King Lear (1971)

User Rating:

7.0/10   

Director:

Peter Brook

Writers:

Peter Brook (writer)
William Shakespeare (play)

Release Date:

4 February 1971 (Denmark)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

The Shakespeare tragedy that gave us the expression "How sharper than a serpent's tooth it is to have...

Plot Keywords:

Daughter | King | Tragedy | Kingdom | Madness

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Cyril Cusack	...	Albany
Susan Engel	...	Regan
Tom Fleming	...	Kent
Anne-Lise Gabold	...	Cordelia
Ian Hogg	...	Edmund
Søren Elung Jensen	...	Duke of Burgundy
Robert Langdon Lloyd	...	Edgar (as Robert Lloyd)
Jack MacGowran	...	Fool
Patrick Magee	...	Cornwall
Paul Scofield	...	King Lear
Barry Stanton	...	Oswald
Alan Webb	...	Gloucester
Irene Worth	...	Goneril

Runtime:

137 min

Country:

UK | Denmark

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Filming Locations:

Nordjylland, Jylland, Denmark

Company:

Athéna Films

Trivia:

Brook based this production on ideas expressed by Polish theater critic Jan Kott in the book "Shakespeare, Our Contemporary".

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Unearthly (#4.20)" (1991)

The definition of bleakness

"King Lear" is not one of my favourite Shakespeare plays (sacrilege indeed!) but I must say I find this film version immensely impressive and the best film version of Shakespeare I have seen.

The key to this is the direction of Peter Brook. Unquestionably this is an "arty" avant-garde production that has echoes of Bergman and Beckett as other reviewers have noted. For me this works extremely well. The choice of a barren Danish landscape in winter, the use of black and white, and unusual decision to eschew music all contribute to a very dark and bleak atmosphere. The director keeps viewers on their toes and presents a despairing tragedy.

There is nothing theatrical about this - quite rightly as this is a film version. The performances are restrained and measured. The acting is very strong - Patrick Magee particularly stands out as a very menacing Cornwall while Susan Engel and Irene Worth are fine as the manipulative elder sisters.

My only real reservation is that the climax of the film is rather rushed, with the numerous deaths needing a little more reflection. The suicide of Goneril is though extremely powerful. Lear's death is always poignant but the direction of it doesn't work completely.

Opinions are very mixed on this film but I certainly think it deserves attention. It would especially appeal to followers of Bergman and anyone who is struck by a dark tale.