To Kill a King (2003)

A recounting of the relationship between General Fairfax and Oliver Cromwell, as they try to cope with the consequences of deposing King Charles I.

Director:

Mike Barker

Writer:

Jenny Mayhew

Stars:

Tim Roth, Dougray Scott, Olivia Williams

3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Tim Roth	...	Oliver Cromwell
Dougray Scott	...	Sir Thomas Fairfax
Olivia Williams	...	Lady Anne Fairfax
James Bolam	...	Denzil Holles
Corin Redgrave	...	Lord de Vere
Finbar Lynch	...	Cousin Henry
Julian Rhind-Tutt	...	James
Adrian Scarborough	...	Sergeant Joyce
Jeremy Swift	...	Earl of Whitby
Rupert Everett	...	King Charles I
Steven Webb	...	Boy at Naseby
Jake Nightingale	...	Colonel Pride
Leonard Woodcock	...	Young Royalist prisoner
Thomas Arnold	...	Messenger at Naseby
Sam Spruell	...	King's guard

Storyline

A recounting of the relationship between General Fairfax and Oliver Cromwell, as they try to cope with the consequences of deposing King Charles I.

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Plot Keywords:

oliver cromwell | husband wife relationship | parliament | long hair | executioner | 

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Taglines:

It takes a traitor and a hero...

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Genres:

Drama | War

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Details

Country:

UK Germany

Language:

English

Release Date:

2003 (USA)

Also Known As:

Cromwell & Fairfax

Filming Locations:

Divinity School, Bodleian Library, Broad Street, Oxford, Oxfordshire, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$14,300,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£59,701 (UK) (16 May 2003)

Gross:

£59,701 (UK) (16 May 2003)

Company Credits

Production Co:

FilmFour, IAC Film, Natural Nylon Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

102 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Goofs

In the opening sequence, Fairfax shoots the sword out of the hand of Cromwell's assassin with a flintlock pistol at about 30 yards range. Such pistols had no rifling at that period and were incapable of nowhere near such accuracy, even in the hands of an expert. To shoot at that range Fairfax would have been more likely to have hit the assassin. Also the bullet struck sparks from the sword hilt when it hit. This is impossible as the bullet would have been a soft lead ball and incapable of creating a spark.

User Reviews

A truly dreadful film

I was quite excited to see this being a fan of historical films and particularly interested in the Tudor and Stuart periods. The front of the video is presented in exactly the same style as Elizabeth which I thoroughly enjoyed. Elizabeth is relatively well researched and despite some poetic license depicts the early reign well. So this coupled with the acting prowess of Rupert Everett and Tim Roth all boded well. But what a pile of poopie. Over simplified, dreadfully inaccurate, - the list goes on = one of the most interesting periods of English History turned in to a bad Soap Opera. A significant part of the story is Fairfaxes refusal to sign Charles's death warrant. Well ladies and gentlemen in fact he was one of the first to sign. Suffice it to say the lines at the end "And England never again became a republic" (lol) sums up this little piece of filmery.