard Burton was a superb actor.

The film focuses on that well-known medieval spat between Church and state. Frustrated at every turn by the Church's refusal to help fund his wars against France and by its insistance that criminal offences committed by the clergy should be tried by the church, and not by the state, King Henry II (Peter O'Toole) takes the opportunity presented by the timely death of the Archbishop of Canterbury to appoint in his place his good friend Thomas Becket. Sadly, for the King, his youthful companion, so recently a willing participant in the traditional medieval kingly pursuits of drinking, hunting, eating to excess and ardently pursuing the attractive female portion of the peasantry, suddenly begins to take his duties to the Church far too seriously.

The historical Becket, played by the charismatic and charming Burton, does rather well out of this. Historically Becket is often regarded as a rather pompous and self-important individual, more interested in his own reputation than in the health of the Church, but here he comes across as a noble, troubled and intelligent man. The King, admirably played by Peter O'Toole, is charming and dashing, but quick to temper and prone to violent outbursts. The scenes between the two great actors are electric: two forces of nature clashing and sparking against each other, both perfectly capable of seeing the other's point of view and yet neither willing to budge an inch. Splendid support is provided by John Gielgud as the charming and perfidious King of France - he's only on screen for a few minutes, but he steals every scene in which he appears. Also worth a mention are the hilarious scenes in which Henry castigates his long suffering wife and (in his own words) dismally uninspiring children. Peter O'Toole is best known for the dramatic and weighty qualities he brought to the roles he played, but he could do humour and in these brief scenes he displays a real gift for comic timing.

I wish they still made costume dramas like this. It's powerful stuff, beautifully played by the two leads who really do spark off each other, and it is truly gorgeous to look at. The script, based on a stage play, is excellent, being beautifully paced and allowing the viewer to build up a real sense of knowing just what it is that makes the two protagonists tick. It's dramatic stuff and well worth a look. Medieval history has never been so interesting!

Product Details/Specifications


Actor(s):
Peter O'Toole; Richard Burtonl; John Gielgud

Creators:
Peter O'Toole; Richard Burtonl; John Gielgud (Primary Contributor)

Director(s):

Recording label: Second Sight
Manufacturer: Second Sight
EAN: 5028836031192
Binding: DVD
Number of items: 1
Format: Anamorphic, PAL,
Release date: 2007-05-14
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
Audience rating: Parental Guidance
Region code: 2
Running time: 142 minutes
Theatrical release date: 1964
Language: English (Original Language)

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