IMDb > Restoration (1995)
Restoration
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Restoration (1995) More at IMDbPro »


Overview

User Rating:
6.6/10   3,727 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Up 2% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Michael Hoffman
Writers (WGA):
Rose Tremain (novel)
Rupert Walters (screenplay)
Contact:
View company contact information for Restoration on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
2 February 1996 (Canada) more
Tagline:
In a world of seduction and power, temptation has its price.
Plot:
An aspiring young physician, Robert Merivel found himself in the service of King Charles II and saves the life of someone close to the King... more | add synopsis
Plot Keywords:
more
Awards:
Won 2 Oscars. Another 2 nominations more
User Comments:
Hidden Gem! more (35 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Robert Downey Jr. ... Robert Merivel

Sam Neill ... King Charles II

David Thewlis ... John Pearce
Polly Walker ... Celia Clemence

Meg Ryan ... Katharine

Ian McKellen ... Will Gates

Hugh Grant ... Elias Finn

Ian McDiarmid ... Ambrose
Mary MacLeod ... Midwife
Mark Letheren ... Daniel
Sandy McDade ... Hannah
Rosalind Bennett ... Eleanor
Willie Ross ... Man with Visible Heart
David Gant ... Chiffinch

Benjamin Whitrow ... Merivel's Father
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Additional Details

MPAA:
Rated R for sexuality.
Runtime:
117 min
Country:
USA | UK
Language:
English | Latin
Color:
Color
Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Dolby Digital

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
Composer James Newton Howard's main theme is based on "Sarabande" by Georg Friedrich Händel (ca. 1705). more
Goofs:
Anachronisms: A player at three-card monte reports speaks of being "even Steven". The earliest known records of both the game and the phrase are in the 19th century. more
Quotes:
[first lines]
Opening Title Card: In 1660 Charles II was restored to the English Throne ending 11 years of Oliver Cromwell's bleak Puritan rule. Thus began the age of Restoration. It was an era of scientific discovery, artistic exploration and luxurious sensuality.
Opening Title Card: It was also a time of natural disasters and archaic medical practices. Science was pitted against superstition. This is the story of one man's journey through the light and dark of those times.
more
Movie Connections:
Referenced in "Game K N B: (2007-03-03)" (2007) more

FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
17 out of 18 people found the following comment useful.
Hidden Gem!, 2 May 2000
Author: Steve P. from Cardiff, Wales

Restoration is one of the great overlooked gems of the 1990's. This movie is beautifully shot and competently directed. It is based closely on the original novel, and also reminds me of some of the more juicy excerpts from Samuel Pepys Diary. The use of real historical locations in Britain is inspired, for instance, the Fire of London and Cheapside market scenes were shot at Caerphilly Castle, the 13th-century moat doubling for the 17th-century Thames! Robert Downey gives a highly respectable performance as Merivel (and has an excellent British accent), but Meg Ryan is totally mis-cast, seeming very lost in some scenes. Sam Niell, I think, is probably the best casting for a British Monarch since Alec Guiness as Charles the First in Cromwell, and Dudley Sutton as James the First in Orlando. One of the best performances, however, comes from David Thewlis in support. His moving scenes with Downey at Tretower Court steal the movie. I worked as an extra on the movie, and some scenes for Pierce Brosnan's 'Crusoe' were shot back to back on the Cheapside market set. That movie has still to be released. 'Restoration' was filmed during 1994, and was delayed for release amid rumours of re-shooting scenes with Meg Ryan, and probable cold feet after the box-office difficulties with 'The Red Letter'.

This movie has not been given the credits it truly deserves, and is an excellent illustration of Court life and marriage politics during the reign of Britain's sexiest Monarch!

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Would've been better ....... icarus_04
Twirling around the tree scene: Instrument? Kendra14
much less than sum of its parts? JohnnyUpton12
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